Are You Sick of Professional Victimhood Yet?

Hello, my name is ———— and I’m a VICTIM !!

It’s popular to be a victim nowadays because there’s nothing more valuable than doing that.  

It builds your brand, your social media, and your bank account.  All you have to do is find a way to be a victim and say “I’ve been oppressed.”  That makes you special.

This is what our wicked culture encourages—not marriage, not having children, not serving the Lord or being a good neighbor and being a productive citizen. Just be a victim!

And it’s way past time for us to say “I’m sick and tired of this professional victimhood stuff.” 

Now, I am not minimizing tragedy and genuine oppression. Those exist and we should demonstrate Christian compassion in those cases.

I am saying a hearty “No” to becoming so soft, fat, rich and bored that we turn to victimhood as a hobby.  Today, people gather themselves together in groups of auto-developed victims and celebrate their victimhood.  Some even lie about being victims, so great is their desire for special status.

Terror in the White House?

In October 2020, a man got coronavirus and, like most who get it, he did not die.  After a few days in the hospital, he emerged and told his people something shocking: That they can beat it too, and that while they should be cautious, they shouldn’t let fear control their lives. “Don’t be afraid of COVID,” he said when he got back to work. “Don’t let it dominate your life.” 

The man was Donald John Trump.  When he got out of the hospital after recovering from Covid and returned to the White House, CBS news reporter Ben Tracy said, “I felt safer reporting in North Korea then I currently do at the White House.”  Ben was a reporter at White House, but that’s not enough for him.  He wanted to be more, he wanted to signal how outraged he was— how victimized he was. He wanted to be a victim.

Fighting For Women’s Rights?

In 2018 Serena Williams had a well-publicized meltdown at the women’s U.S. Open.  She cheated, screamed at an umpire, and cost herself a game.  The real issue came when Serena went to the podium after losing the match and proclaimed her immature meltdown was just her “fighting for women’s rights.”  No, she was fighting for her right to be an obnoxious gender-grifting victim. 

She is an American success story.  She is, or at least she could be, a bright, shining example of what hard work and perseverance can do.  Instead of seeking to be a victim, friends, be a victor instead.

I’m an Indian !!

The ever-burning torch of the Oppression Olympics does not burn this bright without help. Liberals work to keep the illusion of strife alive and well, even in politics.  No, make that especially in politics.  Liberals are so committed to victim politics that Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat candidate for president in 2020, pretended to be an indian just so the victim train wouldn’t leave town without her. How odd.

The left can be explained only when you understand that these are minds that never grew into adulthood.  They are stuck seeking sympathy as a shortcut through life.

Waffles and Chicken

My favorite vainglorious victimhood story this week comes from Rockland County New York.  A school food vendor in Rockland County, just outside of New York City, has apologized after it provided lunch for children at a school during Black History Month that was deemed to be insensitive by...you guessed it...professional victims. 

Students at Nyack Middle School were offered chicken and waffles with watermelon for dessert on February 1st.  And since February is black history month, that’s unacceptable.  The menu aroused anger from some students and their (woke) parents who saw the menu as reinforcing negative stereotypes about the African-American community.  

“If they had served chicken and waffles by itself, I don't know that we would be having this conversation.  But the moment you add in the watermelon, that changed the whole complexion, literally,” said Wilbur Aldridge, with the NAACP. 

Wilbur Aldridge—it goes without saying—is a professional victim.  He should change his name to Wilbur Outrage.

In an effort to appear culturally-sensitive (ie woke) the school district expressed disappointment with the food vendor’s lack of cultural sensitivity.  

“The offering of chicken & waffles as an entree with watermelon as a dessert on the first day of Black History Month was inexcusably insensitive and reflected a lack of understanding of our district's vision to address racial bias” the school wrote in a letter sent home to parents.

“We are extremely disappointed by this regrettable situation and apologize to the entire Nyack community for the cultural insensitivity displayed by our food service provider.”

The food vendor apologized for their sins (under duress) and will have to undergo sensitivity training to bring forth fruits worthy of repentance (excluding watermelon, of course).

Observations

• When a child scrapes his knee, what he wants is mommy to come running to pick him up, coddle him, and carry him inside and tell him nothing will ever hurt him again.  But what he also needs is dad.  He needs to be told: “Get up.  Tough it out, son.  And get back on the bike.”

• If someone you know is attempting to reside in the Elizabeth Warren Victim Teepee, call them out for it.  Be bold. It is our job as Believers to be the fathers.  We must reject this glorification of victimhood.  

