In the Book of Genesis, Chapter 11 we read about the Tower of Babel, and how God said that because they had just one language and all the people were unified, they would be able to accomplish anything. In order to stop them from building the tower which was, in reality, an edifice to self-righteousness, God broke their unity by confusing them with different languages and scattered them all over the earth.
Subsequently, war and inter-personal animosity became world-wide.
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The level of animosity we have in the USA today is at an all-time high. Racial, religious, and political intolerance is rampant, exacerbated by technology which allows anyone to say anything they want to on the Internet. The real problem is that humans, for the most part, when hearing something told to them over and over, no matter how absurd it may be, will eventually accept it as truth.
And once they do, they won’t easily change their minds.
Add to this the innate iniquity (desire to sin) that we all have, as well as the self-indulgent society we have all been indoctrinated into, and you have a recipe for… well, for what we have today: disunity on a national scale.
Today we are hearing a lot about unity. And I believe it is a bunch of political rhetoric, meaning that it sounds nice but the reality is that it won’t ever come to be because there is an essential part of the formula for unity that is missing, from the top down, and has been absent for many years now.
That essential ingredient, that foundation, that keystone to unity is: compassion.
Today everyone wants you to talk to them with compassion for their feelings, but no one wants to make the effort to listen with compassion; no one wants to consider, if they are upset by what you say, that maybe you are feeling bad or having troubles! Hell, no- you said something I don’t like and therefore YOU are wrong!
In my many years in the corporate world, I have seen how filing a complaint with Human Resources (which used to be called Personnel, but they aren’t personable anymore) means that the first one to complain wins. No longer do we get together and try to work out our differences to form a closer relationship, no! Nowadays, you complain about me and I am wrong. Period; end of story; don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
There can never be unity without compassion. As I stated above, and which is confirmed many times in the Bible, humans are selfish, stiff-necked, and self-absorbed beings who want only to sin. The only way we can overcome sin is by following the way God tells us to worship, live, and treat each other. That is possible only because when we accept God and his Messiah, we are given the gift of the Ruach haKodesh (the Holy Spirit) which doesn’t force us to do anything but gently teaches and guides us to do what is right.
Compassion is not something we can demand: it is something we must earn, like trust, by first showing we have it for others. Then they will return it. Think of compassion as a beneficial disease, one that can be contagious, but yet it remains a rare disease.
I have no answer for how to create unity in the world, let alone just trying to get it started here in the US. We are really in trouble, and personally, I believe we are being judged by God for our sinfulness over the past 70 years (reminds me of the exile we read about in Jeremiah.) Ever since 1950, we have become more and more sexually perverse, more and more individually centered, and less and less nationalistic, to the point where today the government supports murdering children, sexual perversity, and has kicked God out of our society, schools, and courtrooms.
The best thing I can think to do is persevere and try to show compassion in how I deal with everyone, especially within the religious discussion groups I am a member of. It is so sad to see within many different groups, groups of so-called believers in God and Messiah, the animosity, intolerance, and lack of compassion they have for each other.
I mean, really? If those who believe in God and Messiah can’t demonstrate self-restraint, tolerance, and compassion for each other, then what chance does the world have?
I know all about not having compassion because I don’t have any. I can never be a Rabbi because I really don’t like people, and have little compassion for them. I especially have no patience for fools, but I try. That is the best I can do, and by trying, even if by accident, I will show compassion and that is (at least) something.
The problem is so few in the world today are even willing to try. People forget the old adage that when you point your finger at someone, there are 3 fingers pointing back to you. As Yeshua said, first remove the log from your own eye before telling your brother (or sister) to remove the splinter from theirs.
So, try being more compassionate in how you talk and even more importantly, how you listen to people. If someone is saying really nasty things, even as your blood pressure rises, control yourself and think about the times that you said mean things you didn’t mean but said because you were hurting. Mean people are always people in pain, and if we can remember that and deal with them compassionately, well, you will be surprised at how quickly they can turn around and return your goodwill.
Proverbs tells us many times that we should treat those who mistreat us with compassion and how a gentle word will turn away anger.
If only people would do that, but they don’t, so it is up to us, the ones who worship God, accept Messiah Yeshua and have received the Holy Spirit, to show them how.
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That’s it for now, so l’hitraot and Baruch HaShem!
