A couple weekends ago, our pastor brought this photo and its story to our attention. It is a Sudanese child who was on her way to a feeding trough with the rest of her village. She was so weak, she stopped to rest like this. For 20 minutes Kevin Carter, the photographer, waited for the vulture to spread its wings, but it didn't. He eventually snapped the photo and chased away the vulture. He did nothing to help the little toddler, which drew much criticism after the photo was released.
The St. Petersburg Times in Florida said this of Carter: "The man adjusting his lens to take just the right frame of her suffering, might just as well be a predator, another vulture on the scene." Her fate was unknown, BUT, Carter was awarded the Pulitzer prize for Feature Photography two months after the picture was taken.
A year later, all that fame couldn't buy Carter peace. He was "haunted by vivid memories", according to his suicide note. He took his life by carbon monoxide poisoning at the age of 33. Carter had no hope that there was something better beyond the pain & suffering that he had seen as a photographer. He saw the worst in humanity, but he did not know the best humanity had to offer - JESUS.
Yet, Jesus must have revealed something to him AFTER he realized his lack of compassion on a starving child. The pain. The heartache. The regret. If only he could do it all over again. Maybe he did take the words to heart that he was nothing more than a predator, waiting for that next great photo. He had separated his heart from his work.
God's Word says, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." - Matt 25:40
The modern day church is to be the hands & feet for Christ.
Later in that same passage, God says, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'" (v45)
Living with that regret would haunt me too. It's a double-tragedy beyond Shakespearan proportions. Sad that we lost a photographer that could have turned his life towards Christ and become a great humanitarian too. And sad that world hunger still goes on like this every day around the world and people turn a blind eye to it.
I want to leave you with these final thoughts. Here's a quote I really like but don't know whom to give credit to:
"When you see what Jesus saw, You will feel what Jesus felt."
WEBSITES:
http://www.manofpeacedevelopment.org/ - to bring clean water & drip irrigation to the people of West Africa. (website being built now - soon to be opened)
World Vision -Sponsor a child
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