Black Friday and the Vets
The term Black Friday is believed to have originated in 1960s Philadelphia. Police officers in the city began calling the post-turkey holiday shopping blitz by this name to describe the utter chaos of the day, as people flooded in from all around, willing to brave the traffic and the mile-long lines to get the best deals. As a reward for their toil, many planned to catch the Army-Navy football game that Saturday.
We have come a long way since the 60s, with Black Friday shifting from brick and mortar to online shopping exploits. In this way, it’s become a less virtuous affair, and probably more dangerous. What do I mean? At least before, you physically came to the stores and interacted with people. Some folks would go shopping together and experience some form of community. But now we can stay holed up in our little boxes, isolated from others, and get all the stuff delivered. Shopping alone is no crime, of course. But at least the Black Fridays of the past had the redeeming quality of shared joy. My other conclusion that modern Black Friday is dangerous in a way that wasn’t so much before is that all you have to do is click. It’s much easier to blow through money on Amazon than if you have to stand in a line at Macy’s for an hour before you see the inside of the store.
Speaking of Macy’s, the famous one in Boston, the one at Downtown Crossing isn’t far from the New England Center and Home for Veterans. Do you want to know what those folks do on Black Friday? The same as every other day. When I speak to the vets, many of whom live at 17 Court Street, it’s clear that most of them are barely hanging on financially. They aren’t conned into buying stuff at a discount because they aren’t in the market. This blog post isn’t a call not to buy Christmas presents or to pile high the guilt alongside the turkey or ham leftovers. It’s a call to consider others today and during this holiday season. To be generous, even sacrificial with what God has given to us.
It’s not the so called “social gospel” to care about the needs of others in our midst. And giving your resources to the poor won’t get you into heaven. But if we are God’s people, we will have compassion for the needy. As Paul wrote:
“So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” —Gal. 6:10
And so, let this be a call to us all, when the deals pop up on the screen and we begin to reason with ourselves about whether we need the thing or just want it, that there are many who enjoy no wants, and barely get their needs. According to Paul, the first place to start is within the household of faith, the church. Try having intentional conversations with other members and attenders with the aim of seeing who you might bless during this Christmas season, materially or otherwise. A different way would be to talk to a vet. There certainly has been an uptick of them at our worship services, perhaps due to our engagement at the Center. Why not ask a vet about his or her needs? This Christmas season, let us “do good to everyone.”
