The Advocate

For some reason I've been spending a lot of time thinking lately on the meaning of the word "advocate". There are four definitions given for the word at Dictionary.com. The one I identify with the most is "a person who pleads for or in behalf of another; intercessor". Generally speaking, the word has a legal meaning, which is why 3 of the 4 definitions given are related to official use of the word. My thoughts and day dreams have been more along the lines of a non-legal use. The image that I dwell on the most is of a superhero interceding to save the life of a young child. It's The Powerful stepping in on the behalf of The Powerless.

You know, that's the person I want to be. The one who steps in to help the weakling. Now, I'm under no illusions - I don't consider myself very powerful...but instead the life that now lives inside of me bears a level of power we usually describe as omnipotent. The Jesus who lives in me (and every other true believer on the entire planet) is the same one who came to earth to step in the way of the freight train we know of as "eternal death" to protect us.

I think the perspective of the "advocate" is what is behind the wording we find in James 1:27, which reads "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world"(NIV). Have you ever just sat and thought about that passage? Who is more vulnerable and seemingly hopeless than children with no parents, and women with no way to earn a living? Even the hungry dog outside my yard right now knows how to search for food. The ability to sniff out food is innate in a dog, but not in a child. Even the dog is born with teeth sharp enough to fight most everything off by himself. Even the strongest of children would die quickly without food, water, and shelter. Few have even the inborn strength to forage for themselves at younger ages. And, of course, since there's no natural source of food, water, or shelter where we live, what hope do hungry children have except for the help of an adult. Of course, that scenario in itself requires having adults around who care about the children more than their next sip of brew. So, I cannot help but ask the question to myself... who will be the advocate here?

For that matter, what about the meekness of most women (the use of the word "meek" is not meant as a derogatory description - I promise)? In some cultures, women are less valued than the physical possessions of a man. In fact, in many cultures, the woman IS a physical possession of the man. Those ideas are certainly not foreign here. So how little worth does society place on a woman who no longer brings a dowry to the table? The widow usually inherits NOTHING, and is no longer the "daughter" of their family of origin. What is a woman with no wealth and no future supposed to do when the "tigers come at night". Usually she ends up being swallowed up by the tigers. Who is her advocate?

A couple weeks ago I pulled up to a small lodge in town to meet with a guy who does some carpentry work for me. Behind the lodge is a dumpster. That day I found a boy (maybe 5 years old) and a girl (maybe 7) searching through the dumpster. The children here can be found sometimes looking for either edible food, or for glass bottles that they can turn in for the small change of a bottle deposit so they can buy bread to eat. I took some individually wrapped biscuits/cookies out of my car and offered them something to eat (thank you Caroline Webb for the idea). Of course, I didn't even finish the question of "would you like some..." before they interrupted with a resounding "yes". I realized in that moment that the children were likely fending for themselves. I would like to have spent more time with them, but they quickly scurried off - most likely to avoid competition from other, healthier/stronger children who would have been happy to take away their snack. I ask myself now - who is the advocate for these children? Where are the adults who are supposed to look after them?

Every day here in town I meet someone who is asking for something. For some, it's money, food, or clothes. For others, it's a job. Honestly, some are just asking for a drink of booze - a way out of their pain and misery. In a country so beautifully situated for the immense tourism market and the wealth of mining it seems a travesty that so many are still treading water in the financial world's sea of forgetfulness. Who will be their advocate?

You know, there could be a million "advocates" that show up in this country, and there still wouldn't be enough. The poverty that exists here goes beyond the surface of physical and social need. In fact, the physical poverty here may be the least of the concerns I see. There's some sort of spirit that I can feel here that is the opposite of "advocacy". I tend to think it's called "oppression" -> which is the spirit that motivates the powerful to seek out the weak for purposes of exploitation. The oppression I think we're witnessing here is too great to be overcome simply by the effectiveness of welfare ministries. The battle against flesh and blood is useless in the face of this type of oppression. This country won it's independence less than one generation ago using that sort of tactic. Now, they are fighting here for a different type of independence, and the tactics must change.

You know, I haven't really finished my thinking about the true meaning of advocacy. Even the last few paragraphs are just a matter of thinking out-loud. It's a good thing that the answer doesn't depend on me. It's a good thing that Jesus already stepped into the chasm between man and God to stand on our behalf as OUR ADVOCATE. And through the power of Jesus Himself I am confident that we will be able to truly make a difference here. Through Him we can be advocates. And so can you.