You went out of your way
to meet the worst.
The ones cast out,
condemned and cursed.
The ones deemed vile,
unclean, so foul,
the ones society
consigns to hell.
Thieves and whores,
the demon-possessed,
lepers and cheats
and hypocrites.
When nobody thought
they could be redeemed,
you went out of your way
for these.
You go out of your way
to meet the worst.
the ones cast out,
condemned and cursed.
When nobody thought
I could be redeemed,
you went out of your way
for me.
…they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.”
Matthew 9: 11-12