Imago Dei in the Brothels

I spent the morning in the brothels. Part of me wants to write so much about that . . . and part of me feels very silenced. The hard thing about grappling with injustice is that in some ways, to box it in words and pour out sympathy seems in many ways to cheapen the cost that individuals pay daily. It was sobering for me. I think it is offensive to a God whose character is justice to be comfortable with these things - or comfortable forgetting them.

I came home and showered and couldn't wipe away the sting of rage in my spirit. My face tingles with the slap of Injustice that literally strips naked a woman created in the image of God and leaves her isolated in a dark room for 16 hours a day, no one to interact with but her Madam, perhaps her pimp every once in a while, and the spirit of lust manifest in too many faces to count. 15 Euros is the price to rape Imago Dei. How does one swallow that?

This crime is not a sexy fad to watch videos about and discuss in small groups. I feel the weight of responsibility for the knowledge I've been entrusted with . . . and the question is, what's next? I feel advocacy for me is not the answer - so many people know, and the violence continues. Not only continues, it GROWS: through globalization, migration, crime networks, despair.

Kathryn Farr wrote a book called Sex Trafficking: The Global Market in Women and Children. I read it for pieces of the plane ride over and, in my rare free moments, have retreated to my bedroom to glean from her research. According to her studies, the fall of the Soviet Union in '91 paved the way for organized crime networks to thrive under poor governmental structure and loose political organization in the nations of Eastern Europe born in its aftermath. As a result, more women and children are trafficked from these nations - in particular, Romania, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Moldova, and others . . . than anywhere else in the world, except perhaps Thailand (though numbers are fluid in underground networks).

I met some of these women this morning. I was with an American from Michigan whose been living in Europe for about 12 years now - she speaks Armenian fluently and a great deal of Greek. I ached for language!! But one of the Romanian girls spoke some English . . .

And I missed the women we work with - and my team - in Seattle. Neither is worth more or more important; the experiences are different, but the lies they deal with and the spiritual realities they face are very much the same. My frustration is that it seems that organizations are popping up internationally to serve these women - but what is impacting the other end of the system? Where does systemic change happen to break the chains of injustice? As that old fable goes, if we're pulling thousands of drowning babies out of a river one by one, whose going upstream to stop the one casting babies in a river? (That sounds so corny, but I think it's a good analogy regardless.)

I trust the God who promised that His Kingdom is coming to reign on earth - and I recognize that it will not be fully manifest until Jesus returns in power. I long for that day - and I will fight for it.

"Who will rise up for me against the wicked?
Who will take a stand for me against evildoers?
Unless the LORD had given me help,
I would soon have dwelt in the silence of death.
When I said, 'My foot is slipping,'
Your love, o LORD, supported me.
When anxiety was great within me,
Your consolation brought joy to my soul.

Can a corrupt throne be allied with You --
One that brings on misery by its decrees?
They band together against the righteous
And condemn the innocent to death.
But the LORD has become my fortress
And my God the rock in whom I take refuge.
He will repay them for their sins
And destroy them for their wickedness;
the LORD our God will destroy them" (Psalm 94:16-23).

That's challenging. In some ways, I find comfort in that. In other ways, I find it very uncomfortable. Thank You for the tension Your Word creates in me, Jesus - bring light to my eyes, that I might understand Your character and Your JUSTICE better. I love You - You are good and full of mercy. Amen.