Reflections - The Corruption of our Soul

The Corruption of our Soul

It is free, but comes at huge cost

The move from analog (newspaper) to electronic (television) and now to digital (search engines and social media) has resulted in torrential transmission of information, communication and entertainment. At hands’ reach, and at the click of a button. Not all good and largely untrue too.

As humans, we are genetically, prime time and breaking news oriented. The FOMO factor – the Fear of Mixing Out may well be designated by the US Food and Drug Authority (FDA) as a disease.

A ping on our mobile and pong we respond. Depending on the number of digital media and channels that we are subscribed to, some of us could well contend for the world table tennis championship title.

The information spewed out is cataclysmic and yet too little to satiate our appetite. It has become our daily diet that takes us away from more worthy pursuits.

There is an arms race between countries, and vested interests within the countries, with differing ideologies and goals, to command the airwaves or undersea cable capacities – to get the news and entertainment to us – fastest – to the fastest finger. The more we click and consume, the better the goals of the vested interests are met, and greater the money for the abetting media.

In this ping-pong world, the rat-a-tat of bouncing messages from one chat to another and from one platform to another, can consume a whole day, with very little of significance being done.  

If there is increase in panic attacks and anxiety bouts that people are experiencing these days the mobile phone is the prime suspect for this epidemic. Put it on detox for a day and then two and see the difference.

There is so much news coming to us and almost all of it bad, it is no surprise, that peace of mind, has become a privilege that only people in media dark world enjoy.

Or those who are aware of the malicious attempt of the perpetrators, have taken measures to shut off the channels spitting out the pervasive and pernicious news. They have developed a system by which they choose to focus only on tested, verified channels providing stream of affirmations. In the grossly upended world of bad news, there is still much good to be found, if we diligently and deliberately seek it.

That is key. That should be our endeavor. We need to diligently and deliberately seek what we want and not be swamped by the menacing swarm of WhatsApp and other posts.

Getting to hear messages of affirmation that is edifying is the long tail. If you take book distribution for instance, the ‘Head’ is all the popular books with substantial marketing dollars supporting it.

And, then there are some good books with good content which does not get the publicity, but by word-of-mouth people get to hear about it. Some become best sellers by the sheer weight of their content. This is the long tail before the prominence.

Which are the books that have sold in millions?

Don Quixote by Miquel de Cervantes has sold 500 million copies; A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, 200 million copies; The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien, 150 million copies; The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery, 142 million copies; followed by JK Rowling Harry Potter Series; The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis, 85 million copies; The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown, 80 million copies; Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill, 70 million copies.

The most read books tug at some deep emotions within us related to salvation, solidarity, security, serenity, success, striving, strife, struggle, survival, seduction, secrecy and sorcery. All of it to do with our interaction with our fellow human being, humanoids, human-like animals, extra-terrestrial beings, Gods or the God Almighty. 

The Bible, the Quran, the Gita, Mao Tse-tung’s Quotations exceed the print runs of all of above – though not necessarily bought, but distributed.

These books touch upon a range of emotions of a set of communities each numbering over a billion. Then there is the Torah of the Jews and such like smaller communities. Some inspired and common to many communities and one a mere propaganda tool.

From the High-Definition, the News-on-Steroid world that we live in today, when we hark two millennia back, the transmission of news was either on horseback or use of a runner or at gatherings of places of worship, town centres and road junctions, or from hill and mountain tops. (The Beatitudes; the Teaching before the feeding of the 5000 by Jesus).

The credibility of the transmitter, the content, and the source was of utmost importance. The sources then were either the sacred books or decrees from kings, emperors, governors or local administrative head.

The content were essentially directives formulated in different forms but seeking a definite action from the listener. The transmitter made the difference, if he carried the heft of the sender of the message. The message structure too mattered.  

Mark Anthony (‘Caesar’s burial’), Abraham Lincoln (‘Gettysburg Address’), Martin Luther King (‘I have a dream’), John F Kennedy (‘Ich Bin Berliner’), Winston Churchill (‘Blood, sweat and tears’); and many forgettable ones - Hitler, Mussolini, Franco – they all had one thing in common – the ability to arouse feelings of liberation or prime the masses for sacrifices or a fight.

David Ogilvy, in Ogilvy on Advertising to illustrate what a good advertisement must do, gave the example of Greek Athens’s engagement with Macedonia, “When Aeschines spoke, they said, ‘How well he speaks.’ When Demosthenes spoke, they said, ‘Let us march against Philip (Philip II of Macedonia).’

