Are we called to be observers or participants in life? There is a growing culture of being spectators of the lives of people where we are called to express opinions of who they are. This can cause us to develop blindness which does not see the fundamental worth of the person but rather judges them by their physical appearance. We start to evaluate who a person is through what is external to them rather than what is core to their being who they are.
When we can see this in the people who are on the fringes of our lives who don't seem to fit into our well-ordered lives. We can often silence them either explicitly or implicitly when their voices make us uncomfortable and disturb our peace. This silence is not a place where they are welcomed but rather isolated and forgotten. This can be especially concerning when we start to know how it can pervade not just our daily lives but also our religious communities. When we see how easy it is to not hear the voice of those who are in greatest need.
Jesus always seeks to disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed to paraphrase the words of Cesar to Cruz. The artwork of our lives is called to be manifested in how we hold uncomfortable truths with the loving presence of Jesus. This is not to induce guilt or sympathy but rather to notice what draws our hearts into a relationship of communion and solidarity. This call to be authentically ourselves not just in seeing what the world needs but what sets us on fire to become alive. What we are called to hear is not only the voice of those on the fringes but an invitation for them to be welcome into the presence of Jesus.
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