The gospel truth about some readers

[Quetzal]

The gospel truth about some readers

Many people say Christians are under siege this Christmas from godless types who want to give us a black eye. I don't buy it for one simple reason: No one knows how to give us Christians a bigger black eye than the people who call themselves Christians.

This week, a number of my fellow Christians took time from worship to criticize a column I wrote about the homeless. They didn't write to tell me about their concern for the 8,000 homeless in Minnesota or the fact that half of them are women and kids or that 100 of them died this year.

No, they wrote to say that even though we will always have the poor with us, as Jesus said, that doesn't mean those poor buggers shouldn't get out of the way of our SUVs.

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The gospel truth about some readers

[bobbieinok]

1. great article

....

"Joseph and Mary were NOT homeless," wrote Steve. "They were forced to go to Bethlehem by Caesar Augustus, who undoubtedly was the world's first liberal Democrat."

Wow, that's right (picture me slapping my forehead)! It's coming back to me now: Caesar built the Roman roads, conquered Gaul and traded on his friendship with Jesse Jackson to get appointed secretary of labor in the Clinton administration!

All I was trying to do in my homeless column was draw a timely connection between the poor and the Christmas story. This was a connection the nuns drew sharply for me in my formative years. And as I have written about the poor for the past 20 years, it has always been with the echo in my head of what the nuns told me Jesus had said: "Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me."

But dang me, I left out the important part: Mary and Joseph weren't homeless; they were just being shoved around by Democrats. And it's only because the Democrats have been laid low by Republicans that we are hearing anything about homeless scum now. That's what one Christian columnizer wrote on the Wall Street Journal online opinion site Thursday, citing my homeless column in little old Minneapolis as proof of a four-year-old prediction that the Democrats would crank up homeless stories if George W. Bush were elected.

....

[Why Syzygy]

2. Ignorance runs rampant

doesn't it?

Once upon a time I had 'friends' who judge those less fortunate than themselves in the same manner.

The compassionate-less compassionate, eh?

For all their horn tooting and self aggrandizement, they are obviously a selfish lot.

p.s. GIVE ME A BREAK! This just makes me so ANGRY! It's all about the "homeless STORIES"? Like there are no actual people involved?

Or, if so, it's all their damn fault that the economy sux and there is scant social network anymore (ty gutless RWers).
Where do these (so called) PEOPLE get off?

[RC]

3. I wrote the Columnist an e-mail

Telling him he did a good job.

Nick Coleman is at [e-mail].

I can imagine the flack he gets for telling the truth about hypocrites.

[maxudargo]

4. Jesus.

What a warped world. But I applaud the guy who wrote the columns.

[tooncesj0nes]

5. i read this article-

I know alot of the frustration people feel about the homeless is that we have tried many times in the past to help along the 'less fortunate' only to see them repeatedly make decisions that are self destructive..Ive owned multiple rental properties for 17 years..and have often rented to those that others wouldnt give a chance to...ive offered work to, not charged deposits, lowered rents...i could write a book about people who are headed for homelessness..its very frustrating because in the end, almost 100% of the time, ive been 'the bad guy' and i usually end up with a big mess to clean up....people are fed up with this comparison to jesus..my less fortunate tennants have been career con people who make decisions that put their children at risk..for the benefit of some cheap short term pleasure...

[Why Syzygy]

6. Still

I am hoping because you are posting on this board that you would not "push a button and make the homeless die and disappear without repercussions". Is that a reasonable "solution"?

Many successful people make bad choices too, don't they?

I feel for your situation. If what you say is true, you have tried to resolve the situation as best you can from your position.

The letters Mr. Coleman cites are heartless, no matter the circumstances.
Agreed?

[tooncesj0nes]

9. while mr colemans example..

..are indeed heartless, i know they do not represent the population in general...

[xchrom]

7. thank you for the anecdotal evidence

of course there's much more to the story...
kind of like there's more to compassionate conservatism:eyes:

[demnan]

8. Of course you are right

but if these people weren't self-destructive it goes without saying they wouldn't be in the mess they're in. It was good of you to at least try and give them a chance. There are a lot of cynical people in the social welfare business and I think that is the reason. But the frustrations and failures were not yours, but theirs, and you have to continue to give the next person a chance.

[salin]

10. and yet

despite your cynicism (if I read you correctly) you continued to give people a break. Good for you. We lead by example.

I have worked with many families on the economic edge - and indeed some of the "adults" living on the economic brink end up acting in "shady" ways (at least from our perspective)... I think that they view it as trying to survive. Doesn't excuse the sometimes awful behavior (and working with the kids in these families - sometimes I want to weep.) But that perspective does help me understand it - and remain helpful - but cautious.

[tooncesj0nes]

11. I have for all of the 17 years...

..'looked the other way'and given opportunities to the marginalized in my properties..the last 'failure' was a man with 3 kids who was on house arrest for dui- he was about to be evicted (he lived next door to a house I owned here in Indianapolis)- I let him work off several months rent..and had seen only the good side of this man for a year..the day he went off probation, i saw a completely different person..Ive seen this before with another tennant on probation..as soon as they were 'free'..the old friends and behaviours re-appeared...he eventually had to go back to jail...amidst unpaid rent,broken promises and piles of garbage full of mice....