The New/Old Social Pandemic, Part 4

The New/Old Social Pandemic, Part 4

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.

Luke 10:27

The pandemic at the root of homelessness, marginalization, and migration woes differs from what we typically consider a pandemic. For one, this is a social ill and not a medical affliction. It does not infect through the air, by physical touch, or the exchange of body fluids. Wearing masks and avoiding crowds will not alleviate its spread. There is no vaccine to control it, nor will a cure be developed by traditional scientific research. The genesis of this pandemic is in our DNA but cannot be detected by medical diagnostics. There are no gene mutations that cause it or that increase one’s susceptibility to being victimized by it. Regardless, its invasive roots permeate our personal beliefs and social structures under the guise of compassion, public welfare, and even religion.

This plague is not caused by a foreign invader entering our bodies but by the absence of the conscious, spiritual discernment of our inescapable interconnectedness. Unfortunately, spiritual matters are not identifiable by the scientific method, which is the preferred method to deal with pandemics. It is not that anything has entered into or been taken from us; it is that we are not taught how or encouraged to allow our inherent compassion for others to emerge – not as an occasional charitable impulse but as a pervasive commitment to self-and-other-preservation. The number of others we consider as within our circle of concern – our neighbors, in Jesus’ words – is shrinking. When we understand our lives are inseparably intertwined with every other life on the planet, we behave as if we sink or swim together – because we do. I cannot benefit at your expense, nor can you at mine, except for relatively short periods of time. The universe, or God, has mysterious ways of equalizing advantages, perhaps not today or tomorrow or in this lifetime, but equalization occurs.

Ultimately, the new/old social pandemic is the repression of conscious compassion, which allows our baser instincts toward selfish entitlement and uncontrolled materialism to gain undue influence. As the gap between the haves and have-nots widens, the needy become needier and the comfortable become greedier. As privileged individuals, we have (mostly unintentionally) created and supported social systems that perpetuate injustice. That sort of imbalance is only corrected in one of two ways: Either the less fortunate rebel and overthrow those in power, or those with power, influence, and/or wealth willingly agree to share it.

Those with much to lose have a vested interest in maintaining the systems that leave increasing numbers of people homeless or marginalized, even as we close our borders to migrants in desperate need of sanctuary. Keeping unjust systems in place is not a conscious choice for most of us, but not working to change them once we know we are benefitting at the expense of the most vulnerable is. For meaningful change to occur, at least without waiting for a violent revolt by those we cast aside, those with influence and power must champion the redesign of our social systems so everyone is assured of sufficient resources to meet life’s basic needs of food, shelter, and healthcare, including mental healthcare.

The only way to sustain unjust systems and practices over time is through violence, and once the injustice is exposed even more violence is required until it eventually is turned against those in power. Because the natural progression of life is change, all attempts to maintain stasis, stability, or the status quo require force. But it is a losing battle because all the forces of God and nature conspire against those who strive to slow or stop the relentless evolutionary flow. The numbers of homeless folks will continue to increase and overrun our neighborhoods until we effectively address the affordable housing crisis, including funding adequate mental health services. Marginalization will not end until we accept that ostracizing anyone for any reason is ultimately self-defeating. And migrants will continue streaming across our border as long as tyrants hold power over their nations and neighborhoods. These people “invade” “our” space because they need what we have.

Followers of Jesus of Nazareth cannot turn a blind eye to suffering wherever it occurs, regardless of the victim or their situation. Being good stewards of the resources entrusted to us does not mean hoarding them in ways that prevent their use in the purposes for which they were created. Good stewardship requires sharing what we have beyond our immediate needs with others, be it money, time, possessions, or influence. We love God by caring for those God loves. That, as I understand the life and teaching of Jesus, is how the kingdom of heaven will manifest on earth.

This is the 29^th in a series titled The New-Old Social Pandemic. The opinions expressed here are mine. To engage with me or to explore contemplative spiritual direction, contact me at ghildenbrand@outlook.com.

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin’s

Mass on the World

A Contemplative Audio-visual Experience

View at: https://youtu.be/m2EzRmZzCe0