Wednesday, September 25, 2002
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Wednesday, September 25, 2002 |
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If I may amend Oprah's speech ... By JOHN HATCHER Oprah Winfrey, in accepting the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award at Sunday night's 54th Emmy Awards, said, "We all just want to know that we matter. We want validation. We want the same things. We want safety and we want a long life. We want to find somebody to love." As I listened to Oprah's acceptance, I was rightly impressed with its eloquence and her sincerity. Upon reflection, however, I discovered one can be eloquent and yet not enlightened. Indeed, all of us want to know that we count, that we are valued by someone else. Yet, Oprah can't invite the whole world to her television show and wrap her arms around them and say, "You matter." Even with Dr. Phil's help, Oprah just can't get the job done. It takes a real God to communicate a sense of worth and importance to a world of hurting people. I would amend her remarks and say, "We all just want to know that we matter to the one who made us and he has demonstrated how much we are worth to him through his son, Jesus Christ. When we receive Christ and thereby accept God's great love for us then we know that we know we are important. Not until." She said, "We all want validation." Yes, the adulterer wants validation because his legitimate mate is inadequate for the relationship. Therefore, his behavior is valid. The thief seeks our validation because the economy is unjust and he has a family to feed. The mother who beats her child unmercifully wants validation because she had a bad day. I am not saying that Oprah would ever approve any of the aforementioned circumstances, but I believe there is a difference between validation and toleration. Society cannot validate every lifestyle because there are some behaviors which cannot be tolerated. I would amend her statement and say, "Yes, we all want validation and there is a standard by which our lives can stand a test of validity, called the Ten Commandments." The rich young ruler came to Jesus asking for validation and Jesus told him his validation turned on liquidation and giving to the poor. He walked away sad because he was very wealthy. The truth is that for many folks validation will only come when there is a major change in lifestyle and personal behavior. Otherwise, validation simply becomes toleration. "We want safety and a long life," Oprah also observed. Well, 9/11 pretty well demonstrated that we live in an unsafe world and long life is no guarantee. From the very beginning we are told in the Bible that the world in which we live is unsafe. Able discovered he was not even safe from the anger of his brother Cain. Genuine safety can be assured only by him who is author of life on both sides of death. Wouldn't it been so very refreshing to hear a national television personality like Oprah say, "We all want safety and we know the only true security we can have in this world rests in God, our refuge in time of trouble." But I suppose I am asking too much of one who has to be politically and culturally correct. I suppose I have to be satisfied when an acceptance speech has a hasty reference that says, "I also want to thank God." Finally, to all Oprah fans, one final word: what else could you expect from a conservative, evangelical minister? But that's the way I see it. The Rev.
Dr. John Hatcher is pastor of |
