Inheriting the Earth

Jesus said the meek shall inherit the earth and we have been trying to figure that out ever since He said it. Especially here in macho America where we worship at the altar of strength and winners. No preacher would dare preach about how we should be weak, helpless, and humble. One person wrote “if the meek are going to inherit the earth they better get a lot more aggressive.”

As a result, we have come up with a vast array of explanations that allow us to be meek while still being strong. One person described it as being like a spirited horse that maintains its spirit but is controlled. A good friend of mine said it was like being at a stop sign driving a Corvette and a far lesser car in the next lane is foolish enough to challenge you to a race, but you refuse to use your power to crush the other driver. I like that one but somehow it doesn’t seem to be meek.

I woke up on a recent morning thinking about what it means to be meek and could not come up with an answer so I decided to start with the result and try to work backwards to see if that would help me understand.

I began wondering about inheriting the earth. An inheritance is a gift designed to enhance the life of the recipient. So, I began to ask myself what things have enriched the earth I live in. I remember the statement “Two men looked through the self-same bars, one saw mud, the other stars.” What has helped me the most in being able to see stars in a rather muddy and negative world? I am not anyone’s big example, but I have found at least some things that seem to have worked for me.

One of the best decisions I ever made happened when I was a young minister and the civil rights movement was in motion, homosexuality was suddenly out in the open, abortion was becoming a major issue. I realized I was raised in a world where you were either criticizing and kicking at something or you were condoning the action. I decided that I would not take a stand against such issues until I had met and loved someone who was involved in the activity or lifestyle.

As a result, I agreed to go to dinner with a gay couple. We ate where most of the homosexuals in town ate, went to a pub then to their apartment and I listened to them until three in the morning.

What a night. They skinned my eyes so I could see, and it became a life-changing experience for me. Since that time, I have made many friends in the gay, lesbian and transgender community. My wife and I helped organize and fund a gay church and attended there many times. Through this I have met some of the kindest, most talented, and most caring people I have ever known, and my inherited earth has been enhanced. I began to see stars while far too many others saw only mud.

I moved to West Texas to pastor a church in a small city that was fifty percent Hispanic. I had never been exposed to that culture nor to the immense prejudice the white population had toward them. If the Hispanics left that city, it would dry up and blow away. The farms would never be plowed nor harvested, and yet many families put their children in schools thirty miles away so they would not have to go to school with what they called “The Mexicans.”

The custodian at the church was named Romualdo Lucero. He was one of the nicest, sweetest, and most Christian people I have ever known. He took care of the three large buildings by himself and also did the lawn and landscaping and yet had time for me to hire him to do my lawn.

Having Hispanic friends became a joy in my life. No one works harder. No culture is more devoted to family and their joy, their colors, and warmth enriched and enriches my world. Romualdo helped me see stars when almost everyone else was seeing mud.

I was raised in a small town in Oklahoma, but it could have fit anywhere in the deep South. A train load of freed slaves were brought there after the Civil War to work the cotton so we had a large Black population and many homes, including ours, had “servant” quarters in the back yard. Easter Pipkins lived in one room on the end of our garage. I spent a lot of time with her when I was small and loved her, but that did not keep me from the inborn racism that comes from living in such a place.

As a teenager some of my friends and I would sneak out of Sunday School and go to the barber shop where Jessie shined shoes. He was always there and always seemed happy, though I later realized that was the front Black folks put on for us. Looking back, I realize Jessie was very intelligent and wise and could have had an unlimited future but for the color of his skin. What a waste for so much talent and intelligence to be doomed to shining shoes. Somehow Jessie and Easter touched me and led me to try to dig out the systemic racism that seems to lurk deep inside of me and maybe all of us. Defeating systemic racism is a lifelong task but I have been blessed with black friends and experiences with some wonderful people who have enhanced my life and made me realize how much better my world is because of the joy, the insights, the overcoming, and the inspiration of their story which thank God, breaks my heart.

I was a patient in a hospital and my nurse was Muslim. She was such a kind and lovely person and was willing to take a moment to visit with me. I asked her for permission to ask some questions about her faith and she agreed. I asked her why she wore the very tight scarf that covered her hair. Her response was a thing of beauty. She said, “I do not do so because my husband demands it, some do and that is wrong. I do so because I want to have parts of my body that only my husband can see. I save that for him because of love and respect.” Once again, my eyes were skinned. Once again, my earth was enhanced with a wonderful group of people who have been judged because of some crazy radical element that hides their true self. The thrill of new understanding brought stars to my eyes.

My conclusion it that meekness is the opposite of prejudice. The words in the original language were Easy and King. Easy could be laid back, nonjudgmental and relaxed while kind needs no further definition. I could be wrong, but I know that every prejudice I have struggled with and tried to banish has resulted in making the part of the earth I have inherited enhanced with love instead of hate and stars instead of mud and helps me say to myself “What a wonderful world.” Loving others makes the world worth inheriting.