Second Hand Jesus

Recycled, Second Hand Jesus ‘Dead White Men’s Clothes’ Even our well intentioned giving, what we feel are pure and Christ like motives can be perverted. We must be prayerful and careful that we do not come across as giving ‘Recycled, Second Hand Jesus’. Across the landscape of America, people with good intentions or just overcrowded closets give their surplus to meet the needs of the less fortunate. Their intent is to clothe the naked or, at least to move up a step in fashion.

Before you give next time, ask yourself, two questions. Is it for their good and is it for His glory?

The institutions to which Americans give their recycled, second hand clothes, had as part of their original mandate to care for those who could not provide for themselves. Author Davan Maharaj of the Los Angeles Times, wrote a series of articles entitled “Living on Pennies”.

In this particular part of the series entitled, ‘Dead White Men’s Clothes’ the author writes: “Much of Africa was once draped in fabrics of flamboyant color and pattern, products of local industry and a reflection of cultural pride. But with half of its people surviving on less than a dollar a day, the continent has become the world's recycling bin. People scramble for 10-cent underpants, 20-cent T-shirts and dollar blue jeans discarded by Westerners” “The used clothes most often start out in America.

Charities such as Goodwill and the Salvation Army sell donated clothes by the pound to wholesale merchants, who grade them. The top grade usually ends up in vintage shops in the United States, Europe, or Latin America. The lesser grade merchandise, much of which is faded or stained, is labeled Africa A and Africa B.” In other words, Africa is getting the rejected rejects, or the discarded discards. The author goes on to elaborate on how these ‘good intentions’ not only give Africa the worst of the worse, but also undermine the textile and garment industries on the continent.

This dumping also undermines the African’s self image as they find themselves imitating western icons and ideals. “At the bottom of the heap are used underwear vendors such as Teresa Williams, whose trade is cited by Africans as evidence of how far they have fallen: How did people get desperate enough, they wonder, to buy other people's discarded drawers?” "We are digging our own graves," says Chris Kirubi, a Kenyan industrialist who blamed secondhand clothing for the demise of his textile mill. "When you make your own clothes, you employ farmers to grow cotton, people to work in textile mills, and more people to work in clothes factories.

When you import secondhand clothes, you become a dumping ground." "If they want to look like rap stars and sports stars, we can't compete," says J.P. Olarewaju, who heads an association of Lagos textile manufacturers. "The children want to dress in baggy jeans and look like their heroes” While we in the west continue to underwrite and subsidize our cotton growers, we do not recognize how this allows us to dump our cheap goods on markets which cannot compete as we force them to lower their tariffs and taxes if they want the ‘development assistance and aid’ we promise them.

True fair trade would eliminate the need for much if not all of this assistance. However, we would then have to allow people to learn to depend upon themselves and not us. We would lose our moral high ground as well as our ‘market share.’ We can pretend we want people to be self sustaining. In a sense, we do want them to sustain themselves. We want them to sustain their dependence upon us.

We in the Christian church are for the most part completely oblivious to the fact that our good intentions are in fact doing great harm to the self image and self sufficiency of the continent. I am well aware that many, if not most of us, would not want to be seen on two consecutive Sundays wearing the same tie, or pair of socks, let alone the same suit or skirt. Even our desire to dress well, ‘to look good for Jesus’ is often nothing more than vain glory. As we discard the old and give it to the ‘less-fortunate’, as we ‘upgrade’ our wardrobes, let us carefully ponder why are we doing so?

Our heavenly Father never gives us second hand goods. He always chooses from the top shelf. He gives us His best, not a recycled, second hand Jesus. What is our real motive and intention for giving? Are we trying to clothe the naked, or getting ready to impress our neighbors with our latest threads, our new set of ‘glad-rags’? Are we just offering people a ‘Recycled, Second Hand Jesus?’ Is it given in the love of Christ, or with the desire to unload things which we don’t want any more? Is this gift truly sacrificial or a discard from our overabundance?

The author continues”: Insatiable demand from village shops and sprawling urban markets has turned the West's castoffs into an industry that generates hundreds of millions of dollars annually. Clothing is only the most visible example. Polluting refrigerators and air conditioners, expired medicines, and old mattresses also are routinely shipped and resold here. Used vehicles imported from Japan dot African roads. Antiquated secondhand computers power many African governments.”

I must admit, even I have been guilty of giving less than the best. I have called it a gift. Our Father recognizes the difference. He knows the difference between a gift and dumping.

Malachi 1:7-8 “You offer defiled food on My altar, but say; ‘In what way have we defiled you?’ By saying the table of the Lord is contemptible’. And when you offer the blind as a sacrifice is it not evil? And when you offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? “Offer it now to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you favorably?” Says the Lord of Hosts.

I am not suggesting that we stop giving to these very noble causes. I am advocating that we consider both our motives and the consequences of our giving. Are we giving from pure hearts to honor the God we serve? Are we aware that our best motives and intentions can be perverted to actually hurt and not help?

Before you give next time, ask yourself, two questions. Is it for their good and is it for His glory?

If you can say without a doubt that this is true, give with a clean heart. But if you can not say an affirmative in the loud and proud voice, keep it in your closet and use it for dusting your furniture. Let us not give people a Recycled, Second Hand Jesus. Our Father gave the world His best.

Let us ask Him to guide us in our giving and make us keenly aware of both the causes and consequences of our giving. Let us give only the best in His name. That is what we are called to do. If you want other stories on this topic, search the Archives at latimes.com/archives.

Comments

[Cynthia Langley]

Michael and Kay, I think this is a great idea. I always read what you send. It brings the mission field to my eyes when I read what you describe. I send it to other people to get them more involved in missions. Keep doing the work of the Lord and sending the facts to all of us who are not present there with you. We need to be shaken and awakened to what is going on with the people and with you. God bless you!