7 - The Poverty of Jesus

  

                                                    POVERTY OF CHRIST

                                              12 Aspects to the Poverty of Jesus

                  (Poverty and God are closely related - to know one is to sacrifice for the other)

1 – BORN IN A STABLE:  (Symbolic of the poor living condition for those in poverty.) The Holy Family was a poor family and Jesus was born in an animal barn that was stinking and most likely filled with insects. There was no midwife to help with the birth. However, something was special because God came into flesh within this simple and humble way. REFLECTION: When I have to recreate or rediscover myself, it is like going back to the basics (to my core existence) in order to be born into newest. With the nativity, God was establishing a new way for human kind to relate to him by getting down onto our most basic level of identifying with him - being an ordinary poor person of the time (a defenseless and helpless baby in need of love).

I do not normally think of Jesus as poor because we now realize that he is God and God should not appear weak or defenseless or exploited based on some people’s concepts of being poor. However, it is misleading to eliminate Jesus’ humble, simple, pauper existence because it helps us to better understand ourselves, the poor and how deeply God wants to relate to humanity. REFLECTION: Do you see poverty as weakness? Can you better understand the poor through Jesus’ pauper existence? Does it help to better understand your faith?

2 – WENT INTO EXILE: (Symbolic of those who flee poverty to find better conditions somewhere else.) The baby Jesus became an immigrant (a foreigner) when his family fled to Egypt to escape his possible death. His simple baby’s existence was a threat to the ruler who feared a new king would come to rule in his place. REFLECTION: It is amazing that even Christ could had been consider an alien by some. To escape hardship or even death he had to flee. Suppose the Egyptians had our modern attitude towards new arrivals?

3 – BECAME A LOST CHILD:  (Symbolic of the feeling of being lost when in poverty.)
 Jesus’ parents had lost him in Jerusalem. Eventually he was found in the temple. He was a 12 year old boy (going into manhood based on his cultural standards) lost. REFLECTION: Religious places of worship would be the place to find comfort when it appears you are lost.  However, there are poor lost kids today who cannot find comfort. No one is searching to love them. They find comfort in gangs, or sometimes start their journey of being lost through drugs. It is easy for a child to have no meaning – to feel lost in our modern complicated culture. But Jesus (as a lost child) found meaning through faith and those who were caring for him found meaning through a child. When you feel lost, does faith help you to belong and find comfort? Why?

Children have to grow up in poverty have very little childhood - their childhood can be lost. Within poverty children (in Jesus' time) had to help to maintain any family income. They worked doing earns in return for any material goods they could contribute to the family.  For example they could help an adult for some pieces of bread or for some salt. Sometime school lessens could be secondary to helping the family to survive. Can the children of the poor today be missing out on having a childhood too?

4 – BECAME A CARPENTER: (Symbolic of the working poor who live in poverty.)  At this time in Jewish history, most carpenters were farmers who lost their land due to weather conditions and high taxes. They were considered some of the lowest of the low among the peasant class. Jesus understood what it was like to be marginalized in society since he too was on the fringes of his culture struggling to simply survive. REFLECTION: Why would Jesus become a lowly carpenter instead of a person of status? Paul stated that through his poverty we find our riches - our faith (see 2 Cor. 8:9). There is no free wiliness to accept faith when it is introduced through control or power; therefore, poverty had to be the way for the Christian Faith to begin. Was Christianity a grassroots movement (from the bottom up or from the lowly to the more established)? When do you feel you are the lowest of the low?

5 – MISSING ADULT YEARS: (Symbolic of how poverty is un-noticed by many people.) I believe that poverty is the reason for so much of Jesus’ life being blank from scripture and history. When you are poor, life is uneventful (ordinary) with the same daily struggles to survive within your attempts to live honestly. Jesus lived at a time when society consisted of those who “Had” and of those who “Had Not”. Poverty was ordinary and corruption was customary. For example, the Jewish authorities expected 20% of your agricultural income. There was a 1% land tax and the Romans had a 12% crop tax. The tax collector had his own undefined cut too.  In addition there was tribute, toil and custom taxes. Jesus lived in one of the poorest areas of the Roman Empire to begin with, so hardships became great especially during bad periods of weather or civil turmoil.

On one side of society there is exploitation at the expense of others, there was cruelty, there was greed and abuse of power. On the other side there was a struggle through having little, being hungry and needing essentials. There was a big gap between the two.

Poverty can be unseen and un-noticed; however, during the worst of times you can see the best of people. Generosity also appears un-noticed or missing from sight; but it was important for survival. Someone with extra milk from their cow would share it with others. A child with worn out clothing would receive the clothing of a neighbor’s deceased child. A carpenter might repair a widower’s door (for free) with their extra wood. To be given extra eggs or bread from a fellow neighbor made a big difference. Since generosity is un-noticed, it could not be taxed. During the missing years, God was among us seeing our generosity at work with the poor but not necessarily with most of the rich. REFLECTION:  What are the missing (un-noticed) parts of your life? Is generosity missing too? Was Jesus’ time much different that our time concerning attitudes?

