What has happened to Molly in her first eight years? More or less nothing. We have protected her from the world as best we can. She has been brought up in a loving home, she has two parents, she has never been hungry, and she receives an education that will prepare her for the rest of her life; and yet she is sad, and that sadness is not, when you think about it, inappropriate. The state of the relationship between her parents makes her anxious; she has lost a loved one (and a cat); and she has realized that such losses are going to be an unavoidable part of her life in the future. It seems to me now that the plain state of being human is dramatic enough for anyone; you don't need to be a heroin addict or a performance poet to experience extremity. You just have to love someone.
Page 137
I don't think this is talking about the state of depravity. I mean to say that although depravity is mentioned, to link all brokenness with sin somehow lessens the gravity of the mandate for relationship and fellowship. After all, the statement that it is not good for humans to be alone occurs before the Fall.
Loss is a part of life, it is part of what it means to be human. Sadness is a necessary part of love. If we did not mourn for the saints, it would mean that we did not properly love them and work together as the Body of Christ. The ability to mourn for a person or situation is a marker of how we are effective and affected. We are changed by the lives of others.
I understand that Molly is overly stressed by her sadness, and that sometimes sadness can lead to psychological issues. However, I don't think it is always a good idea to have the Christian life, or the message of Jesus, be portrayed as: Jesus always loves everyone, or everything is always easy, or simple, or fixable, or even about downsizing.
I also don't think it's a good idea for a healer like GoodNews to be always associated with Jesus. GoodNews always assumes that every problem was caused by sadness, and that everyone wants their sadness removed. Jesus knows it is not always prudent to heal everyone. He also knows that sadness is a necessary part of being human. For example, he mourns and weeps for Lazarus himself. This is a separate event from the raising of Lazarus, and it is equally, if not more, important.
I think that perhaps Molly has a gift for feeling the pain of the world. Maybe it is not a good thing that GoodNews has taken her pain away, because it lessens their gift, and removes some of her intuition. She has wisdom, and identifies with the marginalized people her mother is trying to save.
Dr. Katie is trying to save the "heart-sinks" (despite her ethically skewed home life); David is trying to save the homeless (despite the holes in his belief system, and the flaws in his advertising); GoodNews is trying to save the sad (through his ecstasy stimulated hands); and Tom is simply trying to save his possessions (the status quo?).
I think that Molly is the only one who might be successful, because she's the only one who isn't imposing her own viewpoint. She isn't defining what it means to save, in essence, 'How to Be Good'. Instead, she's making observations about what people need and want, as well as the best way she can be supportive.
At eight years old, she's figured out how to help using natural supports, Person Centered Planning, and small, manageable changes. She is also helping because she knows it is right, not because she wants the credit. She is the least preoccupied with the concept of being Good, but I wish everyone who was devoted to helping others (the less fortunate) was this good at it: at recognizing the value in others, and what to do about honoring and including them in community, constructively.
GoodNews is like Lois Lowry's The Giver, only backwards. Instead of giving the people back their emotions, problems, and colors... yes even sadness, he is taking away their ability to feel the realities of being human, and the realities of participating in the world. Beds and dishwashers or colors and twins, it's all the same problem. This dystopian idea feels eminent. I hope David doesn't lose the ability to hear music, too. Soon he will need to be reminded of his own memories. Is this better than being angry?
No comments:
Post a Comment