Homogeneity
Jul-2020
Cultures forgetting their roots is most certainly a universal phenomenon, but perhaps the East suffers less from this tragedy due to its largely homogeneous populations. Many Asian cultures (China, Japan, Taiwan, Korea) share a sort-of brotherly hatred for each other, a conspicuous tension even when juxtaposed against the United Kingdom, or the constituents of the European Union for example.
The writer once confessed in a conversation that his somewhat detached, nomadic upbringing meant he wasn’t particularly bothered or invested in certain political leanings or policies. He believed this indifferent perspective allowed unadulterated cogitation of the ‘bigger picture’ – in other words, I had no bone in the fight. In truth, I even teased a friend in good humour about her interest in political memes; not realizing what an immature imbecile it made one out to be. How could anyone listen to someone who carelessly reduces them to vague philosophies and numbers on a spreadsheet?
As I write this in the year 2020: COVID-19 induced global unrest and mounting U.S.-China relations suggests now is an appropriate time to extol patriotism and acknowledge nationalism’s role in the world order.
Yet the canonical texts stipulate:
And if a stranger dwells with you in your land, you shall not mistreat him. The stranger who dwells among you shall be to you as one born among you, and you shall love him as yourself”
– Leviticus 19:33-34
Here are some layers of interpretation:
- 1. Don’t scapegoat immigrants
- 2. No castle is built without gates and entrances
- 3. The aforementioned denizens of the land is macrocosmic of one’s relationship with one’s neighbour and in turn, the Son of God and his relationship with mankind
- 4. ‘Omnia vincit amor’ (to treat this adage as no mere cliché demands a daunting – no, terrifying amount of faith)
“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”
– 1 Corinthians 13:4-7