6 – BECAME A HOMELESS PREACHER: (Symbolic of homeless conditions within poverty.)
 Jesus established his ministry by moving from one small town to another (over and over again). He depended on the generosity of others for food and drink. Jesus said: “He had no bed to rest his head” (MT.8:22).  His statement: “Blessed are the poor … the hungry” had real meaning because he too was poor and hungry. REFLECTION: I can’t travel from small town to town. I can (through my loving actions) be an example of faith on each person’s level. Is that enough? At times do you feel homeless inside – no place of real meaning since everything is telling you to put meaning on that? What is the simple solution that Jesus found?

7 – BECAME WITHDRAWN WITHIN A WILDERNESS: (Symbolic of the vast areas of isolation with no growth or economic activity within poor areas.) Jesus went off to be by himself with no food or drink for 40 days. During this time the Devil gave Jesus 3 temptations. If accepted, they would have been the easy way to be powerful or be acknowledged (instead of being a poor hungry person struggling). REFLECTIONS: In poor communities today crime and gang activity can become the easy way to importance and wealth. However, anything that does not contain sacrifice is lacking love. What causes you to have wilderness experiences?

8 – WAS NOT ACCEPTED: (Symbolic of how others avoid, deny and sometimes completely reject those living in poverty.) Those with authority in his society did not accept Jesus or his message or his status of poverty and simplicity. Eventually they wanted him died. REFLECTIONS: What about today? Can someone with no voice or status be recognized and accepted? Whenever Jesus had a voice, others wanted to destroy him. Can the powerless be respected? Jesus had no powerful position in society, no status; but his simple way to seeing faith threaten the religious leaders of his day. Can you stand up and have a voice in support of your beliefs – when necessary?

9 – BECOMES COMPANIONS WITH UNDESIRABLES: (Symbolic of the judgments placed upon the poor without knowing them personally.) Most of his friends were lowly members of society or marginalized or rejected. There was an adulteress, a tax collector, cleaned lepers, fishermen, healed cripples, the poor, and foreigners. His followers were rejected as sinners or unclean or lowly. REFLECTION: Why would you need faith if you were perfect? Some of my best known friends are reformed sinners who occasionally have to renew their reform status. Can you love those who are different than you?

10 – KILLED AS A COMMON CRIMINAL: (Symbolic of how the poor are suspected of crimes much more easily than others.)  Jesus was stripped bear, beaten, tortured and allowed to die a very painful slow death. It was punishment for stepping out of his place in life - being more than society says he should be. REFLECTIONS: Can this be true today, can you be punished for challenging authority when it is not your position to do so? What sacrifices do you make for what you love? If you were a Roman or Jewish authority (in that crucifixion time), would the punishment of Jesus match the crime? Today, do some of our punishments match the crime (when so many of our prisoners are poor)?

11 – MISTAKEN AS A GARDENER: (Symbolic of how the poor are not recognized for who they really are.) 
When Jesus was resurrected, Mary believed he was a lowly garden. Even in his resurrected state he wanted to appear ordinary (a working class man of poor status) so people could easily related to him. REFLECTION: When I help those in need, my attitude should never be one of superiority or giving no personal dignity. The resurrected Jesus appeared not as a big magic show but in a non-frightening manner as ordinary and humble. What creates fear in you but know it is good for you? Do you think simple (ordinary) things can be less frightening?

12 - BROKEN BODY OF CHRIST: (Symbolic of the brokenness of poverty through misunderstanding and being treated with negative behavior.)  We are broken into pieces, separating ourselves from Christian wholeness. Our physical, mental, spiritual and moral poverty can contribute to our disunity. However, through the poverty of Jesus we can heal some of our brokenness. We can heal our additive non-loving behavior and our abuses towards one another. We can respect all people and encourage opportunity, fellowship, and Christian love for all.

NOTE: There is nothing wrong with being wealthy or having status if these things are not your identity or your meaning in life. There is nothing wrong with being a person of power or authority when it is used for the good of all. Our living God (whose spirit can be within all hearts) must be our God that gives us true purpose. This means that we should be responsible and sharing; therefore, to shed our personal egos (in order to humble our state of existence). NOTE: Catholics can use these 12 aspects of the Poverty of Jesus as mysteries when they use the Franciscan Crown for pray.                                    D. Crone

DOOR NOB DEVOTIONAL BEADS (for the Poverty of Jesus):

Symbolic of when go and when you come - that there are the 12 aspects of the poverty of Jesus within you.


QUESTIONS:

1 How does the poverty of Jesus relate to the poverty of today?
2 How does the poverty of Jesus help you to better identify with the poor?
3 Why is poverty not a weakness of character or a lack of ambition?
4 We all have experienced some type of poverty: physical, mental, spiritual and moral. What type have you personally experience?






5 What was the result of your poverty?