Postmortem 6

Yes, how do we become better people?  Well, first of all, let's define just what we mean  by the word better.  This has nothing to do with being competitive.  Nothing to do with becoming an Olympic athlete, nor a rapacious young capitalist.  We are not talking here about having stronger and more athletic bodies, nor about being sexier, better looking people, nor being more effective sharks in the marketplace.  None of those kinds of adjustments make us better as people, none of those measures make us kinder or more compassionate human beings.

To become better people, we simply have to love more.  Not ourselves, not our families, not our friends, but everyone.  We have to reach out and beyond our usual borders and boundaries to touch one another's lives, if we really intend to become better people.  Otherwise, nothing is going to change, ever, economic and social inequality will remain the entrenched reality, people will have to suffer and live in needless isolation, and all because no one is willing to reach beyond their precious and exalted selves.

Love is a verb.  It is also an intrinsic part of our natures.  This is what it means when it is said that humans are made in the image of God.  I means we are made with the capacity for unconditional love.  We have to tap into this capacity, channel it, nurture it, grow it, and continue to express care and kindness to one another, regardless of who we are, what we are, where we are.  We have to keep working at it, otherwise it goes stagnant and we stop growing.

I think it really comes with making an effort to be present to others, to cultivate a kind and tender awareness of the people who are surrounding us.  This is why I make an effort to say hi to strangers in passing.  It forces us to connect, if just for a second and we are also reminded that we are not alone. Giving money to beggars and panhandlers,  I think of that as more of an individual choice, because one never knows with money, but I try to give, and the results are often mixed and uneven, but I am still okay with this because it is the reaching out that matters.

We really have to cultivate and nurture empathy and compassion, with the willingness and motivation to act out our kind emotions in ways that can really help others.  None of this earnest hand wringing and making polite lies about not being able to do anything.  If we love enough, if we will with the divine will that resides in all of us, to love and to live out our love, then we will find the courage and we will find the resources to really help and reach out to one another.  This could be in small ways, it could be in big ways, but we all have to start somewhere.  Today is Good Friday.  We remember what Jesus became and did for us, and we seek to imitate and channel the same love that brought him to the cross for us.