The Emptiness of Our Hands



An article in today's Columbus Dispatch (see link) reinforces unfortunate stereotypes about homelessness, even while admitting to doing so. The piece concerns a homeless man befriended by members of a local church, who were impressed "by the fact that he didn't have the appearance, vices or behavior stereotypically associated with the homeless.He didn't show signs of a drinking or a drug problem, he didn't ask for money and he didn't appear mentally ill."

I've gotten to know many homeless people through a ministry at St. John's Church in Columbus called The Largest Table, and only a few exhibited any of these characteristics. The vast majority are people just like you and me who are down on their luck. Without question the homeless are the most spiritually rich people I have ever known. Their faith is all they have, so it burns brightly. 

And anyway, I'd like to pose this question who continues to insist on theses stereotypes: If homeless, wouldn't you take a drink now and then to dull the pain? Wouldn't you, over time, show some signs of mental instability if you had to sleep on a bench or under a bridge, grovel for food, and suffer the indignity of passersby looking the other way if they happened to see you on the street?

A few years ago a pair of social workers in Columbus experimented with spending the entirety of Lent homeless, on the street, to see what it was really like. Their harrowing tale is chronicled powerfully in the book The Emptiness of Our Hands: A Lent Lived on the Streets. They suffered near-nervous breakdowns and experienced post-traumatic stress syndrome long afterward. I highly recommend it, particularly as we approach Thanksgiving and Advent.
  

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