Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Memorial of Saint Scholastica, virgin

…what comes out of the man, that is what defiles him, from within the man, from his heart….

In today’s gospel Jesus gives us a list of defilers emanating from the human heart. But he doesn’t seem to allow for evils that come from outside the human heart, the natural disasters.
Earthquakes, floods and hurricanes are tragic only when they slam into human life. We’ve been living on this planet a long time; you’d think we would have figured out how to build nature-resistant roads, bridges, buildings and cities by now. In many cases, we have!
But mendacity corrupts our thinking and our infrastructures. Buildings are not built to code; neglected bridges collapse; ticky-tacky houses disintegrate before our eyes. Sometimes, as in Haiti, tens of thousands of people die because they’re homes, schools, and public buildings are badly built. Even in America, as we like to say, most natural catastrophes are foreseeable and preventable.
I have seen how fragile a virtuous society can be. I lived in a small southern town where, after a half-century of neglect we desperately needed to repair and rebuild our schools. Every newly-elected school board would tour the buildings and be appalled by what they heard, saw, and smelled: mice scurrying through the walls, water leaking through the roof, carpets stained with mildew; classrooms smelling of moldering wood. They would float a bond to support the schools, to be repaid with a local sales tax. Teachers and parents would mobilize support for the new tax. And it was invariably defeated. Then the members of the school board would quit, or be defeated in their run for re-election, and the cycle began again. A city with four large school facilities to educate children K-12, should expect to build a new building every 20-25 years, completing a cycle every 80-100 years. That city had not added a new school since integration in the 1960’s.
The roots of this willful neglect were obvious: racism, illiteracy, poverty and corruption. These four pillars of defilement were as entrenched as the four horsemen of Revelation are irresistible. But the problems of the Deep South are not unique. Every American city and state struggles to some degree with these four pillars of defilement; and natural disasters – like the four horsemen – will expose them even in America.


1 comment:

  1. I like what you said about the quote from the Gospel. As a society, you nailed it. As a collective we, willful neglect of racism, illiteracy, poverty and corruption are out of control.
    But I would like to to look at this Gospel as looking into a mirror. What do I see when I look into the mirror of Christ? What of these defilers are looking back at me? All of them are common to the human person. Even my sweet little 3 year old grandson is intently interested in the Berenstain Bear storybook about the Green Eyed Monster of envy. How common to the common human experience! To me this Gospel gives much food for personal reflection. I think I feel a trip to the confessional coming soon.

    Peace,

    Martha

    ReplyDelete

I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.

Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.

I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.

You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.