Patience is a virtue, but I suppose at some point action is called for. Discerning that point is something we all have to do, and it will be personal. I think I am getting close to that threshold crossing over from being patient to taking action.
I don't watch TV news much at all, save for a few minutes of the local news a few times a week. There's a running story with my inlaws that I am swayed by the 'liberal CNN' while they rely on the 'balanced Fox News'. I find that fairly laughable, since I see it exactly the opposite. My younger son wisely pointed out this week – while inlaws were here defiling my TV by watching Fox News – that everyone thinks they have the fair and balanced version of the news.
The Glenn Beck show was on in the next room as I was preparing dinner. I caught bits and pieces of it, and was dismayed at the tone and content. It's not news, it's conspiracy theory, gossip, and borders on hate-speech that plays on peoples' fears. He has a right to say what he wants, but he doesn't add anything to rational, sober analysis of the nation's news. The show actually drags people further down into fear and suspicion, leading to a reflexive bias against anything that has certain key-words in it. That bias will keep the political debate in the gutter. To be fair to Beck, he's not the only one to have a show like that; and he wouldn't be popular if there wasn't an audience wanting to hear it.
A friend dropped his son off at our house to hang out with my boys for a while. We got to talking about politics, and he said he was starting to become afraid of what 'Obama's health care plan' would do to their medical coverage. There it is again – fear. They get good family coverage via a big-company medical plan, but he's heard from friends that everyone should be afraid of losing coverage, death-panels, and on and on. He's a smart guy, so what's going on!? I made the case for the common good, that health care for all could be good for us all, and that it's just not right for folks to go without basic health care – or filing bankruptcy because they couldn't pay their medical bills. I hope I made sense; I obviously think I do make sense!
In Gospel terms, I think of things like 'love your neighbor', 'the last shall be first', and 'whoever welcomes the little ones welcomes me'. There are more than a few places in scripture that encourage us to have no fear.
Ignoring the plight of others just isn't right. If I have healthcare and can afford to pay my premiums and other costs, yet ignore the fact that so many go without basic care, that's not right. How is that different from ignoring the beaten down guy on the side of the road for fear of getting dirty or assuming someone else will do something? How does that work with 'love your neighbor as yourself'?
Maybe we need to turn off the TV news and spend some time considering 'what would Jesus do?' Maybe we could take to heart the words 'do not fear' that Jesus advised his followers.
I don't watch TV news much at all, save for a few minutes of the local news a few times a week. There's a running story with my inlaws that I am swayed by the 'liberal CNN' while they rely on the 'balanced Fox News'. I find that fairly laughable, since I see it exactly the opposite. My younger son wisely pointed out this week – while inlaws were here defiling my TV by watching Fox News – that everyone thinks they have the fair and balanced version of the news.
The Glenn Beck show was on in the next room as I was preparing dinner. I caught bits and pieces of it, and was dismayed at the tone and content. It's not news, it's conspiracy theory, gossip, and borders on hate-speech that plays on peoples' fears. He has a right to say what he wants, but he doesn't add anything to rational, sober analysis of the nation's news. The show actually drags people further down into fear and suspicion, leading to a reflexive bias against anything that has certain key-words in it. That bias will keep the political debate in the gutter. To be fair to Beck, he's not the only one to have a show like that; and he wouldn't be popular if there wasn't an audience wanting to hear it.
A friend dropped his son off at our house to hang out with my boys for a while. We got to talking about politics, and he said he was starting to become afraid of what 'Obama's health care plan' would do to their medical coverage. There it is again – fear. They get good family coverage via a big-company medical plan, but he's heard from friends that everyone should be afraid of losing coverage, death-panels, and on and on. He's a smart guy, so what's going on!? I made the case for the common good, that health care for all could be good for us all, and that it's just not right for folks to go without basic health care – or filing bankruptcy because they couldn't pay their medical bills. I hope I made sense; I obviously think I do make sense!
In Gospel terms, I think of things like 'love your neighbor', 'the last shall be first', and 'whoever welcomes the little ones welcomes me'. There are more than a few places in scripture that encourage us to have no fear.
Ignoring the plight of others just isn't right. If I have healthcare and can afford to pay my premiums and other costs, yet ignore the fact that so many go without basic care, that's not right. How is that different from ignoring the beaten down guy on the side of the road for fear of getting dirty or assuming someone else will do something? How does that work with 'love your neighbor as yourself'?
Maybe we need to turn off the TV news and spend some time considering 'what would Jesus do?' Maybe we could take to heart the words 'do not fear' that Jesus advised his followers.
Hey how about that Viagra Steve? :)
"IT" is not funny sinner vic!
Tell me about "IT" cause I honestly can't count how many I've had to delete and they still found ways to get by. If most Christian were as determined as they were, Our Lord would stand a chance within our flesh, I mean Kingdom.
Don't give UP yet Steve cause we Christians, brothers and sisters are all praying for each other and I know that we're all sinners but Enough is Enough don't you think sinner vic?
You talking to me Victor?
Posted by: Victor | September 21, 2009 at 07:45 PM
Boy, tell me about it Vic - most of those spam comments get caught automatically, but enough get through to make it a hassle.
Posted by: Steve Bogner | September 22, 2009 at 05:08 PM
Steve I hear you brother. Paul's line 'patience breeds hope' speaks...
Thanks again for your blog, it's truly one of my favourite sites. I'm just now having a go at 'compline' :)
P.S. - the 'orientations for spiritual growth' URL on the right has expired and it's now being hosted here http://www.jesuits.ca/orientations/
Also, have you seen http://ignatianspirituality.com/dotmagis-blog/ or http://peopleforothers.loyolapress.com/ both in line with the charism - 'in all things to love and to serve' :) Peace.
Posted by: James | September 24, 2009 at 05:30 AM
James - Thanks for that feedback! I'm hoping to get more things posted here; time is precious though. And thanks for the links - I updated the sidebar link and added one of those blogs to my reading list.
Posted by: Steve Bogner | September 24, 2009 at 06:51 AM
Steve, thanks for yet another thoughtful post. (And amen to everything you said here.)
Posted by: Steve in Illinois | September 30, 2009 at 01:10 AM
Steve,
A long time since I've commented but your last suggestion of turning off the news is great. I've spent almost no time in the past year watching traditional news and even less time in the past six months reading news blogs. All of the negativity can be debilitating and the absence of it really has not harmed me except at time I forget to pack an umbrella when I ought to have one.
Posted by: Don | October 04, 2009 at 10:03 PM