I was told today that healthcare is not a “God given right”, but that it would be perfectly acceptable if it were a “government given right”. I disagree with the first point, which in turn affects the latter. The first affects the latter in this way: a majority of the people in the U.S. seem to think that this is a Christian nation (which it absolutely is not), and therefore it is nearly impossible to seperate church from state as it is supposed to be in all subject matters in regards to the law. Given that there are a lot of suffering people, not only in the U.S. but also the world, I can say that I am truly heartbroken by this kind of rhetoric since a majority of the people use their religion as a scapegoat to get out of helping those in need. Before I go any further, allow me to clarify something: I am not currently a Christian, but I was. I renounced my faith for personal reasons as outlined in one of my earliest posts. Now, let’s continue onward.
Have you ever noticed that a majority of those that call themselves Christians are some of the worst people? Those are Sunday Christians. They do what they want, then attempt to pray it all away at church just so they can do it again all over. This is the wrong way to go about religion. *Side note: if your religion excuses your hatred, bigotry, greed, and pride, then you need to find a new religion. End note.* I am very fortunate to have met a few really amazing Christians who truly read, comprehend, and carry out what their holy book says. And that is beautiful; it gives me hope that we will be able to work together for a better tomorrow. I am truly grateful for them and am happy to call these kind hearted people friends.
So let’s tackle that “healthcare isn’t a God given right” thing, shall we? A quick Google search brings up many links on this topic. Let’s take a look at some.
“Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay. Acquire no gold nor silver nor copper for your belts, no bag for your journey, nor two tunics nor sandals nor a staff, for the laborer deserves his food. And whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy in it and stay there until you depart.”
Now this looks super familiar to me, and anyone else who has read Utopia by Sir Thomas More (that book was written in 1516 when people were devoutly religious and went to church, so God is referenced many times in the book). In the land of Utopia, people were allowed, with a kind of passport and permission, to travel freely between towns and stayed very much like that mentioned in the verse taken from Matthew. It is very clear here that Jesus and his followers believed in helping those in need without receiving payment except for a place to sleep and food. What else do you need if your necessities are taken care of? Clothes can be sown and they could find a good walking stick on their journey if they needed one. The verse above can be summed up as such: Healthcare is free. It is a God given right.
Luke 14:13-15 ESV
“But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.” When one of those who reclined at table with him heard these things, he said to him, ‘Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!’”
This is not directly related to healthcare, but it does say to be welcoming and accepting of those who are sick. It says to treat them as equal. It says to be loving and kind, despite the fact that they “can’t repay you”. To do anything else would be to deny that which one claims to believe. Do not be greedy. Help those in need. Open your hearts as Jesus opened his for you. That is, if you have chosen to believe in him. If not, that’s cool, too.
Matthew 9:9-13 ESV
9 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him. 10 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12 On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Mercy, not sacrifice. A little backstory to this particular verse: Jesus had just told the paralyzed man to get up and walk. To the amazement of the crowd who saw it, the man did indeed get up, pick up the mat he had been lying on, and walked home. Did Jesus say, “Oh, sorry. I can’t heal you, because you’re broke”? No. He simply did it, because it was the right thing to do. Notice also, that Jesus said that he has not come for the righteous, but the sinners. In my personal opinion, the word “righteous” has a negative connotation to it. Those who think they are better than others or don’t have to contribute to the common good are often those who think highly, or righteously, of themselves. Therefore, they are unable to accept constructive criticism and suggestions on how to better themselves. Whereas “sinners” in this context sounds more like people who know they could be better and just need some guidance. So… Are you too good for betterment, or are you ready for some guidance?
Deuteronomy 15:7-11 ESV
“If among you, one of your brothers should become poor, in any of your towns within your land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor brother, but you shall open your hand to him and lend him sufficient for his need, whatever it may be. Take care lest there be an unworthy thought in your heart and you say, ‘The seventh year, the year of release is near,’ and your eye look grudgingly on your poor brother, and you give him nothing, and he cry to the Lord against you, and you be guilty of sin. You shall give to him freely, and your heart shall not be grudging when you give to him, because for this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake. For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, ‘You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.’
Need I say more? This. This right here says to give fully out of the kindness of your heart. This addresses a whole slew of problems. If someone needs something, you should give it freely. In this case, we are talking healthcare. People need health care. People get sick; there’s no way around it. Why do we then deny the needy treatment? If they are unable to pay, the common consensus is to let them be sick or let them die. Why is everyone so concerned about money? It is a failing system that should be abolished. (And as in previous posts: No, I will not give my money to anyone simply because I don’t think it should be used. I will continue to use it until we can come to a better agreement in the realm of our currency. To do otherwise would be foolish). We as humans should care about and for each other. If you are Christian, do you not believe that your God is the embodiment of love? Does he not call you to be like him? So God must be a hateful, bigoted, and prideful, right? If you are truly the body of Christ, he must not give a shit about anyone, right? Because that’s not what I learned. I learned that as the body of Christ, we are to help everyone in need. Jesus was a humanitarian, and his true followers are few and far between. Don’t say you are Christian if you won’t be kind, if you won’t be loving, if you won’t help those who need it.
I believe that healthcare should be 1) free, and 2) that it is indeed a “God given right”. Please, if you are going to believe one thing, study the book you’re referencing. This doesn’t even cover when Jesus healed a blind man with his spit (Mark 8:22-25) for free. This doesn’t cover when Jesus raised a girl from the dead and healed a sick woman on his way there (Mark 5: 21-43) for free. When he raises his friend Lazarus from the dead (John 11:38-44) for free. And so so so many more. He never demanded payment. Simply to go and do for others what he had done for them. Spread the goodness and love.
No comments:
Post a Comment