Nineteen members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, a firefighting organization based in Prescott, Arizona, were killed two weeks ago when a windblown wildfire overcame them north of Phoenix. It was the deadliest single day for U.S. firefighters since the terrorist attacks of 9/11/2001.The event garnered significant national attention for a couple of days, then faded into obscurity as the town and affected families grieved.As a two-time Arizona resident who has visited Prescott many times, the sad news struck a personal chord as I thought of the many pleasant memories I have of people and events in Prescott.
Downtown Prescott
Events like this one are difficult to contend with in two ways:First, what does a tragedy like this say about God?Second, what does it say about man?While the focus here will be on the latter, a note on the former is in order.Nearly every theologian I know (myself included) will readily admit that the problem of evil, tragedy and suffering is perhaps the most difficult issue to grapple with in all of theology - in part because even the most logically sound and coherently reasoned answers fail to satisfy us in the face of human suffering.In my view, God does not make or perpetrate evil, and, in the end, evil and death will be overcome.But, for now, it cannot be argued that evil and tragedy infects the world, and so we have forest fires, floods, hurricanes, and tornados that destroy and kill.What about man - what does our response say about us?Jesus is recorded as saying that the greatest love that one can show is to lay down his life for his or her friends (Jn 15:13). The immediate context suggests that Jesus was referring to his own death on behalf of humanity, but his words may be applied to a broader context: There is no greater love than to sacrifice one's own life, and the Hotshots should be remembered for their sacrifice on behalf of the citizens of Arizona.
The event impacted me not only because of its scale and personal connection, but also because the Hotshots reminded me of brothers and sisters in arms that I have lost over the years:young, brave, capable people, many with young families.As the town and families continue to grieve, I observed another reaction among many people that revealed a darker facet of modern human response to tragedy - indifference.As the splashy headlines and dramatic photos failed to draw the requisite network TV news ratings, the next tragedy and celebrity wardrobe fail was paraded on the news, and people seemed to not care in droves.Why?
In part, it is because we are saturated.There are tragic incidents going on all over the world every day, and with modern communication and 24-hour news networks, we hear of them within minutes; constant coverage of murders, hurricanes, tornadoes, ships sinking, airplanes crashing, fires, genocide, civil war, disease, and poverty have contributed to a growing lack of empathy and compassion among people.Research shows that repeated exposure to violence -- whether it's gang-related, domestic abuse, psychological torture, substance abuse, or in some other form -- has the long-term effect of dulling and in some cases eliminating the trait of compassion.In part, it is because we allow ourselves to yield to the sort of callous realism that says "S#!t happens - it's not my problem," thus undermining any sense of compassion and community we might use to help those in need.In part, it is because we have jammed ourselves into lives that are much more hectic and uncertain than they need to be.We have debt to raise and mortgages and bills to perhaps not pay and relationships to fail at - who has time for compassion?But where does that leave us? As our ability to reach out and communicate with other people rises to unprecedented heights, our ability to connect to them emotionally is strangled by the ever-increasing pressures of staying afloat in a culture where self-interest and narcissism is glorified and compassion is seen as a weakness.To be sure, no one can take the troubles of the world on their shoulders, nor should one try, and it is not suggested that one goes into full Victorian mourning for people we've never met. Life is for living, and an unhealthy focus on death and tragedy is a mis-allocation of the life we have.However, a worldview lacking compassion because it "doesn't affect me" is spiritually destructive, both individually and as a collective society. When an individual can't or doesn't feel compassion for someone else's pain and suffering, one eventually falls into a pattern of spiritual apathy or indifference that can be difficult to change.Then again, one might ask, why does it matter how we feel?Why does it matter? It's what we do that matters, right?Ultimately, yes, but the act of compassion is grounded in our willingness to act on an emotional reaction.
Consider the function of emotion - our emotions are designed to make us act, to make us DO SOMETHING.The etymology of the English word emotion holds the meaning to move out.Applied to compassionate love, then, we may look at compassion in two ways.The first is AFFECTIVE compassion; the emotional reaction we feel in reaction to the plight of another person. Thomas Aquinas wrote that human compassion is grounded in a "defect" in our nature: the defect of human vulnerability to suffering. We feel pity for those who suffer because we too are subject to such suffering. EFFECTIVE compassion, on the other hand, is acting on the affective, a positive action for the good of another, taking steps to relieve the suffering or meet the needs of others. According to Thomas, the Latin word "misericordia" literally means "having a miserable heart"--both affectively and effectively--for another person's suffering.
We see, then, that our capacity for affectivecompassion arises largely from our emotional capacity for effective compassion.In my view, as we become a society more connected to the screen of our smartphones instead of the person sitting across from us, we risk losing our capacity for compassion as we become more isolated from each other.In his book The Screwtape Letters,C. S. Lewis writes a fictional story of a senior demon who instructs his demon nephew, Wormwood, in a series of letters on the techniques of tempting people, and thus keeping them away from God. In his writings, the senior demon says that the objective is not to make people wicked, but to make them indifferent.Wormwood is instructed to keep his patient not afflicted or tempted, but comfortably indifferent at all costs. If he should start thinking about anything of importance, Wormwood should encourage him to think about his lunch plans and not to worry so much - because it could cause indigestion. The demon gives this instruction to his nephew: 'I will always see to it that there are bad people. Your job, my dear Wormwood, is to provide me with people who do not care.'
The opposite of love is not necessarily hate. Many times, it's apathy or indifference that is practiced by people who don't care enough to care. Indeed, s#!t happens - and will continue to happen, but how we respond to it is up to us.We may not be able to render effective compassion to every need we see or hear about, but we should strive to maintain a soft affective heart for our own good as well as for the good of others.Indifference towards the unfamiliar can lead to indifference even towards those we value; what if a friend or family member has an illness, or a sore back, or the flu, or job difficulties, or relationship difficulties, or just needs someone to talk to?S%^t happens, right? They'll get over it, right?Perhaps they will, but the real danger is that, with an indifferent heart, we may not ever see their need in the first place, thus damaging our relationships with those closest to us - all because we don't care enough to care.
Christian theology places the highest of value on the practice of compassion.In an age when a large measure of theological focus is spent on issues of social doctrine and related hermeneutics (gay marriage, abortion, pluralism, apologetics, and the like), we would do well to remember the compassion modeled by Jesus and others.Jesus cared about the problems of the needy and the suffering.If one wishes to follow his example, a portion of his or her time and resources must be engaged in some form of compassion towards those in need. The well-known parable of the Good Samaritan (Lk 10:25-37) provides a powerful example of compassion in practice - often lost in the story is that the Samaritan not only assisted, but did so at personal cost, inconvenience, and possible personal danger.One of the more pragmatic voices in the New Testament comes from James, who wrote:
If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? (Jas 2:15-20)
Exercising compassion towards other people isn't easy.It forces us to stop doing our own thing, takes our time, it can be thankless, and is emotionally draining.It requires listening carefully, concentration, wisdom, and can threaten our own insecurities.However, for those who wish to live according to the teachings of Jesus, or even for those who don't, but just want to make their world better, the practice of compassion is perhaps the most significant measure we can take.Compassion makes other people feel valued, and lifts them up.In turn, we are lifted up mentally, emotionally, and even physically.Cultivating compassion, however, doesn't simply happen - it requires work. It's a long-term choice that runs counter to our culture of entitlement.Yet, as a measure of encouragement, we might remember the words of Aesop: No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.
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