S1-Day 15: God in Dirty Places: Ignoring Thorns-Stem of Roses

India was awakened to the news of the sixteen souls that were ran over by a goods train at Aurangabad in Maharashtra on the 8^th May 2020. The exhausted migrant workers returning home by foot fell asleep on the railway tracks not knowing that fate and tragedy will be very cruel on them. No words nor compensation or voices of sorrow would re-compensate the precious life that is lost for ever. Words will be less to describe the agony of the families back home who for life depend their livelihood.

It has always been said that India is a composition of villages. One cannot imagine the growth of urban cities and municipalities and a thriving economy without the work of the migrants, who survive as daily wage earners. The mega cities, buildings, rail and airport projects, multiplexes, wonder parks, hospitals, universities, and schools are all but built by the migrant or daily wage earners. Yet when pandemic and calamity strike the nation, they are left to fend the adversary themselves. In a time, such as this how do we comprehend those migrants who have been left jobless since the lockdown? When we that are fortunate to have a shelter and food talked about social distancing the migrants were more concerned about the lack of food, shelter, accommodation, essential food supplies rather the bleak of starvation.

There is hope that the pandemic will pass and the Nation as a whole will come together stronger, yet for those migrant workers it is a wonder when their economic security and salvation will come. To admire the cities with its wonders of buildings yet ignore the work of the sewer cleaners, the sweepers, the construction builders, and the manual scavengers is like admiring the rose flower yet hating the thorny stems. In reality there can be no roses without thorny stems. In this context, it is time to search for a visioning where we get to acknowledge the thorny-stem so that the roses are not romanticized at the expense of the others, the "less fortunate" and "powerless". 

At times, we question why do these migrant workers come to our towns and cities and pollute the scenery of the surrounding. Ye,t today the question needs to be reversed and we ought to ask ourselves, "if all these migrant workers decide to stop working tomorrow, what will be the condition of towns and cities?" It is just that we need more of them rather than them needing more of us in the actual situation. In the event of the declaration of the lockdown all of us were lost in the quest for ourselves on the maxim, all for ourselves. Yet none of us, thought about the millions of the migrant workers and their families and the conditions they were left to wither. A Saint was right to say that Service to humanity is service to God. Yet the million-dollar questions today are whether we have let down our fellow migrant workers? Have we done enough service to humanity and to the divine?  The very fact that our fellow citizens lost their lives sleeping and mowed down by a train shows how far we have gone from the maxim of service to humanity and to the divine.

Prayer

All embracing God, open our eyes to see life-struggles of your people. Lead us not into the temptations of our comfort zones, but deliver us from the evils we are forced to be a part of; for yours are we, the people, and everything you created, forever and ever. Amen.

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Author: Chenijan Patton

About the Author: Chenijan completed his Bachelor of Divinity and Master of Theology from the United Theological College, Bangalore. He is presently pursuing doctoral studies.