Are we upside down?

I’ve been kind of quiet the last several days because–quite honestly–I’m just not sure what to say any more. I find myself wondering if the world has really turned upside down…

I grew up with a belief that integrity was important, that telling the truth was an important part of what made a person trustworthy. And yet…I’m still struggling with Aaron Rodgers’ lie about his vaccination status–and the fact that he still doesn’t think he lied. I’m shocked that a lawyer who made a blatant racist comment in a courtroom thought that he was apologizing by saying that he understood some of his words might have been insensitive–and he was sorry if anyone was inadvertently offended. And the former president–and so many of his followers–are still peddling the lie that the election was stolen from him.

I believed that part of our responsibility was to care for one another. Yet as we are still struggling with Covid, many are refusing to wear masks to protect the vulnerable…and many have also indicated that they have no intention of getting vaccinated or getting their children vaccinated to help us get a handle on this horrible pandemic.

I am a follower of Jesus–and my understanding of what that means now (and as I was growing up) was that we were to be stewards of creation. Climate change is real and is changing our world, and yet many refuse to believe it or are willing to make any changes. It is almost too late.

As a follower of Jesus, I grew up hearing his words calling us to care for the refugee…and I watch the news, seeing water cannons being used on people trying to find ways to a better life. I see people being turned back, sent back into hopeless and dangerous situations with no realistic hope of a future for their children. And I see refugees who have been accepted into my country being demonized and attacked.

I grew up believing that diversity made us stronger, and yet now I hear an advisor to the former president demanding that we all worship the Divine in the same way…the way he understands the Divine. I believe that none of us have a complete understanding of who the Divine is–and being willing to share worship experiences with others who have different understandings helps us all grow.

Education has always been important to me. Part of education encourages us to ask questions…to be challenged…to sometimes be uncomfortable. Yet I see librarians under attack for books on the shelf that make some people uneasy, that challenge long-held understandings. I hear people demanding that only one version of history be taught–the history of the victors, not the history of those who have been subjugated and exploited.

What has happened to us?!? The world I grew up in…the expectations about our relationships with each other…all this has been turned upside down. There are some elements of that long-ago world that deserve that, but not everything.

I’ve wondered what I can do to help right the world. Sometimes it feels like it would be so easy to just curl up in a ball and ignore everything else–but I can’t do that. If I do, I enable those that are so determined to keep the world upside down–and I think there is still a lot to salvage! I just can’t give up hope.