Running it By Dad

So, it's always a good idea to temper one's thoughts by sharing them with friends and family and seeing how they react. My parents have read this blog (finally, ha). And my dad had some good critiques. Firstly, I should be careful to separate two issues here (written in the previous post). Those responsible for committing genocide (Nazi regime) and those allowing it to occur (UN) are guilty of two very different things. Yep, very true, dad. Also, I seemed with the anecdote at the end to be talking more about, in my dad's words, "how to nurture personal and collective moral sensitivity of human beings," not necessarily about evils being committed by the UN. Again, very good point.

I guess it is one thing to argue that the UN is guilty of genocide and of committing evil in the name of good; and another to argue that as a bureaucratic organization, it is hamstrung and often unable to respond effectively to humanitarian crises or even genocides, as occurred in Rwanda in 1994. Having made that important distinction, however; I guess I am struck by how often the UN is invoked as a 'final solution' to the world's problems - the Darfur crisis, which I will get back to - is one recent example. The belief that somehow this organization will solve the world's problems and provide final solutions troubles me. (Incidentally, the implications of the double entendre do, too).

What I witnessed and experienced in Uganda and in working for the organization on numerous occasions, albeit on the bottom of the totem pole of power - was the insidiousness of worldly success, power and glory, as the basis for, or the basic ambition driving much of the personalities and characters responsible for making decisions about people's lives around the world. I do not doubt that there are 'decent, honorable and hardworking' people working for the organization and committed to doing good - but I also see how the culture of the organization and the bureaucracy, breeds a certain myopia and high degree of self-deception. I got sucked into it myself. But I soon became very disillusioned with the rhetoric when I began to see the reality: that organizations that function professionally to promote peace, justice and cooperation on the basis of worldly power, individual merit, glory and hype are inevitably handicapped by the fact that the organization is a business and in the interest of maintaining its (his/her) own well-being, even at the expense of the very people's it is established to protect and promote.

I remember working at a desk in one of the divisions and seeing how blithely people talked about their lavish lifestyles and homes - how they were constantly vying for more power, the next P-D level job, more success, prestige and how weird and sickening it felt to realize that they were doing this by capitalizing in some ways on the suffering and sickness of people around the world. When I actually witnessed how officials conducted themselves with people in these areas, I became even more disillusioned at the way in which margnalized people were being used and manipulated by outside parties to either benefit themselves in some way or serve as a notch in the belt of one's prestige and power. There are very few individuals who are working genuinely out of love, self-sacrifice and for the greater good. Doing so, inevitably entails suffering, rejection, difficult sacrifices: someone _has_ to pay. When you see 'helpers' wearing fancy clothes and driving nice cars, you cannot help but wonder who is paying the cost. How is suffering really being alleviated?

This is why I find the message of Jesus Christ so compelling. He paid the ultimate cost for all the suffering we brought on OURSELVES and He did so, so that we didn't have to pay that cost. And we are called to follow his example in order to make the world a better place. So, when I see the suffering of people in Uganda, for example, or even in Darfur, and when I hear people talk about doing something, I ask, who is paying the cost for the allevation of suffering? If it is not you or I, it is someone. And unfortunately, I am guessing it is often the very person who is already suffering...I suppose that's why I admire the work of the Comboni missionaries (see previous post) so much. They have been working for years with and among the people of Kitgum, Gulu and Pader. They are paying the cost for alleviating suffering and promoting peace. Unlike many, who came and left when it was convenient and often to promote their own agenda, these missionaries have no agenda - except to love and give out of the richness of their love for God and for Jesus. I hope to emulate them in some way...

I think it's important to make the distinctions my dad pointed out above; but I still hold to a high degree of ambivalence and disillusionment about the organization and the enterprise of humanitarianism, despite its good intentions. Who was it that said, "the road to hell is paved with good intentions..."? I need to reflect and think on this alot more, obviously. Perhaps my ambivalence and disappointment are merely a reflection of what God repeatedly refers to as the brokeness and fallenness of man - the fact that we live in a world where institutions and people (like myself) are flawed, far from perfect and abounding in shortcomings and sin.

If it were not for Christ, where would we be?

Yet, God promises to bind up the brokenhearted and to create a new heaven and a new earth, so my disappointment and cynicism have no other place to go, except back to His promises. My mouth and heart have nothing more to utter than a plaintive sigh and a hope and faith that transcends the seeming disappointments that bombard me as I think through what people do and how they do it to promote their own ends.

I know I am all too susceptible to the same things - the pursuit of glory, power and success - in the name of some higher good. It's a sobering reminder that as Christians we are called to 'die to self' to renounce our good for the greater good, the ultimate good, which is the building of God's kingdom on earth. And that we are called to bring joy, peace and love to others in the same way that He brings it to us when we find new life in Him. Well, despite this all, I thank you, God. I trust you despite the disturbances of my heart and the irregularity of my faith...and I know that you ultimately do work all things for the good of those who love you.

I will still be wrestling with the role of the UN. As regards Darfur and even the situation in northern Uganda, well. I hear lots of cries of "genocide" in both situations. I know that the governments of both countries are responsible for the deaths of many innocent lives in the neglected regions of their respective countries. However, I cringe at the notion that sending in blue helmets is the ultimate answer to these problems. These are short-term and intended to be short-term measures to address what are fundamentally very deeply entrenched issues and problems.

I attended the "Save Darfur" rally on Sunday here in NYC and was happy to be there, but somewhat saddened that the only solution being offered was sending UN peacekeepers. Why are our imaginations so limited? Why do we grasp onto the belief that the UN can be the 'final solution' to this and so many of the world's problems? Something in me says that we do so, because we want answers and solutions to troubling problems, but we often look in the wrong places. As Bilbo has been quoted to say, "all that glitters is not gold..." perhaps we need new eyes to see and ears to hear what has been obvious and stated all along. That which is true and right and good in this world can only come through a power altogether not our own...

Psalm 146: Do not put your trust in princes or other people who cannot save you...happy are those who are helped by the God of Jacob. Their hope is in the Lord their God. The Lord sets the prisoners free. The Lord gives sight to the blind. The Lord lifts up people who are in trouble. The Lord loves those who do right. The Lord protect the foreigners. He defends the orphans and the widows, but he blocks the way of the wicked...Praise the Lord!"

It's about the Lord giving, and working through and in people like you and me to build up what was broken and to find those who were lost...let us keep our focus on Him.