They Know Not...

I was reading in the journal "Presence" - a journal for folks who belong to the Spiritual Directors International organization. In it there was an interview with a nun, Monika Ellis, OSB. The conversation had turned to a discussion of good and evil and how a spiritual director can help a directee to find the positive and light-filled path to G-d. Part of her response was, "...When Jesus said, 'Forgive them, for they know not what they do,' he was underlining a real lack of "knowing". I experience "evil" as just that - ignorance, a lack of knowing." (March 2012, vol 18(2): pp. 44) It struck me for the first time how much evil is done in the world by well meaning people who are ignorant of facts, doctrine, etc. Many of our problems with each other can be lessened if not eliminated once facts and truth are entered into the conversation. With unbridled opinions being the norm nowadays, it is not surprising that the person who shouts their bit of ignorance the loudest is the one who is listened to - who gains the sound bite. (Think of the political race that is currently underway.)Inordinate amounts of time are then wasted by those being attacked to refute the attacker, but the damage has been done. One only has to look at the Jerry Sandusky case or any other high-profile news item to see how truth and knowledge take a back seat to rhetoric and out right lies..."they know not what they do". It's not that the purveyors of half-truths or lies don't have an appreciation for what they are doing - often it is a calculated marketing scheme. What they don't appreciate is the collateral damage that occurs and the sometimes grace-filled positives that can come from it. I'm going to speak now from the Christian perspective (since we are in the season of Lent), but what would the world be like if Jesus of Nazareth had not been crucified by the imperial and spiritual powers of his time? Certainly, much ignorance and manipulation went into that act, but look what G-d was able to do with that event. The religion that started as a schism in the Jewish faith - set to redeem the "lost sheep of Israel" went on to be the religion of the realm and to influence world events for thousands of years (positivley and negatively). Nowadays there are 38,000 different groups (the last figure I saw) that follow the teachings of Jesus to a greater or lesser extent. How much ignorance is embedded in those groups? Do they really know what they are doing? Do they understand how their actions will affect others (and themselves)? This week, spend a bit of time with your faith doctrine. Read your holy text(s) and attend some classes that will help you put aside some of your own lack of knowledge. Find out what your faith community really stands for and what it means to be a member of that group. Look at what is happening in the world and ask yourself (and your community) what it is that G-d is wanting you to do about those issues. This Lenten season, no matter what your doctrine of faith, put down your ignorance and choose to know what you are doing. Remember, evil at its most powerful masquerades as truth - it's our task to know it when we see it. Peace for the journey, Dan