There is an old quote which says, “you can’t throw mud without losing ground”.
Growing up in Ireland in the 1950’s we were provided with a regular diet of Western movies – mostly about cowboys and Indians, as they were called then. I was not aware of the effect of these narratives until the first time I saw a movie that told the story from the point of view of the Native American People. After seeing this movie and finding out a bit more of the story, I discovered those I had always seen as “the good guys” were not so good. They took land that was not theirs, made and constantly broke treaties and pushed the original people onto reservations coming close to wiping them out. I also discovered that Native Americans, often portrayed as the bad guys, were good in so many ways. They had many rich and diverse cultural traditions, a deep spirituality, and a love for land and family. They were fighting for survival.
Perhaps the world has always been divided into them and us, friend and foe, good and bad. But it seems to me that right now the lines have become even sharper and the middle ground is rapidly shrinking.
A study done on why so many Columbans left the priesthood in the Philippines in the 1970’s and 80’s revealed a deep split in our Society. It suggested we no longer had a shared vision or purpose. On one side there were those who saw the role of the church as essentially sacramental and spiritual and who had experienced the military as protectors.
On the other were those who had come to believe that social justice was an integral part of preaching the gospel and saw the military as part of the problem – especially in the period when the Philippines was under martial law. Meetings were often difficult and fractious and there was serious hurt inflicted on both sides. We seemed unable to find common ground. Members had to choose which side they were on.
However, the study did reveal that there were a few individuals, who tried to hold the middle ground and keep the two sides together. The report called them “depressed mystics” – “depressed” because they were criticised severely by both sides for sitting on the fence and “mystics” perhaps because they believed in a vision of unity that seemed barely possible. Years later, when wounds had healed, we found the common ground we could not find when sides were so bitterly divided. We now have a both/and rather than an either/or position regarding the spiritual and social justice aspects of mission.
There are so many situations now where the middle ground is disappearing. It is very much a love/hate set of choices that is set before us. Today in politics is seems to be a matter of my party - right or wrong. The middle ground where complex issues and the policies to address them can be weighed and measured is hard to find.
But at least here there are two sides with ground between them. What we are seeing in some parts of the world is a trend towards the elimination of any form of opposition. Anyone who stands against the ruler or ruling party can be subject to arrest and as a result disqualified from standing as a candidate in any election. There is no possibility of any middle ground when there is only one side left.
There is an old quote which says, “you can’t throw mud without losing ground”. In a world where slinging mud at the other side is the norm, how much of our precious middle ground are we losing and how much harm and hurt is that loss causing us?
By Father Pat O'Shea - Lower Hutt
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