Last night as I reflected on the last few days of protests, violent factions, early curfews and lock-downed cities, I had a revelation, followed by a flood of optimism.
As we have been collectively digesting this sudden turn of events, there has been a pervasive sense of a society "on the brink". The final straw of George Floyd's death that ignited the eruption of outrage and racial tension seemingly could only bring more instability, fear, pain, and conflict to the American people already on overload, struggling to find our way back to "normal" or "new normal". The focus of the Pandemic and the rapidly spreading, deadly virus seemed swept away by the tidal wave of demands for racial equality and justice and escalating news of violence, vandalism and looting. The underlying, yet overwhelming, reaction has been: how can we possibly manage all this chaos?-- as if this were somehow a separate event.
The human mind divides and separates; we think of life events in categories and components. It is one of the ways we have learned to examine life and acquire knowledge, to systematize and organize society. By doing so through science and institutions, we gain some measure of control over the wildness of life. But in so doing, we lose fundamental perspective on the unity of life. The spiritual life transcends division. It is one process. One movement. The protests are not separate from the Pandemic. Yes, racial injustice has deep roots in the human psyche and in American history. Yet, the Civil Rights Movement has deep roots in spirituality, in a devoted affirmation that freedom, justice, and dignity belong to every human being and achieving it can only be through right action. Affirming these values for one group, while dis-avowing them for others, tears the fabric of life's support for all. [At this time in history, we also face the realization that we must begin to include not just all of humanity, but all forms of life in the fabric of care and respect.]
An event as disastrous as the Covid-19. Global Pandemic both exposes and exploits social failure and vulnerabilities. We discover that we have yet to repair the fabric.
We collectively return to the oneness of life, through returning as individuals. Racial divide keeps us from the Wholeness of Life, keeps us from the Source of spiritual healing. What is so complex for human civilization and it's structures and institutions, is not that hard for the human heart.
I was powerfully impacted by the threads of reconciliation that have occurred over these tumultuous days--the courage of those in the most damaged neighborhoods to brave the streets offering help and protection to one another, the clarity of those beginning clean-up and repair, the intelligence and heart of those on seemingly opposite sides who could kneel together and pray, the peaceful vigils held in quiet. These give evidence to the One Movement of Life that heals. I am left with the unexpected assurance that spiritual healing in process. (Susan Nettleton)