Is Chivalry Dead?

I am always trying to discover why people do what they do. Sometimes, what appears to be a good deed with no ulterior motive turns out to be a setup to persuade others to honor someone for the good deed they have done. It’s like a story that happened last year when a man running for office claimed to be a war veteran who had received a Medal of Honor. It turned out he was lying and had not even been in the military! He was using people’s respect for people who sacrificed in order to get an advantage in the voting polls. This week there was a story of a total stranger who climbed 4 stories on the outside of a building to save a toddler. The boy fell off a 5th floor balcony and was holding on for dear life on the 4th floor.

All too often we hear negative stories of dishonest acts and become jaded about respect and honor. Dishonest people and their testimonies thus become suspicious of any noble or sacrificial act. With the development of the internet, every story of value is often discredited by the opposing political party as biased and a lie. How easy it is now for a person to lie about another and in the field of public opinion, they branded another as a liar before the story or facts can be verified?  How easy we become judgmental with others without investigating before hand the fact or claims of another.  Jesus said we should not judge one another so easily.

Matthew 7:1-3 

Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. “Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?

This passage is often misinterpreted to mean that we should not judge at all, which is incorrect. What Jesus was saying was to use honest scales of judgment, not opinion, as the basis of your investigation before you reach conclusions. We all judge life through our own personal lens and thus we need a standard that is fair to all.

Proverbs 16:11   

A just balance and scales belong to the LORD; All the weights of the bag are His concern.

Proverbs 11:1 

A false balance is an abomination to the LORD, But a just weight is His delight.

When someone does a “Good Deed” for someone else, we need to take notice and talk about it. Stories of generosity, kindness and chivalry are needed to help reinforce our values lest all we hear and communicate are negative thoughts. To be honest, I can be very negative about almost everything. My gifting from God is I can discern intentions and values very easily. If I walk into a factory in less than 15-20 minutes I can see areas were the company can improve their facilities or their system of operations. If I walk into a church, I can sense people’s attitudes and motives as to why they serve. So my gifting and make-up in the Lord is both a blessing and a curse. If I don’t watch myself I can disclose what I sense and see without regard to the feelings and insecurities of the person and thus offend them and make them accurately resistant towards what the Lord wants to help them with. If I don’t develop trust first I can offend with the knowledge I have.  All of us need to be careful not only what we believe but how we communicate. With that being said, we especially need to speak up about positive behavior and action. It is for this very reason I am impressed by this man who risked his life for a child.

The news about this man is even more impressive when I discovered he had just arrived in Paris, France from Mali. He heard people screaming as he walked along a street with high-rise buildings. Looking up, he saw a child dangling off a 4th floor balcony ready to fall to his death. The man, having no time to think,  sprang into action. He climbed up the outside of the building and rescued the little child, thus he was nicknamed “Spiderman” in the press. Once he got inside the building he realized what he had done and started shaking and had to sit down. The major of Paris, upon learning of his heroic actions, commended the man who acted so bravely. The mayor offered him a job as a fireman seeing his instincts and bravery would be an asset to Paris and the job would be a help to the man. This is the kind of immigrant any country would welcome in.

This story reflects a person acting on the behalf of others almost without thinking. Something inside this person had a set of values that propelled them to serve others regardless of the consequences. Paul the apostle was a man who found himself shipwrecked on the island of Malta. He could have just been concerned about himself, but instead had a value to think of others needs. He was ready to serve any person he encounters.

Acts 28:8-10   Landing in Malta

And it happened that the father of Publius was lying in bedafflicted with recurrentfever and dysentery; and Paul went in to seehim and after he had prayed, he laid his hands on him and healed him. After this had happened, the rest of the people on the island who had diseases were coming to him and getting cured. They also honored us with many marks of respect; and when we were setting sail, they supplied uswith all we needed.

Respect – We just showed respect for those who died for our freedom by celebrating the holiday of Memorial Day.  Shouldn’t we celebrate and show respect for people who have acted with chivalry towards other? Let’s rejoice in the good that others do regardless of their background or position in life.

Definition of Chivalry

The nominations of qualities expected of an ideal knight – courage, honor, justice, and a readiness to help the weak. 

Both the man in Paris and Paul in Malta had a value system in their souls that compelled them to serve the needs of others.  To me, this is chivalry.  All the way back to the Roman Empire and earlier, there have been people who embraced what was termed chivalry and the noble attitude of service. Today, this term seems forgotten and rarely spoken of.  By talking about people who have done acts of chivalry we feed the notion in our own soul that helping others is a high value. Here is what one article said about chivalry.

“Chivalry was not a mandate from the powerful to the downtrodden, nor a directive from the chosen unto the        masses. It was a set of limitations which the strong and mighty placed upon themselves with the realization that setting a good example sends a message which is far more powerful than any words on paper.”

All of us have the potential for acting selfishly or with chivalry.  Which will you choose?

Questions:

Are you trying to do periodic acts of kindness or have the values of chivalry as your DNA ? It’s a choice.

As a Christian, are you embracing the values of Christ or just his story? One changes from the inside out.

Are you a disciple of Christ or just a fan of Jesus? One is a relationship and the other a phase.

Loving to think critically.

Pastor Dale