As this is in my head, I read Pat Robertson's comments concerning the Haiti earthquake,
"Something happened a long time ago in Haiti and people might not want to talk about. They were under the heel of the French, you know Napoleon the third and whatever. And they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said 'We will serve you if you will get us free from the prince.' True story. And so the devil said, 'Ok it's a deal.' And they kicked the French out. The Haitians revolted and got something themselves free. But ever since they have been cursed by one thing after another."
The sarcastic side of my wants to quip about how Pat Robertson must be really old to remember what happened in Haiti in 1806. My recollection is that some of the Haitian revolutionaries against the French may have been in Voodoo, but I cannot remember how accurate that was. Ultimately, I'm not sure how significant it is either. The French who were there were not practicing Christianity, enslaving another race of people and giving them subhuman status, status inherently not in accord with being made in God's image, a core Christian tenet. In any event, the Haitians in 1806 revolted against oppressive French rule to gain their self determined freedom. I'm sure its possible Robertson is more in touch with spiritual matters than I am, but I am dubious as to his so called knowledge and ability to relay something as a "true story" about something that happened over a 100 years before he was born and concerns an alleged conversation between Haitians and Robertson's Devil.
There's that part of me that wants to do nothing but make sarcastic quips about this comment, and devolve into stating how little respect I have for Robertson for making that comment. Any such response is foolish and selfish on my part, as well as useless and counterproductive. The other part of my finds the comment very sad. As I have grown to be more involved in my local church, I continue to learn about many of the pressing concerns facing a church, particularly in the realm of membership. I'm not sure that our church has a younger couple than Jackie and I; the youth that are there are all children of parents who are members. This generational problem is not isolated to one particular denomination of Christianity, or even the Christian religion. On some level, there would seemingly appear to be a systemic issue.
I'm not sure if comments like Robertson's are part of that overarching issue, but I am fairly confident that it doesn't help. I remember reading studies and reports finding that the more people under the age of 25 associate the word "hate" with Christians than "love." The stories were that Christians were a intolerant, judgmental, spiteful, and, yes, hateful, rather than loving and compassionate. I believe that comments like Robertson assist in creating that image. There's a horrible natural disaster, and Robertson attributes it to supernatural causes. If you are good, God blesses you and you avoid pain from natural disasters; if you are bad, God punishes you, or allows you to be punished by natural disasters; this seems to be the corollary to draw from Robertson's comments. To me, that's an unbelievable God.
Robertson's comment, at some level, is also based in fear. Its the use of fear to elicit faith. Fear of the evil things in this world that should bring us to God, rather than the desire and want for goodness and grace. I find this too is dangerous. I've said my little mantra before, but never buy anything from the man who is selling you fear. But some Christianity has evolved into doing just this, selling fear. You must believe, you must attend church, you must tithe because of what will happen if you don't. Why not believe, and participate, and give of time and gifts because of the desire to share grace and compassion and love?
It's sad too because the comment is, in my mind, irrelevant. It doesn't matter to me whether the Haitians made a deal with the Devil over 200 years ago to obtain their freedom. It's not a question for me of whether I believe in the Devil or not (generally, no); rather, its about what I should be doing because of my faith, my beliefs, and my understanding of responsibility of my faith. Whether there was some illicit deal 200 years ago in no way impacts, in my mind, how I should respond to the suffering endured by the Haitian people right now. It doesn't change my prayers; it doesn't change my idea of gifting. That's supposed to be the most beautiful thing about Christianity, that it doesn't matter what we do, God loves us and gives us His grace. As a Christian, I am supposed to do my best, limited and flawed as it may be, to spread that love and grace, not because someone else deserves it, but because I am a Christian and it was given to me.
Its a great message. A worthy message. A divine message. Robertson's comment taints and perverts it.
We should always be striving to let the message through our flawed nature.
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