If you are looking for a really good movie (like they used
to make them—no foul language and sex left up to the imagination) then you will
want to watch, if you haven’t already, The Intern with Robert De Niro and Anne
Hathaway. Robert De Niro plays a retired
widower who signs on to be a senior intern for a start-up internet clothing
company. The “generation gap” as it is
portrayed in the film is touching, hilariously funny, and eventually reconciled
as De Niro and the young 20 somethings interact with one another and come to
see there really isn’t a generation gap after all—they all want the same
thing: meaning and purpose in their
lives, to be appreciated, and most important of all, have close and personal friendships.
There is one scene in the movie where Robert De Niro
explains why he always has a handkerchief in his suit pocket. He tells this young man whom he is mentoring
that men always carry a handkerchief with them so they can give one to a woman
when they need one. De Niro explains
that women cry sometimes and (as happened in an earlier scene) they can use one
to wipe away their tears. De Niro goes
on to explain that carrying a handkerchief is “one of the last vestiges of a chivalrous
man.”
As Christians living in a post-Christian era, we should not
lament and mourn the end of chivalry; we should be resurrecting it back to
life; not in a sexist kind of way but in the name and spirit of Christian
servanthood. De Niro called carrying a
handkerchief an act of service to others, “I carry a handkerchief for a woman
who needs one.” Not for himself but for
someone who needs one. Paul said that we
should put the interests of others ahead of our own (Phil. 2:4). James wrote in his letter (2:14-17) that real
faith is found in action. He gives the example
of saying to someone who is in need of food and clothing, “I hope you get some”
and none is provided that that man’s faith is dead. Actions speak louder than words.
Jesus really brings servanthood to the forefront of the
Christian life. John records in his
Gospel (13:13-16) Jesus washing the disciple’s feet. When he finished, Jesus said this: “Do you
understand what I have done for you? You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and
rightly so, for that is what I am. Now
that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you should wash one
another’s feet. I have set you an example
that you should do as I done for you.”
Notice that twice Jesus said he did this for the disciples not to
the disciples. Jesus washing the disciples’
feet was action out of love, not just setting an example.
In Mark 10:42-45 we read, “Jesus called
them together and said, “You
know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them,
and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with
you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever
wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be
served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Connect this with John 3:16 and again we have
not an example but an action born out of love and compassion.
Servanthood, carrying a handkerchief for the purpose of
lending it to someone who needs it, isn’t just about meeting the needs of
others or living out a piece of Biblical advice. It goes to the core of our very Christian
heart; that Christ has so changed us that we care about others. Period.
We care about the big things and we care about the little things. And it’s the little things that speak with
the greatest volume. If I don’t care
about the little things, then I am certainly not going to care about the big
things. Jesus put it into perspective
when he said, “One who is faithful in a
very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little
is also dishonest in much” (Luke 16:10).
My heart, my faithfulness, to the little things says that I can be
trusted to be faithful, have a heart, for the bigger things.
Two other scenes later in the movie play off this
handkerchief. One is where Anne Hathaway
(who is De Niro’s boss and head of the company where he is interning) lets him
know how much she has come to trust and rely on him. The other is at the very end of the movie
when she is forgiving her husband for having an affair. He is deeply sorry as he confesses his sin to
her and she is forgiving when she hugs him.
In the midst of her tears she tells her husband, “I wish you had a
handkerchief”. That handkerchief, while
a small thing and the lending of it a kind gesture, spoke volumes to Anne
Hathaway’s character about what it means to care and what it means to be
faithful and trusted. De Niro’s
character cared not only about the business but about her as well. It was chivalrous to be sure, but it was also
servanthood that was a result of plain caring.
As Christians we are different from the world because we have
a different heart than the world has.
May we remain different from the world rather than conformed to the
world (Romans 12:1). Let’s resurrect the
handkerchief and make carrying one fashionable again. Let the dry bones of Christian chivalry come
together and put on muscle and flesh and blood and be alive again. Not by our power nor by our might, but by the
power of the Spirit of God (Zechariah 4:6) may we take on the role of caring
servants to one another, beginning with the small things and working our way up
to the big things!
AE
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