The Journey 270: Daring, different & dignified
Read: Luke 23: 33-49
Who are role models in life?. Role models are ordinary people but with an extraordinary sense of purpose and vision in life. Yesterday, many news agencies reported about an ordinary woman who did an amazing and extraordinary feat, in the most dignified way. Meet Balpreet Kaur, who can be a role model for the people of the world today. Who is Balpreet Kaur?. She is a Sikh woman studying at the Ohio State University, aspiring to be a neurosurgeon. As she was waiting in a queue at the airport, a stranger took her image and posted in Reddit without her consent and placed her image in the funny category because Balpreet sports her facial hair. Instead of being embarrassed and agonized, Balpreet took a proactive, dignified and also an assertive stand by explaining on the web page, that mocked her, to the reason as to why she grew her facial hair. She asserted that she belongs to a Sikh religion, which has five important tenets. They are Kanga [comb], Kara [bracelet], Kach [shorts], Kirpan [sword] and the last one is Kesh [Hair]. Since hair is an important aspect of their religious beliefs, what the Sikhs do is to let hair grow naturally without cutting it. With her facial hair not being cut, her gender was often confused as she looked different, but Balpreet emphasized that every baptized Sikhs believe in the sacredness of ones body and that body is God’s gift to us and should be submitted to do the divine will. Though many people attacked and accused the man who posted the photograph of Balpreet, she never sought revenge nor attacked him. On the contrary, she sought “revenge” in a positive and dignified way. She went to Reddit and explained her understanding of beauty and life. According to Balpreet, she said that she focused more on her actions than her image and that she wants to leave a legacy not her body image or physical memory. Most awesome was another response where she said that more than the face it is the smile and happiness that lie behind the face that is important. One can read the whole article on this link: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2208772/Sikh-student-defends-facial-hair-photo-goes-viral.html. Here is an ordinary lady who looks life in a very different perspective, reacts in the most positive and pro active manner. At a time when people get hurt and offended especially in matters concerning faith, and this hurt and anger often leading to mindless violence, Balpreet Kaur stands as a towering pillar of role model in the strife torn society and world of ours. What is it that Balpreet Kaur teaches us and what can we inculcate from this dynamic lady?
We are meditating on the theme “Transformed Living” and the portion that we shall use for our meditation is from Luke 23: 33– 49. This is the portion that depicts not only the crucifixion of Jesus but also the attitude of Jesus as he dies on the cross. As He is crucified, soldiers mock him while the onlookers sneered at him with the sarcastic remarks that “He saved others but cannot save himself”[ Lk 24: 35]. All that Jesus said as people mocked him was “Father forgive them…”. Even as Jesus did His ministry and as He lay dying on the cross, He very clear and assertive about his purpose and ministry– To do God’s will in God's way. He was never hurt by the sneering words, on the contrary, He takes upon suffering willingly, so that through His death on the cross, the sneering people could be redeemed. What is needed in our life is to be very clear about our faith and also learn to respond in a dignified and proactive way to situation where our faith and our religious belief may be mocked by others. It is in such healthy proactive retaliations that we bring glory to God and also become witness to our faith. Balpreet Kaur was clear not only about her faith and her religious beliefs but also about her values and morals that she should uphold in her life. Moreover she defended her faith and her values in the most dignified and appropriate manner. As we live in this world let us affirm our faith in manners that are dignified and appropriate, so that through these approaches we bring peace and transformation in people who tend to look down upon us due to our faith and religious belief. This is what God expects us from all of us.
Rev. Dr. Joe Joseph Kuruvilla
Who are role models in life?. Role models are ordinary people but with an extraordinary sense of purpose and vision in life. Yesterday, many news agencies reported about an ordinary woman who did an amazing and extraordinary feat, in the most dignified way. Meet Balpreet Kaur, who can be a role model for the people of the world today. Who is Balpreet Kaur?. She is a Sikh woman studying at the Ohio State University, aspiring to be a neurosurgeon. As she was waiting in a queue at the airport, a stranger took her image and posted in Reddit without her consent and placed her image in the funny category because Balpreet sports her facial hair. Instead of being embarrassed and agonized, Balpreet took a proactive, dignified and also an assertive stand by explaining on the web page, that mocked her, to the reason as to why she grew her facial hair. She asserted that she belongs to a Sikh religion, which has five important tenets. They are Kanga [comb], Kara [bracelet], Kach [shorts], Kirpan [sword] and the last one is Kesh [Hair]. Since hair is an important aspect of their religious beliefs, what the Sikhs do is to let hair grow naturally without cutting it. With her facial hair not being cut, her gender was often confused as she looked different, but Balpreet emphasized that every baptized Sikhs believe in the sacredness of ones body and that body is God’s gift to us and should be submitted to do the divine will. Though many people attacked and accused the man who posted the photograph of Balpreet, she never sought revenge nor attacked him. On the contrary, she sought “revenge” in a positive and dignified way. She went to Reddit and explained her understanding of beauty and life. According to Balpreet, she said that she focused more on her actions than her image and that she wants to leave a legacy not her body image or physical memory. Most awesome was another response where she said that more than the face it is the smile and happiness that lie behind the face that is important. One can read the whole article on this link: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2208772/Sikh-student-defends-facial-hair-photo-goes-viral.html. Here is an ordinary lady who looks life in a very different perspective, reacts in the most positive and pro active manner. At a time when people get hurt and offended especially in matters concerning faith, and this hurt and anger often leading to mindless violence, Balpreet Kaur stands as a towering pillar of role model in the strife torn society and world of ours. What is it that Balpreet Kaur teaches us and what can we inculcate from this dynamic lady?
We are meditating on the theme “Transformed Living” and the portion that we shall use for our meditation is from Luke 23: 33– 49. This is the portion that depicts not only the crucifixion of Jesus but also the attitude of Jesus as he dies on the cross. As He is crucified, soldiers mock him while the onlookers sneered at him with the sarcastic remarks that “He saved others but cannot save himself”[ Lk 24: 35]. All that Jesus said as people mocked him was “Father forgive them…”. Even as Jesus did His ministry and as He lay dying on the cross, He very clear and assertive about his purpose and ministry– To do God’s will in God's way. He was never hurt by the sneering words, on the contrary, He takes upon suffering willingly, so that through His death on the cross, the sneering people could be redeemed. What is needed in our life is to be very clear about our faith and also learn to respond in a dignified and proactive way to situation where our faith and our religious belief may be mocked by others. It is in such healthy proactive retaliations that we bring glory to God and also become witness to our faith. Balpreet Kaur was clear not only about her faith and her religious beliefs but also about her values and morals that she should uphold in her life. Moreover she defended her faith and her values in the most dignified and appropriate manner. As we live in this world let us affirm our faith in manners that are dignified and appropriate, so that through these approaches we bring peace and transformation in people who tend to look down upon us due to our faith and religious belief. This is what God expects us from all of us.
Rev. Dr. Joe Joseph Kuruvilla