By Fr. Glenn Jones:
Very often news stories, Facebook and Twitter posts, etc., are (apparently) selected for their controversial or inflammatory character—“click-bait”, as they say, designed to multiply the number of internet “hits”, thereby giving sites leverage in setting advertising rates—profit motive, of course, driving content. That’s likely the reason why “news” sites often embed on homepages teaser links to stories/pictures of scantily-clad celebrities, scandals or gossip-mongering.
Increasingly common, too, is highlighting news of extreme events or injustices, and presenting such behaviors as the norm throughout society … thereby garnering even more “hits” via by outrage, but consequently feeding the fires of societal division. For example, the recent riots in several, but comparatively few, cities likely involved only a minute fraction of one percent of the national population—the “squeaky wheel” gleaning the media grease. And yet, because of its coverage, an extraterrestrial tuning in might be led to believe that the entire country was burning. (“Reverse thrusters, Gort…quick!!!”)
In the main, however, the vast majority of people do not tend toward extreme positions or behavior (otherwise those positions, by definition, would no longer be “extreme”, after all). Most people are simply middle-of-the-road, go-to-work/school-every-day folks, often finding themselves shaking their heads at the “lamentable” state of the nation.
But the overwhelming tide of that salt-of-the-earth majority, I think—despite our human propensity toward self-interest—desire what’s best for all. Jesus teaches: “You shall know them by their fruits,” … not simply a Christian teaching, but a virtually self-evident truism emphasized throughout human history and experience.
If you’ve ever lived by the ocean, you are familiar with the inexorable force of the tides. A person can go out into the water against an incoming tide and beat at, kick at, scream at the water until he’s utterly exhausted, but to no avail; the tide will come in nonetheless, with power far surpassing his ability to even hinder. It is that good majority of people which need be the vast tide slowly, gently, inexorably overwhelming one resisting the good, hopefully by his realization of what is truly beneficial.
We observe that persons successful in advancing long-term development and movements for societal benefit are not those who denigrated others, but rather those who sought to elevate the marginalized or downtrodden and to advance truth, recalling in this all-too-short list such luminaries as Plato, Gandhi, Mandela, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, Jr., and, of course, Jesus. Thus, movements denigrating race or other endemic characteristic of persons are doomed to failure in the long term, even if sometimes (tragically) successful in the short term; the “good tide” internally recognizes that such alignments are malignant—cancerous—to the health of the whole.
The true Christian will certainly recognize this, for he will recognize that God calls all persons to the salvation won for us by Christ. A Christian who disagrees with that premise might be asked, “Well, whom did Christ exclude?” He will be hard pressed for an example, as Jesus Himself sought out even the most despised of His society—notorious sinners, traitorous tax collectors, and those theretofore considered excluded from God’s grace: Gentiles … which most Christians are.
So, O Christian … will YOU exclude those whom Christ Himself accepted, embraced, and even died for … rejecting those whom Christ loved? That’s every human being, by the way.
Therefore, the Christian seeking that theoretical perfection for which we strive so flounderingly cannot hate anyone, for Christ adjured His disciples: “I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:44-45) That “so that” in the quote seems to be given more as a condition rather than a mere “guideline”… much as Jesus, when asked by a young man what is needed to attain eternal life, said: “Keep the Commandments.” (Matthew 19:17)
As a bit of an aside: A very common thing we priests hear of is the difficulty people have in letting go of slights and grudges. We find that one of the most effective cures for that weakness/fault is for the repentant to pray for persons against whom they have anger or grudge; after all, it’s difficult to maintain anger against one for whom you are praying.
In fine, one might use a hackneyed but applicable mathematics analogy: subtracting (detraction) or division makes things smaller, while adding (elevating) or multiplication enlarges. Or…to add a negative diminishes, while adding a positive increases. Likewise, in the end, only those positive movements or philosophies which elevate and bring people together will last, and those which denigrate and divide are doomed to eventual failure.
Everyone has prejudices, everyone believes his own culture as “the best”. Our difficulties with certain groups are generally due to differences in cultures, religions, etc., rather than with the actual persons, as each culture values behaviors/traditions differently. But, ultimately, each culture and religion ultimately seeks truth and the common good. Each culture/religion is its own stream, but streams eventually come together to form rivers, and rivers all flow eventually into the ocean of the entirety of humanity. In such an ultimate, theoretical ocean in which the good in all cultures exist, we hope to rest in that togetherness in peace that only Truth and mutual concern—love—can possibly provide.
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“I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no man could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands…They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water; and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Revelation 7:9, 6-17)
Rev. Glenn Jones is the Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe and former pastor of Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church in Los Alamos.