The Homeless Recognizing our shared humanity with the homeless

The Homeless
Recognizing our shared humanity with the homeless

Some forty years ago, I was walking with an elderly bishop of the Russian Church, on a street in San Francisco. I had spotted a filthy homeless man walking towards us. This man's hair was disheveled, filthy with years of dirt, and was wearing torn clothing. He had no soles on his shoes, so with each step we could see the bottom of his feet. Instinctively, I took the elbow of the bishop, and attempted to get him to cross in the middle of the street. The bishop asked why, and I said, "Look at the crazy man coming towards us". The bishop told me we were not crossing, but would continue.

When directly in front of the the man, the bishop stopped, reached out, taking the man's filthy right hand into his own, and placed a twenty dollar bill into the man's hand, covering the bill with the man's left hand. At that moment the man looked up into our eyes, saying nothing. But looking back were the bluest, clearest eyes I had ever seen. They were not the eyes of a homeless man, nor the eyes of a deranged man, eyes filled with wisdom, compassion, and holiness.

As we walked away, I remarked about the man's eyes, to which the bishop responded by saying, "We just encountered an angel unaware, and we were being tested," recalling the words of Scripture, "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares" (Hebrews 13:2).

I shall never forget that moment, and will forever expect that a homeless person might indeed be an angel unaware. With that in mind, I have been carrying one twenty dollar bill, one ten dollar bill, one five dollar bill, and a one dollar bill, in my left pocket. Should I encounter a homeless person, I am not forced to decide whether they will use any money I give them for drugs or alcohol, or if they are worthy of my charity, but I leave it up to God. Since the bills are previously mixed, whatever I pull out is up to God. They person receives what God has decided they need.

I once heard of a wonderful woman who would routinely give a backpack that was full of socks, gloves, hand-warmers, a beanie, toiletries, and a letter from her saying everything would be OK, to a homeless person. In one fell swoop. she gave them the ultimate gift, warmth and dignity.

For most homeless people, asking for handouts, and constantly being told to move along, get a job, or even totally ignored, leaves them feeling totally useless. The idea of getting wasted thus becomes very appealing, for it allows them to forget, even for a few hours, the humiliation and pain they experience on a daily basis. Other homeless people are the only ones they relate to, and they thus fall into a trap that only serves to perpetuate their sense of despair.  It becomes a trap from which they feel utterly unable to escape. 

There are kind people who give out prepared packs with toothpaste and a toothbrush, deodorant, disposable razors and shaving cream, socks, hand/feet warmers, etc. When they see someone who needs help they give them the pack, together with some cash. Most important, they demonstrate to the homeless person that they are worthy of kindness and love.

Perhaps the most invaluable thing we can do for the homeless person we meet is to stop and have a real conversation with them. In doing so we recognize their dignity as fellow citizens, and extend Christ's love for them in our charity.  

Most importantly,  it is not the money people need from us, but a sense of normalcy. When we acknowledge them with a friendly hello, we restore their sense of shared humanity, and doing so can be the catalyst to helping them turn away from drugs and alcohol, which they often use as a way of escaping the reality of their horid state.

With love in Christ,
Abbot Tryphon