[Oe List ...] Spirit of the 20's

[Mary Kurian D'Souza]

John,
Thank you for beginning this discussion.

Our lifestyles, informed and mesmerized by media and television, is
depleting the earth of its resources.
Our greed is inexhaustible at the cost of stealing from the poor.

Science has opened up vast reservoirs of information and understanding of
how fragile the universe is.

We need to choose to change and evolve.
Mary

On Thu, Aug 29, 2019 at 5:49 AM Marianna Bailey via OE <
oe at lists.wedgeblade.net> wrote:

> John,
> Thank you for your thoughtful reflection. I would like to suggest Order of
> The Sacred Earth by Mathew Fox.  He also has a daily meditation on email
> that brings together those who care.
>
> Marianna Bailey
>
> Sent from my iPad
>
>
> On Aug 28, 2019, at 5:36 PM, John Epps via OE <oe at lists.wedgeblade.net>
> wrote:
>
>
> *The Spirit of the 20’s **John Epps, August 2019*
>
> The categories for determining the spirit of a decade supposedly come from
> Kierkegaard: An External Situation creates an Internal Crisis which raises
> an Existential Question from which we try to Escape. I’ve used them in
> trying to assess the situation since the 60’s. Here we go again:
>
> *The Prevailing Spirit:*
> Our External Situation is best characterized as one of *THREAT*.
> Economically, health care costs are rising astronomically, the move away
> from fossil fuels and the trade war with China have put markets in turmoil
> and talk of recession is in the air. Politically, we have cut off alliances
> and find Russia, N. Korea, and Iran all upgrading their nuclear
> capabilities. USA Congress seems unable to act. Culturally, we are besieged
> with increased numbers of immigrants and mass shootings now appear
> commonplace. And encompassing all this chaos is the Earth’s environment
> which appears to be undergoing dangerous changes due to global warming.
>
> All this has generated or contributed to an Internal Crisis of *FEAR*. We
> increasingly fear those who differ from us, whether by race, gender
> identification, nationality, or ideology. Everything different seems a
> threat, and we fear the changes already in progress. Compromise seems weak,
> and we’re increasingly in a black or white situation: agree or fight.
>
> The Existential Question in this situation is *HOW CAN WE SURVIVE?* With
> the environment collapsing and threats at every turn, what can we do?
> Problems seem too big to tackle, and local action, while effective, remains
> local while the issues are larger. Institutions we developed to address
> larger issues appear paralyzed: CONGRESS, UN, NATO, NAFTA, ASEAN, Treaties
> with Iran and the Paris Accords for Climate all appear ineffective in
> providing remedies. Attempts to inact gun control legislation, despite
> agreement from both parties, cannot move through Congress.
>
> We Escape through *BLAMESTORMING*; we look for scapegoats for each issue,
> then cast them as enemies toward which hatred is the only suitable
> relation. We demonize NRA, GOP, “Moscow Mitch,” Trump, Kim, Putin,
> Refugees, Democrats, Immigrants, Socialists, and many others. Extreme
> hostility takes the guise of radical nationalism attempting to band “us”
> against “them” or in too many cases, mass shootings aimed at eliminating
> “them.”
>
>
> *Towards an Authentic Response: *This is where we meet the question of
> God today: wrestling with the question of responding to threats to our
> existence.
>
> Local action may be the most we can do, and since that makes a difference,
> should be pursued with vigor. Maybe, over time, the mass changes needed can
> come from local people.
>
> The threats are real. The status quo cannot and will not survive. The
> future is really open and unpredictable. We can, however, have a hand in
> inventing it.
>
> Your comments, additions, corrections, and insights are most welcome.
>
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