Recently, a video made the rounds, showing an obviously disturbed woman committing what might best be termed an unsanitary act in a neighbourhood Tim Horton鈥檚. A number of media outlets published it online, but I won鈥檛 share the link. I consider it a form of pornography; but the incident does raise an important point.
According to my friend Don Lehn at , people already knew the woman and knew she was mentally ill; Don 鈥� whose newsroom did not post the video 鈥� works with the mentally ill and addicted. He says incidents like that are not uncommon.
Neither is the response many would have: 鈥済et this woman into rehab so she can be a productive member of society!鈥�
Translation: 鈥淕et this woman out of my sight so I don鈥檛 have to think about her ... but I鈥檒l mention treatment, so I don鈥檛 look callous and uncaring.鈥�
But as Don points out 鈥� and I鈥檝e seen with my friends on the Downtown East Side 鈥� people have to want to be mentally healthy and/or beat their addictions, or else treatment will have no effect. They need to have a reason to stay alive and clear-headed: if they emerge from their illness and start to look clearly at the world, only to see the same despair as before, why bother?
A fellow I knew at Gospel Mission was in danger of being evicted from his SRO because he was caught smoking crack in his room. He was 60-something at the time, had suffered a stroke a few years before; he broke his collar-bone in a fall and the doctors decided it was too risky to insert a metal plate, because he could fall, break the plate and get infected. So he was going through life, limping on a walker, with a piece of bone occasionally jutting out through his skin.
I was talking about Jim鈥檚 case with his social worker, and at one point, I pontificated, 鈥淐learly, Jim has to get off drugs.鈥� There was a pause, while the idiocy of the remark sank in, and then the worker and I said together, 鈥淲HY?鈥�
Given Jim鈥檚 physical situation, why not let him keep smoking his crack? Certainly, the threat of eviction (he wasn鈥檛, by the way) is one reason, but any one of us can help provide a reason to keep on that goes far beyond it.
It鈥檚 called HOPE, and no 鈥減rogram鈥� can instill it. For followers of Jesus Christ, that鈥檚 our job.
Jesus tells a parable of a man who was mugged, robbed and left for dead on the side of the road. A number of people see him and cross the road to walk past him, but one man 鈥� a Samaritan 鈥� stops, gives a form of first aid, then takes him to an inn and tells the innkeeper to let him stay there until he鈥檚 recovered. He pays up-front for the care and promises to pay anything over that when he returns.
Jesus tells the parable in answer to the question, 鈥淲ho is my neighbour?鈥�, so His point is that your neighbour is anyone you see who is in need. The colour of that person鈥檚 skin, their age, background, whether they 鈥渄eserved鈥� to be in that position or 鈥渂rought it on themselves鈥� doesn鈥檛 matter: what matters is, they鈥檙e in need and you鈥檙e able to help.
But the Samaritan was wealthy 鈥� he certainly had enough money to cover the injured man鈥檚 medical treatment and accommodations: what can I do?
Let鈥檚 turn that on its ear: the Samaritan did what he could. So can we.
It doesn鈥檛 take much to help someone 鈥渢urn the corner鈥�. It doesn鈥檛 take a particular college degree, special training or a large staff with a multi-million-dollar facility. It just takes something any one of us can give.
Love.
Kindness.
Simply saying 鈥渉ello鈥� to someone can break through walls that have taken years to build up. Treating them like another human being, rather than a 鈥渟treet person鈥� or an addict or someone who needs help, can be the catalyst that gets them feeling like there鈥檚 something worth striving for in their lives.
That is the essence of following Jesus Christ. His half-brother, James, writes, 鈥淧ure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.鈥� (James 1:27 NKJV)
Frankly, who is more of an orphan than someone who鈥檚 lost everything in their lives because of addiction or mental illness? Keeping yourself 鈥渦nspotted from the world鈥� is simply refusing to to join the chorus of judgment that causes people to pass by on the other side, or to fall into the groupthink that people who are head-sick should be 鈥渢reated鈥�, 鈥減ut away鈥�, or handed over to 鈥渢hem鈥� to be 鈥渇ixed鈥�.
Sure, there鈥檚 an element of fear: fear of getting too close to someone who鈥檚 鈥渓opsided鈥� or that they might do something irrational. Fear of being seen talking to a weirdo. Fear of being exposed to a side of life that makes us uncomfortable, because that person could be us. Jesus provides us with a way of overcoming that fear and pressing forward.
Jesus invites us to come out of our comfort zones to help raise others out of their sadness and despair. But He does more than 鈥渋nvite鈥� us, like a cheerleader, waving pompoms on the sidelines. He promises to get involved when we do.
鈥淵ou shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.鈥� (Acts 1:8 NKJV) Being Jesus鈥� witness involves deeds as much as words, and the Holy Spirit gives you strength that you don鈥檛 naturally have to take that first step ... and the next ... and the one after that.
Think of it: yours may be the word that sets someone on the path to health. It could be the first kind, loving, word that they hear, or it could be part of a chorus, confirming that they, too, are children of God and worthy of being healed.
If you don鈥檛 take that step and say it, who will?
Drew Snider is a writer and former broadcaster who pastored for ten years on Vancouver's Downtown East Side. He's an occasional guest speaker at churches and writes a blog, ""
You can read more articles on our multifaith blog, Spiritually Speaking,
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