There seems to me two constants in the history of mankind's time on earth. If there are more, I can't divine them in my tea leaves, or more accurately my coffee beans. I am no scholar although I did my best to stay in the bubble of academia as long as I could. At the age of twenty five I finally stopped enrolling in classes and joined the work force. Not a bad run.
1. Man's continued inhumanity to each other is astounding.
2. The arc of history shows we are improving.
So, how do we make sense of this seeming contradiction? Hell if I know. But since we are amateur philosophers here let's try to figure it out.
First off, if nothing else, our innate goodness shows mankind's persistence in the face of human evil. Thus, maybe our first signpost is that we are resiliently optimistic beings. My buddy Danny has visited the Nazi death camp in Auschwitz. How could any group of people ever survive the mass slaughter of that place and all the others? One would think that the Jewish consciousness, along with all the prior pogroms throughout history the centuries, would be destroyed, all hope extinguished. And yet, the literature of Jewish authors and writers post-Holocaust have been forgiving and exalted the goodness of mankind. From Elie Wiesel to Anne Frank, who is actually not post-Holocaust, almost all autobiographical and biographical literature from those who survived the camps or those who were involved in the resistance provide a clear and concise message of hope, if not forgiveness. Pick any other mass destruction, man-made or natural, and the clear message continues to be one of strength and hope.
I read a recent article where Harvard's history department was asked what was the worst year to live. Out of all the worst times we have endured the year 535-536 was the absolute worst. Seems some volcanic action or meteorites plunged the world into a cold dark place because of the ash in the atmosphere. The cold killed plant life, thus the crops, leading to famine. Without plants the live stock couldn't be fed and they, too, died. No bread, unseasonal weather patterns, even snow in summer in China. Europe was devastated. I guess the best you can say about it all was that it was a long time ago. And yet, even with the loss of life, livelihoods, and atmospheric winter, we persevered. Persistence not only in the face of human evil, but persistence in the face of natural catastrophe, as well.
And the second thing is, even in the face of extreme moral deprivation, we, as humans, still think the best in each other. This is probably the most cogent explanation as to why the arc moves forward - after Nazi death camps came the United Nations. After two World Wars came NATO and SEATO. After German and Japanese aggression, these two nations now count as friends to the United States and the world at large. From the Medieval Period arose the Renaissance. From Jim Crow came the Civil Rights movement. And on and on. The arc moves forward. But it doesn't move by itself. behind its relentless advancement is the knowledge that people make the difference. Even when history tells us we should lock ourselves inside our homes and never venture forth, we do anyway. We continue to involve ourselves with each other. That is the answer.
Man's continued inhumanity to each other won't end soon, perhaps never. What can we do about this constant? Resist as best you can. When you see bullying, step in. When you see injustice, do whatever you can to make it right. When someone says something racist, mean, or against the highest ideals we all treasure, say so, or at least don't agree.
And the arc of history says we are improving, albeit at a snail's pace. That is our greatest gift to each other - we remain involved. This Christmas season let's vow to remain involved with each other. A meaningful pat on the back to an old friend, an extra dollar in the kettle, kind words to those who carry an especially heavy burden, a warm smile to those we meet, an unhurried "good-morning" to a stranger. A round of beer at the bar. These simple acts of humanity may minutely drive the arc of history forward to a point where, as philosopher Pierre Teilhard, all these small random actions and all the ones before them, will drive us to an evolutionary Omega point of Goodness someday. Well, I don't know about that, but do you want to bet against it? At the very least it can't hurt. Maybe our smallest kindnesses inch that old arc just a wee bit. The nice thing about our little kindnesses is that it gives a little something back to us, too. Happy Holidays and let's kick that old arc forward a bit this season.
Mike Blythe
Editor, Staff, and Floor Sweeper of Existing In BFE
Well done Michael.
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