No Partiality
The message in James’ letter seems to be very clear. Show no partiality. Particularly if we are working with the poor. We make our judgements of the poor by their outward appearance. Perhaps how well they articulate themselves. If they are clean and well-groomed or messy or shoddily dressed. We want to treat everyone equally. There are some cases however that may make us think twice.
Medication comes to mind. Let us assume that two people have the same diagnosis. But there is only one dosage of the medication on hand. One looks to be rather poor by our visual judgment, the other looks to probably have adequate insurance.
Who would get the one dose? Or would you split the dosage and give each half and a prescription to get the rest when they can? We are treating them equally, right?
Or do you start asking questions: How old are they? Who has the easier access to having a prescription filled? Is this a life-threatening situation? If we are to say we will show no partiality then these questions are irrelevant, right?
What if you discovered the one we judged to be poor was a veteran who could get the medication free? Or the one who looked like they have insurance had already made a call elsewhere and the medication was being delivered to his home right now? Can you still say you would not show any partiality?
Can we treat all people equally, no. But when can we treat people equitably? Yes. God can show no partiality because God is God and knows the full context of each person’s situation. There is no way we can know all the details. But we do owe it to one another to carefully ascertain what is fair and just to the best of our ability, trusting in God to guide us with the Holy Spirit. Let us all stop judging.
May the Lord bless you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen