By Dr Charles Leyman Kachitsa
The search for meaning in life is a continuous human endeavour. Human beings have ever since time immemorial been on a journey to finding that which has true meaning. Some have found it and in the process find peace. Others which might be representatively in the majority are still on the journey, still beating the path to activate the desired state inside the mind.
Finding peace and the truth, means a life of satisfaction. True satisfaction gives happiness and perhaps it is that which most are seeking. Yet those who have found it, will tell you that the happiness is a felt sign and a result of the presence in your life of the treasure discovered that most seek, now residing inside ones mind. It is said knock and the door will be opened, in the same manner you need to continue seeking and you will find.
The quotes this week are a continuation extraction from a book that when read in full, gives a picture of the transitions in life for a people and those who brought them messages of hope in an era best known for journeys of discovery. I am sure that the few selected quotations listed below from this book will enlighten you to one or two life lessons. Read and enjoy:
DECOLONIZING MISSION by Harvey C. Kwiyani
“In the mission communities in the West, there is an obsession with evangelizing people in other parts of the world while ignoring those very people when they find their way to the West. This is a testament to their commitment to mission as civilization. Many British agencies, for example, do not really know what to do with the reality of the global diaspora that has emerged to be a critical part of the country’s religious landscape. One mission agency has formed an African Diaspora task force whose only purpose is to evangelize Africans in the United Kingdom, but to the surprise of many, there are no Africans on their team even though there are numerous mission-minded African leaders around the country. ………”
“By the time we get to the Constitutions, the word ‘missioned’ is used to mean ‘sent’. Much of the concerns the fourth vow – the vow of obedience to the Sovereign Pontiff regarding the missions. The Pope sent them on missions. Thus, in the context of this vow the word ‘missions’ means ‘itinerant ministry’ or ‘ministry throughout the world’ for the greater help of souls. For O’Malley: —– The Jesuits’ Fourth Vow was, in essence, a vow of mobility, that is, a commitment to travel anywhere in the world for the ‘help of souls.’ The Constitutions, in fact, assume that these ‘missions’ would generally last no longer than three months. The Fourth Vow was thus one of the best indications of how the new order wanted to break with the monastic tradition.”
“We are now living through the age of the American empire, but the tides are changing. The era of the American empire is being challenged from within and without. From within it, its democratic foundations are being tested by the polarization of its people. From outside, the rise of BRICS (an economic block that was started by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) poses a challenge. Samuel Huntington suggested in his 1996 book, The Clash of Civilization, that the Western civilization now faces competition from other civilizations. This is more evident today than it probably was when Huntington wrote The Clash. Both Russia and China have become even more influential players on the global political scene. As I write this, there is a conversation about BRICS seeking to establish their own currency and de-dollarize their economics, a move that some in the West consider economic aggression.”
“White evangelicals add a theological layer that supercharges a sense of importance, goodness, and, via a theology of certainty, rightness. American evangelicals are heavily, cosmically, existentially invested in being right, being special, and following a divine plan to save the world. They, of course, don’t see things that way. They whole-heartedly believe they are right, and if they don’t assert their rightness, if they don’t ‘share the love of Christ’ with others, those folks will in hell for eternity. This is absolutely a sincere belief, I don’t think secular people fully grasp that. But a hallmark of narcissism is the inability to really see oneself and a lack of critical thought about one’s beliefs and behaviour.”
