Poverty

A former vicar of St. Martin-in-the-Fields tells this story on himself:

Hurrying away from the church one day, late for a meeting, I encountered a homeless man in Trafalgar Square. He rushed up to me and asked, "Vicar! Do you remember me?"

I was late for a meeting in a faraway part of London, so I answered brusquely, taking out my wallet: "How much do you want?"

A crestfallen look passed across his face and his hands fell to his sides. "I don't want anything!" he said, his formerly bright voice full of sadness. "I just wanted to know if you remembered me."

(paraphrased from A Room with a View, Rev. Nicholas Holtam’s essays about ministry at St. Martin-of-the-Fields - "ministry with the world at our door.")

Comments

[Rana]

Oh! How poignant!

I have to admit that this is one of my pet peeves about how so many people behave when interacting with people who are homeless - the refusal to not only meet their eyes, but to ignore their greetings, their questions, etc.

I know that some of it stems from discomfort and self-protection, but still. There's no reason to be rude when you haven't been offered rudeness in the first place. (I suppose poverty itself is rude?)

I try to always at least acknowledge the humanity of people who speak to me on the streets - it seems like the very least (and yet often the most important) thing one can do. Sometimes they do want money, and sometimes they prove disturbing - but they are still people.