one of the many responses to the poor and marginalized in the world.
Pope Francis continues his work of discussing the challenges that
humanity faces in this age . The
tendency that some of our world leaders have, is to celebrate the scientific
accomplishments of humanity in many fields, while avoiding to discuss the
impact that this progress could have( and is having) on the world. After all, when progress boosts a
nation’s economy, and greatly improves the lives and work of many, it becomes
more difficult for our leaders to be objective about progress. Thankfully, it’s
different with Popes. Following the example of his predecessors, Pope Francis
is eager to celebrate the creativity and ingenuity behind the advancements humanity
is capable of, but he remains free enough to contemplate the inequality in our
world that persists despite the progress we has seen. This is especially
disturbing when we consider that the majority of the earth’s population is ‘barely
living from day to day, with dire consequences’ (EG 52). What strikes me the most is the way
he describes the consequences of this injustice and how it affects our world:
we find in many people that ‘the joy of
living frequently fades, (and they)
respect each other less, (while) violence is on the rise…(EG 52). I found that
striking because it’s a statement that applies to most parts of the world. Not
just in the Middle East and Africa with the rise of groups like IS and Boko
Haram, but also in the West, where I feel that respect for the other has
diminished more and more over the years. What matters is how much power one can
obtain, and not how much love and respect are we willing to give to others.
These
are significant words, because the changes he’s speaking of are indeed shaping
every aspect of our world and of this generation ( he describes them as
epochal!). The changes must be embraced,
but the challenges that they bring must also be recognized and responded to. This may seem like a sensible middle ground
between the Occupy people and staunch defenders of capitalism, but as you well
know, he’s just getting warmed up!
The very next section is
introduced with a bold statement that got many people talking:
No
to an economy of exclusion
No exclamation points, no dramatic font…just a simple statement: No,
we should not agree to being part of an economy that excludes people. Does our
capitalist economy consciously do this? Many who have openly disagreed with the
pope clearly don’t think so. Many people concerned with social justice today seem to think it does. As I stated in my previous entry, I’m not
comfortable enough in my knowledge of the market to really speak about this.
All I can do is reflect on the words Francis offers us, and try to find an
answer to some of his questions. In this case, his question is a poignant one:
"How can it be that it is not a news item when an elderly homeless person
dies of exposure (to cold), but it is news when the stock market loses two
points?” ( EG 53)
The answer some may give is that the market dropping affects
thousands of people, whereas the death of one individual does not. This is a
very rational and, pragmatic response. But it’s not one that reflects an
authentic humanity. On the contrary, it is very much against the radical love
and respect for human life that our faith instills within us. When people are
dying anonymously on the streets, when people go starving in our own cities
while restaurants throw away copious
amounts of food on a daily basis, it’s outrage, not indifference that should
fill our hearts.
But it’s
not the widespread indifference that bothers Francis the most: It’s the economy that is
driven by a Darwinian mentality of the
survival of the fittest. It’s a system that works because it forces
competition, and inspires creativity from corporations. The problem is that, in recent decades, we have seen how
far will people go to remain competitive. We have seen how easy it is for a corporation to deny and trample over the basic
fundamental needs of others in order to secure their competitive edge. In this environment, human beings become a consumer good to be used and
discarded (EG 53). As horrific as that is, Francis continues by saying it’s come to the point in our world that we’re
not even talking about just exclusion or oppression anymore, but something new: It’s as if, the disenfranchised don’t
even exist as part of the society anymore. The
excluded are not the “exploited” but the outcast, the “leftovers”. (EG53)
Something tells me that this in fact is not so new, that we've been struggling with this phenomenon since the dawn of time.Perhaps what is new today is that an increasing amount of people in our world are considered as disenfranchised, and and a growing number of citizens are speaking out against the gap between haves and have nots in our world. But there is still so much work to do before this situation is rectified. In his every day acts and speeches, Pope Francis is already teaching and guiding us into an authentic response to this crisis. I look forward to continuing this foray into his thoughts on the challenges of our world!
52. In
our time humanity is experiencing a turning-point in its history, as we can see
from the advances being made in so many fields. We can only praise the steps
being taken to improve people’s welfare in areas such as health care, education
and communications. At the same time we have to remember that the majority of
our contemporaries are barely living from day to day, with dire consequences. A
number of diseases are spreading. The hearts of many people are gripped by fear
and desperation, even in the so-called rich countries. The joy of living
frequently fades, lack of respect for others and violence are on the rise, and
inequality is increasingly evident. It is a struggle to live and, often, to
live with precious little dignity. This epochal change has been set in motion
by the enormous qualitative, quantitative, rapid and cumulative advances
occuring in the sciences and in technology, and by their instant application in
different areas of nature and of life. We are in an age of knowledge and
information, which has led to new and often anonymous kinds of power.
53.
Just as the commandment “Thou shalt not kill” sets a clear limit in order to
safeguard the value of human life, today we also have to say “thou shalt not”
to an economy of exclusion and inequality. Such an economy kills. How can it be
that it is not a news item when an elderly homeless person dies of exposure,
but it is news when the stock market loses two points? This is a case of
exclusion. Can we continue to stand by when food is thrown away while people
are starving? This is a case of inequality. Today everything comes under the
laws of competition and the survival of the fittest, where the powerful feed
upon the powerless. As a consequence, masses of people find themselves excluded
and marginalized: without work, without possibilities, without any means of
escape.
Human beings are themselves considered consumer
goods to be used and then discarded. We have created a “disposable” culture
which is now spreading. It is no longer simply about exploitation and
oppression, but something new. Exclusion ultimately has to do with what it
means to be a part of the society in which we live; those excluded are no
longer society’s underside or its fringes or its disenfranchised – they are no
longer even a part of it. The excluded are not the “exploited” but the outcast,
the “leftovers”.
No comments:
Post a Comment