1. 1. James 2:1-5 Has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom
2. 2. 1 My brothers, show no partiality as you adhere to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. 2 For if a man with gold rings on his fingers and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and a poor person in shabby clothes also comes in, 3 and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say, Sit here, please, while you say to the poor one, Stand there, or Sit at my feet, 4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil designs? 5 Listen, my beloved brothers. Did not God choose those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who love him? Copyrighted material that appears in this article is included under the provisions of the Fair Use Clause of the National Copyright Act, which allows limited reproduction of copyrighted materials for educational and religious use when no financial charge is made for viewing. Catholic Lectionary. (2009). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.
3. 3. In a church community there must be no discrimination or favoritism based upon position or wealth. Discrimination and favoritism has always been present in all societies of the world but it is important to remember not to judge or stereotype people. If the boss were to come to your house for dinner wouldnt you make special preparations? Sure you would. You would have special food, think about what you are going say and do, and instruct the children to be on their best behavior.
4. 4. If on the other hand, your brother came over for dinner, would you prepare special food, would you contemplate what you would say or do? No! So whats the difference between the two visitors? Your attitude. You assign less importance to your brothers visit because he cant give you a raise or promote you in the work place.
5. 5. Didnt you do just what James is cautioning you against, you showed partiality based on position. Both rich and poor can live out Gods plan for their lives without discrimination or favoritism. One inmate in a state prison told me, I was happy that I was put into prison because if I was still on the streets Id probably have AIDS or would have died of an overdose. She was happy to trade her addiction to money, to position and to drugs for a prison term. She goes on to explain God put me in prison to save my life, to teach me the important lessons I refused to listen to in the past . Prison gave me time to reflect and the prison term led me to a closer relationship with God who created me.
6. 6. Having acquired a great sense of humility and spirituality she was now ready to return to the secular world, her job, her position and has been reunited with her less demanding and more forgiving family. This is what James is getting at, we are all vulnerable to ups and downs but we all have equal value. Remember it was the poor of the world who, in their humility, welcomed Jesus but the rich and famous of Jerusalem in their pride of position rejected him (Mt. 9).