Brokenness today

by rev. Erika funk (Broad Street ministry - Philadelphia)

Broken down.
Broken heart.
Broken bones.
Broken up.

When was the last time you broke something?  Maybe you dropped a dish or a lamp, (“Mom always said don’t play ball in the house.”)  Or worse, you broke someone’s heart, (“I don’t think we should see each other anymore.”)  Perhaps you’ve heard the expression “the system is broken.”  Have you ever considered the connections between a broken dish, a broken heart and a broken system? 

Brokenness is something very familiar to us at Broad Street Ministry.   Sitting in worship on a Sunday night, at dinner on a Wednesday or simply walking through the city you will see it.  You will see it in the faces of young runaways, homeless veterans, the unemployed construction worker, the struggling addict, the lost, the lonely and the uncertain.  Remembering the story we looked at last week, the woman at the well, I can only imagine the conversations Jesus would have if we had a metaphorical well at BSM.  Who would Jesus ask for a cup of water from as he did the Samaritan woman?  And if Jesus came to your neighborhood who would he ask?  If Jesus walked into your school cafeteria on Monday who would he introduce himself to?  Now before you start thinking about the social outcasts you know or the girl who always seems to be in a relationship – think bigger.  

Are any of us whole?

Let me tell you about three friends at BSM.  

Samantha (not her real name) went to Africa as a young woman to work with orphans living with HIV and AIDs.  She went because of her strong Christian faith and a desire one day to be a doctor.  After less than 2 years she had to leave Africa because she had been diagnosed with Lupus which is a debilitating disease.  Most days it takes a heroic effort just for Samantha to get out of bed, feed herself and get dressed.  While in medical school at Temple she found a church nearby where she hoped she could find God’s word and a supportive community.   After being sick at home for several weeks without being contacted by anyone from her church she finally received a visit from two of the church elders.  Rather than receiving comfort, sympathy or prayer they told her her illness was due to her lack of faith and she needed to pray more.  She asked them to leave and never heard from anyone at that church again.  

Bernard was diagnosed as schizophrenic when he was about your age.  His mother didn’t know how to help him so she placed him in an institution called Byberry State Hospital in NE Philadelphia.  He lived there for over 20 years until the hospital closed in 1990.  Bernard was released, like many other patients, with a bus token and the clothes on his back.  He’s been homeless ever since, in and out of jail, hospitals and homeless shelters.  He rarely stays in any of these places for more than a few days.  He’s always released back onto the streets.  His mental illness keeps him isolated, irrational and threatening.  

Desiree is a woman who has survived on the street for many years.  She often relies on male companionship to help her get by.   One boyfriend was extremely violent and abusive and put her in the hospital more than once.  Finally convinced to press charges he was sent to jail.   During his trial for the assault on the day she was to testify against him she chose not to for fear of being arrested herself.  Desiree had an arrest warrant out on herself for a minor crime.  She didn’t testify;  he was released and beat her again.  To her, being on the streets in an abusive relationship was less frightening than being in jail.  She was finally able to get away from him and now lives in a supportive community for abused women.  

In every person’s story there are failures.  It might be a failure to trust or believe in something better.  It might be the failure of a community to be more compassionate or more imaginative with its solutions.  It might be the failure of the church to live out Christ’s words of mercy, transformation and redemption.  

Some questions to ponder:
What is your role in this vast array of brokenness?  
Can you discover any similarities in your own life to the lives of Samantha, Desiree and Bernard?   
Do you think you have the power to contribute to either the healing of this system or its wrong-ness?  
Is it a sin to be complacent?  

If you want to see images of another example of systemic brokenness watch this video.  Be prepared for some graphic images and some disturbing information.