You are free
Bent
by the cruelty of lifestyles that deprive us of dignity,
by
impositions that weight too much,
by
cultural heritage that pull us down,
by
secrets we have been forced to keep
and
guilt which is not ours, but yet we carry still,
by
traditions we dare not let loose,
and
creeds we repeat with no conviction,
by
words kept for too long,
and
because we don’t know how to look people in the eye,
for
not standing up to injustice,
because
we have neither received nor given enough hugs,
because
we have not lain on the grass a bit more
and
forgotten to look up to the stars,
we
have hid for too long from all the things we fear,
and
not asked for help when help was needed.
Not
having been allowed to grown freely and
been
forced to walk on our knees,
because
we were led to believe it was better to
drag
ourselves along and give up hope than to stand defiant
resisting
all oppression and all tyranny.
Bent we walk through life
expecting alms from a system
that has marginalized and excluded,
that hasn’t healed or liberated or saved,
condemning people to walk facing the ground.
Bent even in churches under the yoke of
theologies that alienate and
preaching that adds more and more weight to those bent already,
denying any possibility of a
liberating spirituality.
Bent we walk in our inter-personal relationships
victims of patriarchies and fundamentalisms
which rejoice in seeing people lick the boots of
the false gods.
Suddenly Jesus walks in, the amazing Jesus,
He extends his hand and says
"let no one deceive you,
let no one lie to you, let no one exclude you,
stopping you from becoming who you can be".
In spite of all the powers that want
to keep you bent, defeated
You are set free. You are free!
Nobody, ever again, will bend us.
Rev. Gerardo Oberman. Argentina.
Used with permission.