March 2005 by E. Louise Williams
(Click here for downloadable artwork)

God Forsaken
Matthew 27:45-46

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” —Matthew 27:46b

Every large city has one—especially the cities in the less developed parts of the world. Their garbage heaps are probably a lot like the one called Golgotha, the place of the skull, where Jesus was crucified. It was a god-forsaken place.

The garbage heap of Cairo, Egypt, is on Mount Mokattam. It is a city within a city where some 30,000 to 40,000 people live, and eke out a living by collecting garbage and sorting and recycling it. It’s a place where the poorest of the poor live. Their rattlely pick-up trucks and donkey carts can scarcely make it through the narrow streets, which are heaped with garbage and trash. The streets are lined with cave-like stalls where families—especially the women and children—work to sort what they have collected, tying up the cardboard, crushing the aluminum cans, and boxing the plastics. And above those stalls are the small apartments where the people live—sometimes without electricity, water, or sewage disposal.

In the midst of this dark, dirty, disease-ridden place a small group of Sisters of St. Mary, deaconesses of the Coptic Church, share a small apartment. They operate a clinic, a school, and a sheltered workshop for people with disabilities. They live among the people they serve. Because Jesus has gone to such a god-forsaken place, they can dare to be there, too. They are a sign, even on the darkest of days, that death does not have the last word.

If you, today or any day, feel like you are in some god-forsaken place, know that you are not alone. Jesus has already been there, and some follower of Jesus may take the risk of standing with you in that place—a sign of hope and the resurrection that will soon come.

For reflection and discussion: What are some of the god-forsaken places people are in today? Have you individually or as a congregation stood with someone who felt forsaken by God?

Prayer: Gracious God, give us courage to follow you even to god-forsaken places. Amen.