Beware stereotypes!

Jesus said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him, and went away, leaving him half-dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road... he passed by on the other side. So, too, a Levite... passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan... took pity on him...” Luke 10:30-35

A friend needed to pop into the hospital for a few minutes to pick something up. The machine in the car park offered a twenty minute slot for fifty pence, which was ideal. But as she rummaged through her handbag it became frustratingly obvious that she didn’t have fifty pence in change. Grrr. At this point who should drive up but Mr White Van Man?

If you live in Britain you will know that “White Van Man” is a term of mild abuse for any self-employed workman, perhaps a plumber or builder, who tends to be aggressive, rude - and probably not too bothered about honesty. 

“What do you need, love?” asked Mr White Van Man out of his window. “Fifty pence? Oh, I can help you there” - and promptly gave her a coin. She, being very British (and also very Christian), was a little embarrassed: “But I’m afraid I won’t be able to pay you back!” To which he replied “Oh, don’t worry about that!” 

Then, as he drove off with a cheery wave, he shouted over his shoulder, “Mind you, any time you need your front drive done just give me a call and I’ll rip you off good and proper.”

A nice story. That man was playing up to the stereotype of White Van Man and turning it into a joke (perhaps I’m being a bit naive, but it’s hard to believe someone so good-natured would really “rip anybody off”).

And so my friend benefited in three distinct ways. First, she had the solution to a practical problem. Second, she had a smile on her face over the joke. And third, and by far the most important, she learned a lesson about stereotyping people (not that she needed it, I think, but a reminder is never a bad thing, is it?).  

In Jesus’ day, if ever there was a person likely to be stereotyped by the Jews it was the Samaritans. It is no exaggeration to say that relations between the two peoples were poisonous and full of centuries-old hatred. 

And this is the kick in Jesus’ story. The man talking with him has been reminded to “love his neighbour as himself.” Fine, he says, no problem. But then he digs a hole for himself by asking Jesus the question, “And who is my neighbour?” - assuming, no doubt, that it would turn out to be somebody who lived nearby or, by extension, any good, law-abiding Jew. 

It must have been a severe shock to be told that the true neighbour was, in fact, a detested Samaritan. That man had, as they say, some serious thinking to do, some drastic rearranging to carry out of the long-settled furniture of his mind...

So the question is: Do you ever stereotype people? I’m afraid I do - only subconsciously, perhaps, but I don’t think that makes things any better.

You see a little old man with a stick walking along the road. And you think “Oh, he’s of no account - his opinion wouldn’t be worth hearing. Just an old man...” Careful! - for all you know he could be a university professor of nuclear  thermodynamics... You see a young woman with a full-face head-covering and you think “Oh, another of those fanatical Muslims...” Careful! - she could belong to a group desperate to distance true Muslims from their violent fellow-Muslims and to foster good relations with the wider community. 

Somebody comes into church one Sunday with an armload of tattoos and a face liberally decorated with bits of metal. And you think “Oh, what a thug!” Careful! - he could be... well, that’s the whole point, he could be almost anything. And you’ll never know who or what he is until you accept him as he is and get to know him. 

The good news is that stereotypes can die on the strength of five minutes’ conversation. That’s all it might take.

Stereotypes are simply a convenient way of dismissing people as nonentities - people you really don’t need to bother with. And so to resort to stereotypes is lazy, wrong and completely unchristian. 

Every time we come across someone who doesn’t quite fit our idea of how people should be, it’s worth reminding ourselves of a few vital truths... That person is made in the image of God... That person is infinitely precious to God... That person is someone Jesus died on the cross for... That person could be, if not now then at some point in the future, my brother or sister in Christ...

God save us from stereotypes!

Father in heaven, you have loved and accepted me just as I am with all my faults and peculiarities. Help me to do for others what you have done for me. Amen.