• Stop telling the world how oppressed you are.  Stop telling everyone what is holding you back, and start telling everyone what you will overcome. This builds maturity and sets the tone for what is coming.

Biblical Reality

What is a Victim Mentality?

If you have a victim mentality, you will see your entire life through a perspective that things constantly happen ‘to’ you. Victimization is a combination of seeing most things in life as negative, beyond your control, and as something you should be given sympathy for. You ‘deserve’ better. At its heart, a victim mentality is a way to avoid taking responsibility for yourself or your life.  

In other words, any bad thing in your life is the fault of other people.  They’re the ones that are bad, wrong or dumb, and you are good, right and brilliant.  Other people do bad or stupid things, and you suffer as a result.

The Bible Doesn’t Encourage a Victim Mentality

While the Bible does recognise the reality of innocent victims, it stops short of affirming a victim mentality. We see this in the life of Jesus.

If anyone had a right to adopt a ‘victim mentality’— blaming other people for their own unjust suffering – it was Jesus.  And yet, according to Scripture, Jesus didn’t adopt a victim mentality. Instead, in response to His suffering He had the mindset of an humble servant (Phil 2:7-8); he endured faithfully as he saw the potential joy that waited for him (Heb 12:2); and He actively trusted God throughout the ordeal (1 Peter 2:21-23), knowing there was a purpose behind His suffering (Mark 10:45). Furthermore, He lovingly suffered and bled for those who victimized him (1 Peter 2:21-24).  Even in the midst of His suffering He prayed for their forgiveness (Luke 23:34).

The foremost victim of human history never adopted the victim mentality. And the New Testament commands Christians to have this same attitude as Jesus (Philippians 2:5). 

Even as we undergo persecution, we’re never encouraged to adopt a victim mentality. Instead, we’re to act responsibly:  doing good in the midst of persecution with the aim of helping our enemies come to know Christ (1 Peter 2:12); not paying back evil for evil or insult for insult (1 Peter 2:20-23); not hating our enemies but loving them (Matt 5:44). And instead of blanket negativity in the face of unjust suffering, we’re to rejoice even as we grieve (1 Peter 1:6, 4:16).

A Victimhood Mindset Distorts Our View of Reality

When we adopt a victim mentality, we tend to see things through a negative lens. We exaggerate the bad things that happen to us, and attribute them exclusively to people and forces outside of our control.   

Victhimhood Blinds Us to Our Own Sin and our Need for a Savior

A victim mentality magnifies the harm done to us, and minimizes our own sinfulness.  This keeps people from repenting and turning to Jesus. Or to put it theologically, we become blind to our own sin, and eternally lost. It’s that serious.

Victimhood Disempowers Us

One of the most harmful impacts of a victim mentality is what it does to people who hold it: it removes nearly all their initiative to improve their situation. They lose the ability to positively influence their circumstances, and better their lives. In other words, they’re held hostage to their ideology.

It Sucks The Joy Out of Life

Victimhood takes away your ability to be grateful and have joy in life. As Christians, God has given us every spiritual blessing in Christ (Eph 1:3), and so we can be thankful no matter our earthly circumstances (Col 2:6-7). We can rejoice even in our sufferings, knowing that suffering achieves for us our ultimate end – to be more like Christ (Rom 5:3-5). 

Yes, we grieve as we suffer. We might be wracked with pain as we endure an injustice. We might work to end such injustice. But we do this with hope and with love – not with anger and hatred toward those who hurt us. We must take our pain to Jesus.

Victimhood Damages Relationships

If you’re in relationship with a person having a victim mentality, chances are they won’t take responsibility for their actions in the relationship.  If there’s ever tension, it will be your fault.  If there’s conflict, you’re the one to blame, not them. After all, they are a professional—victim, that is. They won’t be open to being challenged about their sin—why would they? They’re innocent, and you’re guilty. Such a relationship is fraught and full of tension.

A Better Way: Entrust Your Life to God While Doing Good

There’s a better way to live life than constantly blaming others for your challenges. There’s a better way to live than demanding others fix your situation.  The Bible shows us this better way.

As image bearers of the Creator God, we have personal agency: the ability to take initiative, to choose our response, and to act wisely no matter what we face.

And, although taking responsibility often means owning our sinful behaviour and its impact on others, we can do this if we look to a Saviour Who rescues us from the consequences of our sin.

Or, in the words of the apostle Peter, writing to Christians suffering persecution: let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good (1 Peter 4:19).

Now that’s a much better way to live. And it won’t make you sick.

In fact it will bring health and healing into your life.

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