Jesus was the perfect transmitter. His content was par excellence. His heft came from His Father in Heaven. His style was simple for his audience who were the underlings of society.

Often, He spoke in Parables. He believed that not all are interested in His message, and of those who are interested, must make the effort to understand the Parables so that His teaching sticks and is realized in action.

Very unlike the efforts of today’s transmitters pursuing their agenda. They take over the airwaves or digital bits and bytes, and relentlessly hammer the message to stand out in all the noise, intent on achieving their objectives in their lifetime. And, so the self-inflicted trauma and panic attacks that we as consumers of their messages bring upon ourselves.

We needn’t. There is so much good in the world. If we can only turn our attention toward it, and switch off from what is titillating, temporary and tempestuous that does nothing but cause us mental grief and agony.

Jesus had three years to get the job done and the effect for all times to eternity. Our pursuit should be to gain serenity and eschew sorcery which comes in so many disguises unknown, undetectable, and undecipherable to us in the news, books and entertainment we consume.

Jesus did not have a broadcasting device. Just his soothing voice. He did not scream, but taught in an even tone. He reserved his harshness only to the ‘learned’ who had become arrogant and ardently protected their privilege. He did not arouse mercurial emotions that would make people do something ‘rash’. We know of some leaders who do to stay in power.

The ‘rash’ part He reserved for himself given what it entailed – his suffering, death and resurrections – which His disciples will emulate in time – after the descent of the Holy Spirit upon them at Pentecost, and St Paul separately after his Damascus experience.

Jesus followed a process.

He first recruited full time able followers – in ones and twos - until he had twelve. Then, there were women who supported His ministry – most were called Mary – but there was a Joanna and a Salome - of all Mary Magdalene was the most prominent.

At first Jesus taught these chosen exclusively. Mk 4:11-12

He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables so that, “‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’^”

This is an echo of what we here in Isaiah 6:9-10. He said, “Go and tell this people: “‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’ Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.”

Both these verses in Mark 4:11-12 and Isaiah 6:9-10 have to do with the four responses in the Parable of the Sower in Mt 13 of how people receive the Word; the fifth being hardening of the heart which is a constant theme in the Old Testament; of Israelite’s treatment of the prophesies and the prophets leading to the exile and destruction of the Jerusalem temple.

So as part of Jesus’ ministry, to bring the kingdom of God on earth, He chose disciples (they did not choose Him; as with our God; we don’t choose, He chooses us) and it was for them (and us) to say ‘Yes’.

Some outright rejected the call. Others followed Him and were willing to endure the consequences in the hostile environment in which Christianity evolved.

However, when Jesus taught the disciples, the key teachings about his arrest, suffering, death and resurrection did not appear to get traction with the disciples. They were simply overwhelmed by Jesus’s miracles and ‘kicked’ to be part of His entourage.

Then he undertook the part of his teaching that the disciples chose to ignore – the suffering and humiliation of crucifixion in the company of thieves. When the events unfolded, the disciples except John became scarce, as Jesus had said (John 16:32), “Look, an hour is coming and has already come when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.”

After the resurrection Jesus appeared to the eleven disciples, and many others in Jerusalem, where the disciples were still there attending the seven-day Feast of Unleavened Bread. 

Subsequently, the disciples left for Galilee. Jesus repeatedly told through Mary Magdalene and others, “But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him, just as he told you.” Mk 16:6-8.

The disciples too felt safer in Galilee with their own people, away from the hostility of the Jews in Jerusalem. They met Jesus on the mountain as He had said, got their faith in the resurrection confirmed many times over, and they were all set for ‘The Great Commission’ "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” Mark 16:15

Toward this end the disciples returned to Jerusalem, to be crowned with the Holy Spirit. ‘The Great Commission’ was set in motion, of which you and I are the beneficiaries, “For this is the will of the of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him on the last day.” Jn 6:40

The choices we make in our consumption of media and news which all comes to us free (which is what we think), actually comes at a great cost – the cost of our peace of mind and also of our soul.

Better to pay for the media and channels of our choice and be disciplined in what messages we allow to enter our heart. For whatever enters is bound to either corrupt or sanctify our soul. We should not give in to tardiness in this critical area of our life.

In any case, be committed to a worthy task that takes up 60 percent of your time, with just 10 percent for media-related communication, so that the balance 30 percent you can enjoy sound sleep and a healthy existence.

Wednesday, 29 April 2020