To Be Human

I recently saw a documentary titled Kicking It about a soccer tournament in which all of the participants were homeless men.  The organizers of the tournament called the Homeless World Cup had an idea to use the game of soccer to change the lives of the men.  To be honest as I watched the film I kept thinking to myself, "Sure, the men seem to enjoy the game but come on, they are homeless.  What they need is what anyone in such a situation needs: food, shelter, clothing, etc."  I thought this because this is what one who is in poverty need.  Someone in the grips of poverty needs food, not a game.

As the film progress it followed several men who were playing in the tournament.  There were men from Ireland, Afghanistan, Kenya, America, Russian, and some 40 other countries.  One of the men from the Russia team would routinely say, "We must win."  His demeanor was of great determination.  His, "We must win" was always said not so much with a drive for the glory of victory but with the voice of a man in desperation to save his life.  It was as if his life literally depended upon his team winning a simple soccer tournament that most of the world knew nothing about.

So what exactly was it?  Why was it so important to win this soccer tournament?  In the words of the man, "If we win, then we will be human."  You see poverty isn't just about the lack of food, clothing, or shelter.  What poverty ultimately does is strip someone of their belief that they are human.  They are stripped of that because that is how they are most often treated by others.  They are treated, viewed, and often ignored as something less than worthy of our attention; something less than human.

    The poor is disliked even by his neighbor,
        but the rich has many friends.
     Whoever despises his neighbor is a sinner,
        but blessed is he who is generous to the poor.
                                                 (Proverbs 14:20-21 ESV)