A Christian Response to the Homelessness Epidemic
I am coming at this highly nuanced situation, both with a burning righteous indignation, and a soft, compassionate heart. This is a delicate, if not impossible position to hold.
Many of us are told you are either compassionate or you are not. The world tells us that in order for us to really live by our book (The book they don’t believe) we must be empathetic and personally take on the task of solving the homeless epidemic. Any hesitation or pushback that isn’t giving these people full access to our churches, homes, bank accounts, and families.. is seen as callous and very un- Christ like.
We as Christians are in the crossfire of Godzilla and King Kong, battling it out, while wearing the same jersey… a jersey that says “love thy neighbor”.
We must love our neighbor… That’s undeniable, but I submit to you that we also have a responsibility to not enable our neighbor… protect our families… protect our church members… and care for the house of God. Balancing the tightrope of how to accomplish this is nearly impossible.
The world will never be happy with us, so how do we honor our Christ when it comes to the homeless epidemic? We should at least aim to honor Him as He is the one whose opinion matters.
A church nearby is struggling at the moment, caught between Godzilla and King Kong, both wearing jerseys that say “love thy neighbor”.
Let me explain my silly analogy for a minute. Godzilla wearing a “love thy neighbor” jersey represents the God-given desire and requirement to protect and help those in need.
There really are people who live on the streets and need help with basic necessities. They don’t have safety money, much resources, or any way to really get out of the situation they are in, but sometimes people who are in these situations (often facing mental health or addiction problems) end up acting entitled, disrespectful, and out of control/dangerous. That’s where we introduce King Kong wearing a “love thy neighbor”
jersey. King Kong is the other side of this. King Kong is loving your wife, children, church members, and community by not enabling people who are terrorizing those around them with needles, bodily waste, and violent outbreaks.
There comes a point where the same biblical principle starts working against itself if you allow it. Investing in one means harming the other. Each side is toting a true biblical principle and commandment, but there comes a point in which we must choose if we support King Kong or Godzilla.
The world will point the finger at us and sacrifice our finances, church buildings,homes, and our families to throw at this homeless epidemic… as long as they don’t have to deal with it themselves. What it comes down to is actually addressing a few elephants in the room, in hopes honoring God in how we choose to respond to this homelessness epidemic.
Enabling
The Bible says to do good to people when you can, plain and simple. However, we aren’t always helping when we think we are. Sometimes we may think we’re helping the homeless by giving them money or resources and that may promote them to continue using drugs and not seek bettering themselves. Now I know what you’re thinking.. “not all homeless people are on drugs”. I know that.. but many, if not most, are. You are lying to yourself if you think otherwise, or simply don’t get out much.
When I lived in Portland, I experienced this truth over and over. One time a man was exposing himself and committing a vile act in broad daylight, and he was facing our car with my wife and children in the car. At our home, my children could not play outside unsupervised in the front or backyard. The front of our house had people doing meth in a van. The back of our house was backed up to a village of people who lived in RVs.
I feel zero shame telling you that I hesitate before giving homeless people money on the streets. It's not usually a mom standing on the corner with her kids… It’s usually a man who is tweaked out of his mind, who could be working for money, but wants the money I work hard to provide for my family. I am not being a good steward of the resources if I just give it away to everyone who claims they need it. Giving that person money will enable them to keep living that life. It also would be a detriment to my family as well because we need that money. It's a lose lose.
2. Protecting our families/ church families.
Now I will get into the situation with the local church. This sitation is not unique. This is happening all over the United States. It’s no surprise when you read or watch the news for places like Portland, Seattle, and San Francisco, that a lot of these people living on the streets are insanely dangerous.
Giving these people free access to our homes and churches is not wise. Notice what I am saying. I’m
Not saying “NO ACCESS”. We should welcome some of these people into churches and possibly even our homes at times, but with restrictions and supervision.
There is a church in my area that has been trying to help these people by allowing them to live on site. The church has to have the main building locked up, even though the homeless can live on site, to keep the church secretary safe. A church member was confronted by one of the homeless and was told “you shouldn’t be locking us out!” That is an example of someone who is wearing out their welcome. As soon as you start trying to make the rules against the people who are helping you, you have gone too far.
However, safety isn’t the only thing to keep in mind..how about good old fashioned respect?
3. Reverence for the house of God.
The people living on the church's property not only let their dogs go to the bathroom without cleaning it up, they themselves relieve their bladders where they please. They have been caught urinating by church members. This is not acceptable behavior.
A church building is a gift that not every believer in this world gets to experience. It is a place where believers meet to praise God's name and it should be a place that is well taken care of and respected. Things should be decent and in order.
The point of all this.
I don’t know how to solve this homelessness epidemic. This is a complex issue. The answer is not “do nothing” but it certainly also is not “ make Christians deal with it.. even to the detriment of their own safety and church property.”
I believe we have a responsibility to love our neighbor, but all neighbors need to be considered. The person living on the streets is my neighbor, but so is my wife. So are my children. So are my fellow church goers.
