God Proximate

Bryan Stevenson, lawyer, founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative spoke at a church in NYC some years ago. Speaking on his work and solutions to injustices that run rampant, he proposed several things that we can do to help create more justice in this world. The first item on his list is: be proximate. Be close(r) to areas of injustice, not fleeing from them. Being proximate is not a panacea; it does not cure all the ills of the world. But it is a step in the justice-making direction rather than another step away areas of injustice which only grants it further immunity.

This isn't merely a strategy that sounds good as a marketing scheme or PR stunt. It is birthed from and grows out of the very precious truth and reality that we celebrate as Christmas dawns. The Incarnation of God in the person of Jesus is God proximate. We see the proximity of God played out in the closeness of Jesus to the spiritually afflicted (including the mentally distraught). We see Jesus proximate to the socially ostracized because of various diseases. We see Jesus proximate to those whose bodies are broken. (See Mark's Gospel, ch 1.)

Jesus is proximate to sin and sinner alike. And may that be said of us, not out of guilt or feeling sorry for another. But may our proximity be an expression of our love, for Jesus' closeness to the people of this world–to you–is his love proximate.

Grace & Peace