WIDOWS AND ORPHANS
A Sermon by Dean Scotty McLennan
University Public Worship
Stanford Memorial Church
November 8, 2009
"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God...is this: to care for the orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world."[i] So writes James, traditionally seen as the brother of Jesus,[ii] in his New Testament letter. Caring for widows and orphans is a common ethical requirement in the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible and was practiced by the early Christian community as reported in the book of Acts.[iii] So when Jesus denounces scribes who "like to walk around in long robes and to be greeted with respect in the marketplace" in today's gospel lesson[iv] by saying that they "devour widows' houses," he's playing a variation on a theme that's had a long history in the Jewish world and is destined to have a long history in Christianity. God himself, according to today's reading from Psalms,[v] "executes justice for the oppressed...gives food to the hungry...lifts up those who are bowed down...[and] upholds the orphan and the widow."
We're in the midst of economic hard times these days, when widows and orphans have been particularly at risk. Many a widow's house has been devoured in mortgage foreclosures resulting from comparatively wealthy bankers' predatory subprime lending practices. Many more orphans are homeless and hungry than they were a couple of years ago. The House of Representatives passed a bill yesterday for a new health care plan for the nation, which promises to respond to the tens of millions who are without health care in America, many of them widows and orphans. At the same time, we have rising populist anger at Wall Street bankers who are seen as playing a central role in the Great Recession. Particularly outrageous is the fact that while 15 million Americans are out of work, Wall Street firms like Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, and Bank of America are giving out up to $30 billion in bonuses each, with Goldman Sach's 2009 payout averaging $700,000 per employee benefited. These are the same investment banks that received hundreds of billions in taxpayer-financed loans so that they could avoid bankruptcy a year ago. Financial firms also spent $224 million lobbying in the first half of the year to fight proposed legislative reforms, including strong regulation of derivatives which helped drive the economic collapse.[vi]
"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God...is this: to care for the orphans and widows in their distress." The care these days in America seems to be going disproportionately to those who "like to walk around in long robes and to be greeted with respect in the marketplace" while they "devour widows' houses."
Our gospel lesson today also describes a poor widow who puts two small copper coins into the Temple treasury -- described as "everything she had, all she had to live on."[vii] Jesus compares her generosity to rich people who are contributing large sums to this particular charity, but nowhere near as much on a percentage basis as this poor widow. I've long been struck by the fact that America's poor are its most generous givers. This was conclusively demonstrated recently by a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report explaining that the poorest fifth of Americans give at a percentage rate more than double of the richest fifth of Americans. And unlike the rich, the poor don't even get a tax deduction for their contributions since they don't earn enough to itemize deductions.[viii] But, as a 40 year old laid-off security guard and single mother explained earlier this year, "As a rule, people who have money don't know people in need." She contributes $5-10 per week of her $110 unemployment check to help others without any income, saying, "I've been in their position, and someday I might be again." She added, "I believe the more I give, the more I receive, and that God loves a cheerful giver."[ix] By contrast, yesterday's paper reported that the charitable foundation of billionaire Meg Whitman, former CEO of eBay, gave away only a quarter of a percent of its 46 million dollars in assets during its first year in 2007 and now faces a stiff penalty if it didn't give away far more money in 2008 -- the tax returns for which are due next week. Foundations are supposed to contribute at least 5% of their assets annually.[x] "Religion that is pure and undefiled before God...is this: to care for the orphans and widows in their distress."
Health care in America is a critical area where the lessons of today's gospel reading should be applied, I believe. What would Jesus say about universal heath coverage? Health care reform is as much a moral and religious issue as it is political and economic. Almost 80% of Americans claim to be Christian, according to a 2008 study by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life.[xi] Jesus' first public act when he began his ministry was to declare that he'd been anointed to bring good news to the poor (Luke 4:18). The last lesson he taught his disciples before his crucifixion was to feed the hungry and take care of the sick.[xii] And from first to last Jesus was known far and wide as a healer. He healed those who were blind, deaf and mute; lepers, paralyzed people, the lame and the crippled; those who were feverish, hemorrhaging, and dying. It didn't matter if they were children or old people, men or women, people of his own nation or foreigners (including hated ones like Roman soldiers). His health care covered all.
In our current health care debates, we need to be clear about fundamental principles. Coverage should be universal, no matter what we might decide about who the payers are and exactly how much coverage should be provided. We are a nation founded on the creed that all people are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, including the right to the preservation of our lives. Yes, there have long been philosophical debates about whether this is a negative right (to not be deprived of my life) or a positive right (to have my life safeguarded). But Jesus always acted positively and told us to do so. Cure those who need to be cured. No questions asked. Just do it. "Religion that is pure and undefiled before God...is this: to care for the orphans and widows in their distress."
The notion of a fundamental right to health care for all isn't just a Christian assertion. More than 60 years ago in 1948, the United States and all other nations on the face of the earth, except for six who abstained, subscribed to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It affirms the inalienable right to medical care and security in the event of sickness or disability. All other industrialized countries now have universal health care, except for the United States of America. More than 40 million people are currently uninsured here, according to census reports[xiii] and the non-partisan National Academy of Science.[xiv] That's simply shameful. No matter whether we argue that health care should be financed by the government, private insurance, or charities (including churches), there should be common agreement that universal health care is a moral obligation in America. Let's make sure we start there -- and then argue about effective and fiscally responsible implementation.
