|
I've always wondered by Xians love to cite Abel's killer. What's worse is that he phrased it as a question that was never answered.
Yet it seems to be the basis for a lot of Xians' "righteousness."
I wish I wasn't my mother's keeper. But I am. She is my ward. I get reports on her frequently. I say who her caregiver is. I say when she sees a doctor. If she resists, I have the authority to enforce her doctor's appointment and treatment, except for psychiatric treatment. I am in charge of her spending, and have declared that she's not to handle any cash. Any agreement or contract she signs is immediately revoked by me. I revoked her driver's license and removed her car keys from her possession; I took her name off her checking and savings accounts and IRA, told the credit card companies to cancel her cards. I pay her taxes and insurance, I make sure she eats and say how often she eats out. I will be responsible for finding her a suitable place to stay when the caregiver I've appointed to take care of her needs is no longer sufficient. Her heating and air conditioning breaks and the repair company says that a responsible person over 18 years old must be present, they mean somebody that I appoint because I've said she doesn't qualify. She's my ward. I am her warden. (Note that "warden" is a just fine alternative translation for "keeper.")
I am my mother's keeper. I keep my mother. I guard my mother. I watch my mother. It's not a position I especially like. It's stripped her of responsibility and placed it on me. In the case of my mother, however, it's necessary.
That's what Cain flippantly asked God if he was supposed to do--keep track of Abel's comings and goings, be responsible for knowing where he is and presumably forbidding him from wandering out of sight. God didn't answer Cain in Genesis. In this, most Xians have proven themselves to be more knowledgeable and demanding than God. Then again, God is billed as omnipotent and omniscient, which is a tad less than most Xians' aspirations. They're all too glad to usurp a person's responsibility because, well, they obviously know better. (If you doubt this, join a church: There are always people who insist that they can order your life and make your decisions better than you. If you don't like it and tell them to butt out, they get outraged and insulting.)
Note that in the same way I'm my son's keeper. He's 7. This is also a responsibility that makes me nervous: Ensuring that he's safe, fed, sheltered, properly raised is a big responsibility. Since God is also billed as "Father," "keeper" of "his children" would be his role. He keeps his flock, which, oddly, is "keeps" with just about the same authority that I have over my mother and son. Why people want to keep other people is beyond me.
Xians are told to bear one another's burdens and to serve one another. They are not told to keep each other, however much they like taking their guidance and inspiration from Cain.
|
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
