He gets us ad

The "He gets us" ad. Such a kerfuffle. It amazes me that so much misunderstanding and suspicion can ooze from such a simple message--Jesus' message. Mostly I've heard very conservative Evangelicals question it. They see a subtle SJW message. But here's a liberal Catholic:

"Even as I look at the images in the foot-washing ad, I note that several of them feature white Christians washing the feet of people of color—a priest washing the feet of a young gay Black man; a suburban mother washing the feet of a migrant who has just gotten off a bus. It feels patronizing, self-congratulatory: The white people performing humility as a sly power move to cement their authority in this situation.

As charitable as I try to be in watching something like this, I cannot help but wonder if this isn’t a Protestant evangelical sneak attack of some kind. A slick ad that somehow lays down groundfire for something more proselytizing to come in and penetrate our very brains."

The foot washing questions. That seems foreign to many. I was baptized in The Church of the Brethren, an Anabaptist group formed in 1708; foot washing is part of the communion service as it is for Amish and Mennonite groups (there are many different sects). It reenacts a passage from John and symbolizes humility, service and the call to love. If the writer thinks the ad unnecessarily shows whites in the role of being the humble, loving servant, maybe he should think about how that works with your fellow church member--the one you think sings off key in the choir or is a different political party or is the teacher who flunked your kid. Not all sins are about about sex and race--that's media hype.

 
Millions were watching that ad who perhaps had never heard of Jesus except as a swear word. Maybe they will ask a question. Maybe they hate white people, or black people, but maybe they hate their ex-wife, or co-worker, or are depressed about their failures, or are discouraged and suicidal -- and if this ad points them toward repentance and restoration, God love 'em.

God's Wife

I rarely repost internet memes, but this one in Rusty’s e-mail really had appeal.  It reminds me of the Gospel of Matthew 25, and also the form of Communion we used/use in the Church of the Brethren which is a community meal and foot washing.

An eye witness account from New York City: On a cold day in December, some years ago: A little boy, about 10-years-old, was standing before a shoe store on the roadway, barefooted, peering through the window, and shivering with cold.

A lady approached the young boy and said, 'My, but you're in such deep thought staring in that window!' 'I was asking God to give me a pair of shoes,' was the boy's reply. The lady took him by the hand, went into the store, and asked the clerk to get half a dozen pairs of socks for the boy. She then asked if he could give her a basin of water and a towel. He quickly brought them to her. She took the little fellow to the back part of the store and, removing her gloves, knelt down, washed his little feet, and dried them with the towel. By this time, the clerk had returned with the socks. Placing a pair upon the boy's feet, she purchased him a pair of shoes.She tied up the remaining pairs of socks and gave them to him. She patted him on the head and said, 'No doubt, you will be more comfortable now..'

As she turned to go, the astonished kid caught her by the hand, and looking up into her face, with tears in his eyes, asked her:

'Are you God's wife?'