Thursday, May 06, 2004
ETHICS - WEEK 6
Being Overwhelmed
After just giving a presentation on the dangers of Christian Zionism and the issue of the Palestinian-Israeli crisis with my friend and compatriot Dr. Newland Smith, I am tempted to blog about that whole issue again. But I will refrain, not for any lack of desire or for any feeling like I've talked about it enough, but because I think a question a colleague raised after the presentation was over is also pertinent to this format. The question was asked of me after the presentation was over, "Do you ever feel hopeless?" This is an exceptionally important question because of the issues it brings to the fore. The answer right now is - no, I have no, up to this point, felt hopeless about the Palestinian-Israeli crisis. I want to nuance that statement a bit though. I have only studied this subject since the summer of 2002 and this past trip to Israel was my first trip there. I'm just a baby when it comes to this field, and for all that I do know about the subject, there are mounds of gobs of information that I haven't digested yet, which many of my friends and colleagues have. So, no, I have not yet felt hopeless. I have, however, felt overwhelmed.
When I first began to study peace and justice issues in the summer of 2002 I learned of dozens of conflicts and problems that drastically need to be addressed. For that we have to look no further than our own borders. Beyond our borders, the numbers shoot right up. Palestine/Israel. Australian and New Zealand first nations. Rwanda. South Africa. Kosovo. Libya. Iraq. Canadian and United States first nations. Nagaland and India. The Sudan. Nigeria. Azerbaijan and Armenia. Sierra Leone. Mexico. The list of countries can go on and on, with conflicts ranging from small and localized to broad and devastating. It is hard not to be overwhelmed and I would say that if you are not, you are not really seeing. How do I avoid letting my sense of being overwhelmed turn into hopelessness and inaction? I decided that I needed to pick one issue, one topic and focus all my energies, limited resources, and time on that one issue. By doing that, I can get as educated as I can be on that area, devote a level of time and resources to it so as to make a difference, and feel like I am both knowledgable and useful. I am only one man, and even focusing on only one issue, I can only do so much. That is my advice. Pick the one thing you care most about and focus on it. The sense of being overwhelmed has less of a chance of turning into hopelessness and inaction. The ability to speak knowledgably and articulately will be greatly enhanced; rather than knowing only a smidgen about a dozen issues, I can be well informed on one.
In conclusion, I must never give up. I must maintain my level of passion and committment in striving for a justpeace in Palestine and Israel, recognizing both people as having a right to statehood with recognized and agreed upon borders, living in safety. I must continue to read, study, write, and speak about the issue. I've just got to go back to the land, many times over. Maybe one day I will feel hopeless, but I wish it would never come. Instead, I want my hope to perpetuate my passion. As the character of Andy Dufrane says in the wonderful film The Shawshank Redemption, "Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies."
-R
Being Overwhelmed
After just giving a presentation on the dangers of Christian Zionism and the issue of the Palestinian-Israeli crisis with my friend and compatriot Dr. Newland Smith, I am tempted to blog about that whole issue again. But I will refrain, not for any lack of desire or for any feeling like I've talked about it enough, but because I think a question a colleague raised after the presentation was over is also pertinent to this format. The question was asked of me after the presentation was over, "Do you ever feel hopeless?" This is an exceptionally important question because of the issues it brings to the fore. The answer right now is - no, I have no, up to this point, felt hopeless about the Palestinian-Israeli crisis. I want to nuance that statement a bit though. I have only studied this subject since the summer of 2002 and this past trip to Israel was my first trip there. I'm just a baby when it comes to this field, and for all that I do know about the subject, there are mounds of gobs of information that I haven't digested yet, which many of my friends and colleagues have. So, no, I have not yet felt hopeless. I have, however, felt overwhelmed.
When I first began to study peace and justice issues in the summer of 2002 I learned of dozens of conflicts and problems that drastically need to be addressed. For that we have to look no further than our own borders. Beyond our borders, the numbers shoot right up. Palestine/Israel. Australian and New Zealand first nations. Rwanda. South Africa. Kosovo. Libya. Iraq. Canadian and United States first nations. Nagaland and India. The Sudan. Nigeria. Azerbaijan and Armenia. Sierra Leone. Mexico. The list of countries can go on and on, with conflicts ranging from small and localized to broad and devastating. It is hard not to be overwhelmed and I would say that if you are not, you are not really seeing. How do I avoid letting my sense of being overwhelmed turn into hopelessness and inaction? I decided that I needed to pick one issue, one topic and focus all my energies, limited resources, and time on that one issue. By doing that, I can get as educated as I can be on that area, devote a level of time and resources to it so as to make a difference, and feel like I am both knowledgable and useful. I am only one man, and even focusing on only one issue, I can only do so much. That is my advice. Pick the one thing you care most about and focus on it. The sense of being overwhelmed has less of a chance of turning into hopelessness and inaction. The ability to speak knowledgably and articulately will be greatly enhanced; rather than knowing only a smidgen about a dozen issues, I can be well informed on one.
In conclusion, I must never give up. I must maintain my level of passion and committment in striving for a justpeace in Palestine and Israel, recognizing both people as having a right to statehood with recognized and agreed upon borders, living in safety. I must continue to read, study, write, and speak about the issue. I've just got to go back to the land, many times over. Maybe one day I will feel hopeless, but I wish it would never come. Instead, I want my hope to perpetuate my passion. As the character of Andy Dufrane says in the wonderful film The Shawshank Redemption, "Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies."
-R
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