Sometimes, truth is stranger than fiction. Some things can be hard to believe even if you have the evidence right in front of you.
One such example is how desensitized people have become. In the image posted by A.J. Laberinto on Facebook, an amateur mobile photographer.
He said in a Facebook comment, “There I was, camera–celfone rather, in hand turning around the corner when I saw the child. You see, only recently I’ve been taking pictures of whatever sight was in front of me strolling around Manila though not that many. So there I was, and for several seconds the baby lay there on the floor not dying but rather sound asleep.”
He also said that people in Manila have been all too familiar with such scenes. People’s reaction to beggars was to simply walk away.
After taking the phoo, Laberinto said that he asked the familiar faces in the crowd who actually lived on the stairs of who the parents were. While he was asking around, a woman came and carried the baby away.
He said that he gave some food to the child and after several days, he saw him again by the staircase sleeping in the same manner.
The photos have been shared several thousand times since they were posted. There is a lot to discuss in the situation.
While the initial reaction of people is to be angry at the onlookers who seemed to be ignorant of the child, some may feel disgust at them, but what happened here was proof that people have become numb to poverty and to the pains of the world.
Still, some would say that the parents should be more responsible for the situation to their child, and they would be correct. Parents should always look out for the welfare of their children.
Some would venture to say that the government is to blame for such a situation. That even though they may not be directly responsible for what happened, they have the power and authority to do something about it.
However, the real problem lies in our nature. As sinful beings, we cannot help but not care about others. It is hard to sacrifice our lives for others because after doing that, other responsibilities will immediately follow. It can be hard to deviate from what we have been used to.
But Jesus Christ showed us how we should deal with these things. In Philippians 2, Paul urges all believers to follow the example of Christ.
have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
God calls us to be self-sacrificial for the sake of others. We must help strangers, we must care for our family, and we must serve others if we have the authority to do so.
Let us do what we can to transform our community even in just tiny and simple steps.