by Beth Snodderly
Abstract
A social science model, called a “status degradation ritual,” can help us understand some of the dynamics in the way people sometimes relate to others in a time of crisis. This article looks at a community crisis in the First Epistle of John and notes how the author used the elements of a status degradation ritual to try to solve the problem. The author’s community was having to distinguish between “the children of God,” and those who are having their status degraded to “children of the devil.” In this article I consider if this model also applies to the way some politicians talk about asylum seekers fleeing violence in their home countries. Do the degrading comments by top leaders put those people in a position of being seen and treated as non-persons? Might the similarities and differences between these 1st and 21st century crises help Jesus-followers know how to respond to current immigration issues?
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