Haitian Disaster Footnotes

The Haitian disaster continues to weigh heavily on our collective consciousness (cf. my earlier article "Anguish Over Haiti"). As for footnotes, they contain pertinent data not available in the body of the text. It remains to cite some lingering impressions.

Help is on its way. However, as one formerly involved in administration, the logistics in this instance are genuinely mind-boggling. Consequently, there are appeals for patience. It goes without saying that patience is especially difficult to exercise when the basic necessities of life are lacking.

This recalls Abraham Maslow’s classic hierarchy of values. "The basic needs arrange themselves in a fairly definite hierarchy on the basis of the principle of relative potency," he reasoned (Motivation and Personality, p. 97). Initially, they concern life, then safety and security, belongingness and affection, respect and self-respect, and self-actualization. When life is at stake, this takes precedence.

If both the physiological and safety needs are fairly well gratified, the remaining concerns will begin to emerge. These terminate with that of self-actualization, which brought to mind church edifices among the buildings demolished. As a matter of record, Haitians are predominantly Roman Catholic.

The scene shifts. People are protesting, "White people go home!" Their concern is with persons who are standing around, simply observing what is going on. They are perceived as part of the problem, rather than figuring into its solution.

This, of course, has racial overtones. The racial issue continues to plague us, and will no doubt continue to do so as long as we interpret events in racial terms. I think liberation theology has done us a disservice in this connection.

Moreover, the term chaos comes up repeatedly concerning the present state of affairs. It is as if the situation resembles the original state of creation, before God brought order out that which was "formless and empty" (cf. Gen. 1:2). I commented on an earlier occasion, "This combination of terms (tohu and bohu) occur only here and in Jeremiah 4:23, the former with reference to nature and the latter extended to incorporate the disintegration of the social order following the Babylonian invasion" (Chaos Paradigm, p. 3). Now it again appears with reference to the Haitian disaster.

This has resulted in a new influx of immigrants into the United States. It also serves as a reminder that we have as yet to come up with a creative solution to the matter of illegal immigration. It preferably calls for a creative bi-partisan resolve, perhaps lacking for fear we might offend an important constituency. If not, then simply for failing to deal with a pressing priority.

Finally, my thoughts turn to a woman pinned down by the collapse of a building. Gazing up at her husband, she declares: "I love you; don’t forget that!" "Love is patient, love is kind," Paul elaborates. "It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres" (1 Cor. 13:4-7). It likewise allows persons to cope with disaster.

» left by Mark Parsec from Blogz (2 years 117 days ago.)

Hi Morris,

 

Thank you for this wonderful article.

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