“The Mask We Wear”
SCRIPTURE
Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves. They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” —Genesis 3:6-10
DEVOTIONAL
There is a fascinating documentary entitled, “The Mask You Live in.”1 It opens with former NFL player and coach, Joe Ehrmann who says that the three most destructive words that every boy hears when he is young is, “be a man.” The film goes on to describe these powerful assumptions and expectations (some explicit, some implicit) in the marketplace, media, entertainment, and even in schools. These voices instruct on how to act, what to wear, what to buy, who to be, despite who the boy really is.
“Man up,” they might say, “stop with the tears,” “be the lone wolf,” “figure it all out on your own,” “be cool, kind of a jerk,” “real men fight back.” And young men don’t feel secure about how they measure up, they feel like they must go out and prove their compliance, if not obedience, to find approval, acceptance and affection. For many, it is an act – a “mask” carefully worn to cover up the true self that, if exposed, would cause shame, embarrassment, and isolation.
While the film focused on young men, everyone has a mask. That social front that we wear like emotional armor to assure approval, avoid awkwardness, and play the role of “success.” The ironic thing is that these masks – the very tool to be accepted – keep us distanced from intimacy and living into our true selves. With a few rare friends, we might risk pulling the mask down, but only for a minute so that no one might notice our humanity, our demons (inside and out), our imperfections. You know, the stuff of Lent.
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- As we begin this journey to the cross, notice what masks you wear. When do you need them? What are they covering?
- What challenges do you face when trying to live “out loud” into your true self?
- When God was searching for humanity after they “covered themselves” and hid because they were afraid. God called to them, “Where are you?” What would it take to reveal your true self to the world? How might that empower you as a disciple of Jesus Christ?
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“Love takes off the masks we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within.”
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―James Baldwin
PRAYER
Lord, we are here, often afraid and alone. Keep calling until our fear loses its grip. Keep calling through the shame and regret. Keep calling until we find the courage to come closer to you, to one another, and to our true selves. Keep calling so that we might share that gift for a better world. Amen.
1 The Mask You Live In. Jennifer Siebel Newsom. The Representation Project, 2015. Netflix.
The daily devotionals for the season of Lent are written by Rev. Dr. Kirk Hall, Associate Pastor of Formation at First Presbyterian Church from 2010-2013. He is currently a founding partner at The Metis Project, LLC. and lives with his wife and two girls in Salisbury, Connecticut.