You Call Yourself A “Christian” ~ Modern Widows and Orphans

Greetings Dear Reader,

It is clear that if we dare to call ourselves followers of Christ that we are to care for those in need.  Further we are to specifically care for widows and orphans.  The first century definition of this is a woman who has lost her husband and children who have lost their father.  Before you get on your “inclusion” or “gender” soap box, let me assure you that I am not limiting my modern understanding of the need to this definition.

For the purpose of your glimpse of my thinking here, Dear Reader, let us say that anyone who has lost a partner who is supposed to share in the child rearing has been widowed.  I may not always approve of the circumstance under which a need occurs but that does not mean that I am not obligated to care about the need.  Dwell on that for a moment.

As to orphans, I would submit that any child who has a parent, biological or otherwise, that has died or forsaken him or her, is an orphan.  The child has needs for support, guidance, and nurture that transcend the circumstances that brought him or her to this place. 

The people of Christ are supposed to care for these needs.  There is nowhere that allows us to regulate it to another entity.  If we hope to be seen as Christ followers we must attend to this need.  No excuse is a good one.  No dodging the responsibility is permitted.  So why then do we dare to call ourselves Christians when we do not attend to this? 

The standard should be that we care for single parents and children in need so well that we are the first thought when a need arises.  Christ followers should be the obvious choice when a child is hungry or a single parent cannot pay a bill, cannot afford medical care, or cannot buy food.

Instead we relegate this to the government who has proven over and over that they cannot do the job.  I am not slamming the government. I am saying they are not good at this.  We are the ones who are told to be the example in caring for “widows and orphans” in our culture.  We are not told we can ignore this if the lives of those in need do not measure up to our moral standards.  Humans are my business whether I wish it or not. 

I cannot say that I am following Christ if I leave those in need behind. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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