It’s frustrating that just when Uganda has a chance to end the 20 year long war that has destroyed that country, the eyes of the world are on the Middle East, as usual. Yes, hundreds have died in southern Lebanon, but so much media attention and a few too many wag the dog incidents. Why doesn’t anyone care about Africa? There’s a good editorial in today’s International Herald Tribune about Uganda, and a sad AP story about the lack of peace in Darfur after last month’s agreement. What can we do? How can we help? I long for justice, I long for the world to be made right.
I was reading Orthodoxy yesterday (yes, I am going to finish it sometime) and Chesterton got it right, as usual.
We need not debate about the mere words evolution or progress: personally I prefer to call it reform. For reform implies form. It implies that we are trying to shape the world in a particular image; to make it something that we see already in our minds. Evolution is a metaphor from mere automatic unrolling. Progress is a metaphor from merely walking along a road — very likely the wrong road. But reform is a metaphor for reasonable and determined men: it means that we see a certain thing out of shape and we mean to put it into shape. And we know what shape… My ideal at least is fixed; for it was fixed before the foundations of the world. My vision of perfection assuredly cannot be altered; for it is called Eden. You may alter the place to which you are going; but you cannot alter the place from which you have come. To the orthodox there must always be a case for revolution; for in the hearts of men God has been put under the feet of Satan. In the upper world hell once rebelled against heaven. But in this world heaven is rebelling against hell. For the orthodox there can always be a revolution; for a revolution is a restoration.
aaaah- Orthodoxy. I need to re-read that soon.
Are you all still interested in coming to the Advance? Multi-bedroom places are going quick. Would be neat to get a condo with you guys and the Capezzas.
I read it in college during a serious faith crisis. It was really comforting to me. :)
I like it a lot (I’ve finished 7 of 9 chapters) I just like to digest and enjoy it, and I have to be able to focus to read it — more of a coffee shop book than pick up for a few pages in between tasks.
I started it in college and never finished it and was embarrassed I’d never read it!
I’m working my way through Orthodoxy slowly as well– I can’t read it at night because I have to concentrate. I’ve never read it until now, though it has been one of my “books to read” for many years.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Sometimes I feel that way, too, especially since I see so many broken families and victims of disasters and abuse and refugees and all sorts of people coming through our school. ” the upper world hell once rebelled against heaven. But in this world heaven is rebelling against hell. For the orthodox there can always be a revolution; for a revolution is a restoration.” Thanks for the reminder!
I’ve been thinking the same thing about the war in Lebanon – why isn’t the UN sending an international peace keeping force into Darfur? The cynical answer, and I think the truth, is that there isn’t a vested interested for the West to do much for Africa – we’ve already mined their resources.
Strange–I just read the last bit of that quote, quoted at the end of A Generous Orthodoxy (just finished that this morning!). I tend to suspect the same thing as Cindy. I wish I heard more about Africa on the news, although the CBC (our national radio station) is OK about keeping on top of it. Central America, on the other hand… I can’t remember the last time I heard anything about any of the countries down there, and all the newspapers online are in Spanish. :(