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Today (especially today) I acknowledge the First Peoples of my country, Australia; and I pay honour to their elders, past and present. May the hurts of the past be healed, for we are all children of God.
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‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
-Luke 10v27 NIV
Wait a minute, it’s Australia Day! Neighbour = Mate
‘Mateship’ is a concept that can be traced back to early colonial times. The harsh environment in which convicts and new settlers found themselves meant that men and women closely relied on each other for all sorts of help. In Australia, a ‘mate’ is more than just a friend. It’s a term that implies a sense of shared experience, mutual respect and unconditional assistance.
-About Australia
But who is my mate?
Jesus was also asked,
And who is my neighbor? -Luke 10v29. NIV
So He told the story of The Good Samaritan. (read here)
The Samaritans were social outcasts. They didn’t follow the customs of the land and followed different religious practices. Sound familiar?
There are many Christians who are deeply opposed to Muslim migration to Australia. They fear a religious takeover- that Australians will be forced to accept certain Muslim practices, while Christianity will be squeezed out. And while their concern is understandable (the media does nothing to help this image) their fears are unfounded. (And to be honest, do they worry this much about the atheists?)
There is another story in the Bible that tells of an encounter with a Samaritan. This time between Jesus and a Samaritan woman. (read here)
To give a bit of cultural context, the Samaritans were deeply hated and scorned by the Jewish people. They were considered “unclean” and foreigners in their own land. The Jewish people would go out of their way to avoid them. So much so, that when travelling from Judea to Galilee, instead of travelling the few miles through Samaria, they would cross the river and go the long way round: Doubling the length of their journey! They would not speak with them; they would not eat with them: They would not touch anything they had touched, or else they would become “unclean”. Plus, in that day, men did not speak with women who were not family. So for Jesus to be alone with a Samaritan woman- and ask her for a drink…?!?
Jesus disciples were (understandably) shocked when they found Jesus talking to this woman. The culture of the day- the Law– said that this was unacceptable. But no one questioned what he was doing. The disciples often misunderstood what Jesus was saying, but perhaps here they understood that some things are more important?
Why do I think my friends’ fears are unfounded? Because God’s love is stronger. God’s truth is greater.
But we must be that love and that truth.
In that order.
Jesus first showed love: He spoke to the woman. He did not ignore her or treat her like something diseased, like something to be feared. He started a conversation on a topic they could both relate to: water.
She started asking questions…
Jesus then spoke truth: He told the woman that physical water was not enough. He told her that there was something more. Something she was missing. But He did not end with that…
Jesus ended with hope:
“Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”
The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”
Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”
-John 4v21-26 NIV
Then, when she finally asked, He told her Who He was.
And she believed.
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Australia Day celebrates our diverse and multicultural nation, but really we are so insular; stuck in our own little world. (Anywhere else, you drive a couple hours and people will be speaking a completely different language, but here? ‘We speak English here, “mate”’) We need to stop fearing people who believe differently to us.
How should a Christian respond to Muslim migration?
Go make friends with them. Invite them into your home. Learn about their culture, their family and tell them about yours.
Jesus last command to us was:
Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation.
–Mark 16v15 NRSV emphasis added
But today, the world is coming to us! We have it easy: so no excuses!
These people- these beloved children of God- have come to make Australia their home. How would it be, if we welcomed them in, and they found their spiritual home as well?
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
About Australia, Accessed 26/1/2017, from http://www.australia.gov.au/about-australia/australian-story/mateship-diggers-and-wartime
The UnApologetic 