Social values versus violence and injustice in our society

Dec 31, 2010 Letters

Dear Editor,
As we stand on the brink of a New Year, the Justice, Compassion and Peace Committee of the Guyana Presbyterian Church (JCPC-GPC) notes with deep concern the recent pervasiveness and intensity, in time as well as physical and social space, of every sort of violence and injustice – physical, verbal, psychological, emotional and even economic – in our society, perpetrated by individuals as well as corporate bodies and agencies.
But even as our society seems to be falling apart, and as life for many seems to have become ‘nasty, brutish and short,’ the JCPC-GPC is acutely reminded of the words of Jesus, who at the beginning of this ministry said, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are downtrodden, to proclaim the favourable year of the Lord.”
It is in this spirit that the JCPC-GPC feels compelled to say that arresting the decline of our society cannot simply be achieved by “more government,” or “more law,” nor “more State.” Jesus himself was adamant – to the point of being crucified for it – that demanding adherence to a litany of laws and regulations will in no way transform and liberate us, but may in fact enslave us and condemn us to a life of despair and death.
This is especially so when norms (e.g., of violence) exercise powerful social influences on individual behaviour. Formal laws, protocols and regulations require strong, even-handed enforcement to be effective, but such enforcement is both difficult to achieve and very costly.
Part of the problem is that the enforcers themselves need the prompting of a higher-level enforcer, who would also need the prompting of a prior enforcer, etc. – a problem of “infinite regression.” The buck of course must stop somewhere, and the JPCP-GPC is of the strong view that the political leadership is one of those prior enforcers to be held accountable for the state of the society because, as the proverb puts it, “The fish rots from the head down.”
The other part of the problem, however, is that rather than fostering a set of shared beliefs in justice and peace, many of our social institutions have defended and reinforced the hostilities, injustices and violence present in the wider society. As noted by so many other people however, behavioural change can only come about with the support of these social institutions – the families, churches, schools, communities and other such social units that hold the pulse of the nation’s values and its sense of morality.
It is in this context that the JCPC-GPC recalls the salience of the ethics of Gospel that we “do unto others as we’d have them do unto to us” even if doing so would cost us and place our very lives, including our political lives, at risk. Indeed, the JCPC-GPC believes that if only a ‘remnant’ of our society were to adopt these ethics and to do so persistently, this would tip our society out of the palpable state of social anomie in which we find ourselves, into one where we all demonstrate a deep concern for our neighbours and a willingness to be our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers.
We therefore issue a call for all our social units to promote attitudes, actions and even language norms consistent with these ethics. We are confident that though Guyana has for most of its recorded history lived in the very “shadow of violence,” the peace and goodwill of the Christmas season could become a way of life of us in 2011.
Having just celebrated the birth of Jesus, the Prince of Peace according to Isaiah 9: 6, we ourselves now make public commitment to striving for peace and justice in our land as we wish all of Guyana a Happy New Year.
Thomas B. Singh
Convenor of the Justice,
Compassion and Peace Committee
Guyana Presbyterian Church

Latest News

Social values versus violence and injustice in our society

Related

Similar Articles

The Glenn Lall Show | November, 20th, 2024

Follow on Tik Tok @Glennlall

THE BLUNT OF THE DAY

Sports

ICC issues arrest warrant for Israeli PM Netanyahu for ‘war...

D-Up Basketball Academy Training camp brings...

Campbell Eyes Eighth Men’s Physique Title in...

Alphonso, Fung-a-Fat, Munroe among top performers...

Guyana’s finest Physiques to battle for Glory...

CWI names West Indies Test Squad for home series...

Features/Columnists

ICC issues arrest warrant for Israeli PM Netanyahu for ‘war crimes’ in Gaza

ICC issues arrest warrant for Israeli PM Netanyahu for ‘war crimes’ in Gaza

Exxon contract can be changed

Publisher’s Note

Weekend Cartoon

Bridge Watch

Demerara Harbour Bridge

> Berbice Bridge […]

Social values versus violence and injustice in our society

Share this:

Related

Similar Articles

The Glenn Lall Show | November, 20th, 2024

Follow on Tik Tok @Glennlall

THE BLUNT OF THE DAY

Sports

Features/Columnists

Publisher’s Note

Weekend Cartoon

Bridge Watch

Demerara Harbour Bridge

> Berbice Bridge […]