Everywhere you turn, it seems, we
are facing crises. Moreover, we see a polarized society that cannot agree upon
how to go forward to address our problems. We have debated political points,
economic policies, beginning of life issues, end of life issues, and the threat
of climate change yet we remain in a quagmire. With the COVID-19
coronavirus pandemic, we are confronting a new unsettling threat on top of the
many others that we have already proved ourselves to be ineffectual at
addressing.
Political Challenges
We live in a time of political
turmoil. Our society is more polarized than perhaps we have seen in our
lifetime. Last week, David Linker wrote an opinion piece giving a dire
assessment of a nation in decline. He points out how our presidential
leadership has never been worse, yet the president's approval rating has never
been higher.
For my part, by the midterm of Trump's presidency, what was most disheartening,
even more than the president’s behaviors, rants, and actions, was
how many Americans were okay with that. When I watch political commentators and
listen to some of my friends, there are many who keep hoping for a
"wake-up call" and a "blue wave" in November. I can well
understand that hope, but nothing that has been predicted by Trump's opponents
(or by any hopeful liberals or reasonable voices) has come true.
The only bright spot for me is that, if polls are accurate, a little over half
of the population claims a higher ethic and voices opposition to the appalling
measures that the Trump Administration is promoting. It may not be enough to
turn the tide on Election Day, but as they say, we must still try. And it is
our civic responsibility, regardless of political affiliation, to remain
engaged in the process and to make informed decisions in the voting booth.
Some Values Still Remain
Whatever
happens politically, we must remember that there are still higher values being
exhibited by humanity. When I went to the San Francisco Bay Area to go to
seminary back in the late 1970s, that was the largest urban setting I had
ever lived in. One of my professors, Dr.
Francis DuBose, a pioneer in urban missions, told us, “In the city, you
will find Man's (sic) greatest good and Man's greatest evil.” There was truth
in that, and it may have helped this boy from Alabama come to appreciate the
many good things that were to be found in The City.
Four years before that, as a
freshman at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, I sat in my Western
Civilization class and heard the professor, Dr. Leah Atkins, tell how Christians were so
devastated by the collapse of Rome that Augustine wrote The City of God to
reassure them that the end of Rome did not mean the end of Christianity.
However one feels about Augustine or Christianity, there is a vital lesson to
be learned from history. As an 18-year-old, for some reason, that information
shifted my perspective and probably altered my worldview.
I tried to put myself in those 5th century Roman's shoes: how would I feel if
my country collapsed? How would it affect my faith? I made a conscious
decision to make sure my faith was not oriented around the strength of my
country. I nurtured an understanding that the USA could fail and we could still
find a way to hold on to what is good and true.
On the advice of St. Augustine, I
purposefully untied the ropes that had lashed the two separate barges of God
and Country together. In the event of the unthinkable tragedy of my
country’s collapse, I saw the need to keep a sound footing on the ancient faith
that I professed.
Understanding the Threat
I still tell myself all these years
later that we can continue to champion what is good, even if society collapses
and our institutions fail. We will likely see the best of humanity along with
the worst, but that has always been true. Our current pandemic is forcing us to
recognize our interconnectedness as well as the fragility of our
infrastructures.
Like many of you, I have come to
realize over the years that climate change is an increasing threat to our
environment. I have been dismayed at our society's reluctance to address
climate change and I fear that it could lead to our undoing. When I was in
grade school, I saw how science alerted the public to the dangers of pollution.
I saw news reports of smog in the cities and trees dying in the hills above Los
Angeles. By the time I was in high school, I saw many of those effects of pollution
reversed. With the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act, we saw changes in
industry and in automobile manufacturing that cleaned up the environment and
allowed trees to grow again in the hills of southern California.
In light of that early success, it
baffles me that with the increasing scientific understanding of climate change,
we have not been able to bring ourselves to implement the changes needed to
protect the environment. In fact, we are resistant to any change and reluctant
to buy unto the warnings that science has given us.
We seem to be able to respond only
when the threat becomes a catastrophe at our doorstep. Scientists tell us that
we are nearing the point of irreversible damage to our environment. It
may be that our only hope is in catastrophe. Let’s hope that it is a survivable
catastrophe.
We
Have a Heritage of Survival
Earlier this year, at the height of
Australia’s brush fire crisis, I read an article that gave me a new perspective
of hope. Australian writer, Jackie French, wrote the opinion piece, “From fire evacuation rooms, Diary of a Wombatauthor pens her message to Australia,” in The Sydney Morning Herald.
Australia was facing the worst fires in its history. Whole towns were
devastated and animal species (including the beloved koala) faced the threat of
extinction, yet French offered a surprisingly hopeful word:
This is most Australians’ first taste of climate change. But we
are the descendants of those who have faced Ice Ages, plagues, wars, famine.
Most humans died. Our ancestors did not. When times are hardest, humans are
capable of the greatest kindness and innovation.
Think about that! “We are
the descendants of those who have faced Ice Ages, plagues, wars, famine. Most
humans died. Our ancestors did not.” I find it encouraging to realize that even
if I do not survive the threats we face, our species has a history of
resilience and survival. My own ancestors were able to come back from the brink
extinction, and that gives me some solace.
Many of us can think of survival stories even closer to home in our own family
histories. Stories of getting through the war, the Depression, enduring
tragedies, finding small joys in times of hardship. We all have that in our
DNA.
Hold On to What is Good
Today we face multiple challenges:
medical, economic, social, political, and environmental. Though the threats are
real, there is no reason to give up. With the COVID-19 pandemic, we may
see our economic and political systems pushed to the brink. We may see a series
of successes and failures, but we can still hold to those values that are at
the core of our humanity. We can carry forward that which is good regardless of
the shape that our societal structures take. Jackie French reminds us, “When
times are hardest, humans are capable of the greatest kindness and innovation.”
So let's hope for the best, work
like it can happen, and champion the good wherever we can find it, even if the
worst happens. It's time for some furious dancing.
