September 6, 2015: You’re a Dog – Scott Oppliger

Israel’s expectations were that the Messiah was for Israel. Gentiles were a risk. They were going to be saved through Israel (maybe), but they were also the easiest way for Israel to be pulled away from their destiny. Everyone familiar with the Jewish story would be familiar with the queen named Jezebel from the region of Tyre and Sidon. There were few people who would’ve been seen as sub-human more easily than someone who met all of these criteria: gentile, woman, syrophonecian (from Tyre and Sidon). But like many of our prejudices, though these feelings make us feel superior to others, they also aren’t exactly the kinds of dark thoughts you like being associated with at dinner parties.

Naming the truth about our darkest assumptions is the first step towards reasserting another’s humanity and our own. The good teacher, the loving teacher, raises our darkness to the surface so it may be bathed in light.