A few days ago I was listening to the radio whilst
driving. The programme I picked up was a discussion with a writer who had spent
ten years researching the lives, customs and language of working class women in
England
, a particular social group that she associated herself with.
The brief piece I heard was a discussion with the
interviewer of phrase “Getting by” She described how these two words were
often used by women as a standard response to the question “How are you?” ,
a form of words that covered many hardships and difficulties in their lives, a
way of covering the sore points without going into too much detail. The
financial worries of feeding and clothing a family, often in poor housing
conditions, balancing home with part-time work to make ends meet, all amid the
inevitable joy, stress and strain of marital relationships.
That same phrase “getting by” might also be used
by Christians if you asked them their experience of the church of the 21st
Century.
We
cope with things that we are not enthusiastic about, with attitudes that are
beyond their sell-by date.
For many it is an experience
of rigid, uncompromising codes, rooted in an ‘historical’ perspective that
allows no development in the light of our present understanding and cultural
experience. Yet we journey in hope that one day the inevitable strain of getting
by will be transformed into a more positive expression of joy in the Gospel.
One
of the more positive moves to be reported from
Rome
in the last few days did not
concern poor translations, chastising the curia or collegiality. It was far more
basic than that. The decision to open toilets and showers for the homeless near
St Peter’s is a very practical outreach to those down on their luck.
It has now been extended to offering free haircuts and shaves on Mondays,
the traditional day off for Roman barbers. A report in the Guardian (January 29th)
noted that
“…..Archbishop
Konrad Krajewski introduced the plan to build showers alongside public loos last
year. The papal almoner was inspired by a conversation he had with a homeless
man named Franco, according to a report on the Vatican Insider website.
When
Franco initially declined an invitation to have dinner with the bishop, he said
it was because he smelled. Later, over a meal at a Chinese restaurant, he
explained the needs of the homeless.
“Here
no one starves to death,” he told Krajewski. “You can find a sandwich every
day. But there is no place to use the toilet and wash.”
The first steps in obtaining work and somewhere to
live is to regain respectability, not only personally but in the eyes of those
we meet.
Many
of us get by in so many different ways, but we rarely do it unaided. The
dependence on family, friends and the social structure of our towns and cities
cannot be forgotten. When the then Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher remarked in
October 1987 that “They're casting their problem on society. And, you know, there is
no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are
families.”, she was
wrong.
We are interdependent, we have a responsibility to
help ourselves but then we must also extend a hand to those who have stumbled
and need our help to get by.
The existence of food banks in a developed society recognises the help
that is required, even in an economically
advanced country.
What a practical way for the Church to show the
caring love of Christ, by offering a shower and a haircut to those who can
afford neither.
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