God loves the righteous and protects the needy. We are called to do the same. One of my employees is a widow. She's not the first widow I've seen in her situation. Her husband's pension was based on his being alive. She cared for him for several years and then he passed away before her – not an unusual scenario. And like several women she had assumed or been told that her husband's pension would continue after his death. And while those statements have been correct in some cases, in her case (and in several more that I know) the pension went with the husband.
This is wrong. Lies have been told to these women. And at a time in their life when grief is near at hand they also have to deal with a huge change in their finances. And this is where those of us who claim the name of Christian should be asking. There are several solution that I know, there are surely more out there.
How about if when the husband or wife retires there spouse has to sign off on the pension disbursement?
How about if when the decision is made about pension benefits both spouses have to review the options?
How about having one defined benefit plan where there are no options and where the benefits continue to any survivor?
And most of these need to be worked out in a slightly more complex fashion, but they all involve getting the spouse involved so that they aren't surprised at a death by the change in pension benefits. And this is one thing that we can do to be on the side of the poor, the widow, the orphan and the stranger within our gates. The call to do so is from both Greek and Hebrew Testaments – shouldn't we be paying more attention to this call that is repeated many times than to some other issues that have been mentioned less?
The question is never about whether we are worthy. As Christians we realize that none of us is worthy to be counted as righteous before our God. The question is whether we seek to meet the needs of others. The question of meeting the needs of each other was asked by Moses when he told the people of Israel that they had a choice between life and death. It was asked when about Cain and Abel when God asked 'where is your brother?' It is asked before each of us daily as we pick up our cross. Are we looking out for the poor, the needy, the widow, the orphan, the stranger, the one without voice in the councils of the powerful?
Let us say 'Yes, I am."
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Morning: Psalm 12:1-8
[1] Help, O LORD, for there is no longer anyone who is godly;
the faithful have disappeared from humankind.
[2] They utter lies to each other;
with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
[3] May the LORD cut off all flattering lips,
the tongue that makes great boasts,
[4] those who say, "With our tongues we will prevail;
our lips are our own -who is our master?"
[5] "Because the poor are despoiled, because the needy groan,
I will now rise up," says the LORD;
"I will place them in the safety for which they long."
[6] The promises of the LORD are promises that are pure,
silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times.
[7] You, O LORD, will protect us;
you will guard us from this generation for ever.
[8] On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among humankind.
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