This is far from my personal ministerial opinion. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has long been clear that health care is a basic human right. They explain that universal coverage is rooted in Jesus’ call to heal the sick and serve "the least of these." It shouldn't matter where one works or lives, or how much a family earns, because all people are equally created in the image of God.[xv] The primarily Protestant National Council of Churches has long been committed to universal health care too -- as a sacred tradition, a biblical teaching, and a human right.[xvi] And as Rev. Jim Wallis, the evangelical editor of Sojourner's magazine, insists, "Every so often there is an issue that is so clear and compelling, or so alarming and disconcerting, that it really does galvanize the faith community."[xvii] Universal coverage must be an unambiguous starting point for health care reform in America.
In terms of those who "like to walk around in long robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplace," I was dumbfounded by an article in Friday's San Jose Mercury News explaining that the large Wall Street firms like Goldman Sachs and Citigroup have started receiving swine flu vaccine for their at-risk employees, while locally here in Santa Clara County there were only 4,400 doses available yesterday at the county's first public vaccination clinic with an estimated 700,000 residents at high risk of the disease. Countywide only 40,000 doses have been made available to 85 health care providers, less than 6% of the at-risk need. A union official in New York complained that employees of "Wall Street firms shouldn't have access to the vaccine before less wealthy Americans." As John Van Deventer wrote for the Service Employees International Union, "Wall Street banks have already taken so much from us. They've taken trillions of our tax dollars. They've taken away people's homes who are struggling to pay the bills. But they should not be allowed to take away our health and well-being."[xviii]
When Jesus sent his disciples out to preach, as Mark reports. he prohibited them from accumulating riches or moving from household to household to find better accommodations.[xix] Jesus continually warned them against seeking honor for themselves rather than serving others."[xx] He asked them to be defenders of the widow, the orphan, and the poor, rather than being their oppressors and enemies.[xxi]"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God...is this: to care for the orphans and widows in their distress."
The President of the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative policy-research organization, has studied charitable giving patterns in the United States, finding that church attenders give more money than non-attenders to secular and religious charities. Ironically, this is so because above-average numbers of poor people go to church and they are more generous in their giving than richer people. Fifty-eight percent of non-contributors with above-median incomessay they don't have enough money to give any away. By contrast, the working poor, disproportionate numbers of whom are recent immigrants, are America's most generous group.[xxii] Immigrants also send a lot of money back home in the form of remittances, which don't show up in surveys of charitable giving. The CFO of a major remittance agency near Washington, D.C. further reports that low-income immigrants are much more generous than higher-income immigrants: "The domestic helpers send very, very frequently," she explains. "The doctors, less so."[xxiii] Just like Jesus’ story of the poor widow with the two copper coins.
May we become one, rich and poor, in our devotion to care for orphans and widows in their distress. May we become one in building for tomorrow a nobler world than we have known today. May we be one in searching for that meaning which binds our hearts and points us on our way.[xxiv]
BENEDICTION
(In the words of James) "Be doers of the word, and not merely hearers...
Those who look into the perfect law...and persevere,
Being not hearers who forget, but doers who act --
They will be blessed in their doing. AMEN.
(James 1: 22-25)
NOTES
1
[i] James 1:27.
[ii] Harold W. Attridge (ed.), The Harper Collins Study Bible (New York: HarperOne, 2006), p. 2052.
[iii]Oxford Bible Commentary (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001), p. 1259.
[iv] Mark 12: 38-44.
[v] Psalm 146.
[vi] "Wall Street: The Good Times Are Rolling Again," The Week (October 30, 2009), p. 4.
[vii] Mark 12:44.
[viii] Katherine Gustafson, "The Amazing Generosity of America's Poor," Tonic,
[ix] Frank Greve, "America's Poor Are Its Most Generous Givers," McClatchy Newspapers (May 21, 2009),
[x] Ken McLaughlin, "Tax Records Shed Light on Whitman's Donations," San Jose Mercury News (November 7, 2009), p. A1.
[xi] The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, U.S. Religious Landscape Survey (1988),
[xii]Matthew 25: 35-36.
[xiii]Associated Press, "Number of Uninsured Americans Rises to 46.3 Million," (September 10, 2009), www2.tbo.com/content/2009/sep/10/101110/number-uninsured-americans-rises-46
[xiv]Institute of Medicine of the National Academies, "America's Uninsured Crisis: Consequences for Health and Health Care" (February 23, 2009),
[xv] United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, "Health Care Reform" (2009),
[xvi] National Council of Churches of Christ, "Renewed Faith Community Universal Health Care Campaign" (November 1999),
[xvii]Jim Wallis, "People of Faith and Health-care Reform," Sojourner's Magazine (August 13, 2009).
[xviii] Karen Matthews, "Big Wall Street Firms Getting Swine Flu Vaccine," San Jose Mercury News ((November 6, 2009), p. D3.
[xix] Mark 6: 8-20; The New Interpreter's Bible (Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 1995), Vol. VIII, p. 681.
[xx] Mark 9:33-35; 10:42-45; Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VIII, p. 681.
[xxi]Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VIII, p. 682.
[xxii] Arthur Brooks, Who Really Cares (New York: Basic Books, 2006) as cited in Greve, "America's Poor."
[xxiii] Greve, "America's Poor."
[xxiv] Samuel Anthony Wright, "We Would Be One," Singing the Living Tradition (Boston: Beacon Press, 1993), #318.