Guide Us When Perplexed [5th Dana College Hermes Column]
Guide Us When Perplexed
Watching more television than I’ve intended, I have discovered that I am slowly evolving into a really big loser. Case in point, last Monday an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation was on SpikeTV. Within this episode, Commander Data, the ship’s sentient android, finds himself within a primitive civilization on a remote planet. This civilization isn’t primitive to our standards, but if you’re used to flying around in a spaceship all day, it ranks as such. Through the course of the episode, Data loses his memory and through an unfortunate series of events ends up accidentally giving the civilization radiation poisoning. He is faced with the stresses of hostile consideration and being outcast by their society. At the same time, he tries to save them from their plight with the scientific means and methods he apparently remembers how to use. While reading this you may develop the impression that watching TV is an inane waste of time, and you’re right. However this episode got me thinking, so I’d like to dive into another realm of soft delusions. Strap on your boots, this is going to be thick.
Another collection of shows I watch entirely too much is CSI. When finished with Chorale, I am thrilled there are ‘back-to-back’ episodes of CSI on SpikeTV. Plus I like to enjoy the current Season 5 as it is syndicated weekly. CSI: New York isn’t that bad either, it’s the Miami one that stinks, because … well David Caruso can’t act. Anyway, as you are probably aware, the theme song for CSI is ‘Who Are You’ by The Who. I don’t understand why, but it sticks in my head and makes me thing. I did get to wondering though, what would it be like if we, like Data, lost our memory? Would we retain the ethics, morals, and values that are so vital to our integration with larger society? We can theorize that by looking through our mementos, our favorite CDs, highlighted bibles, old emails, saved love letters, and personal diaries, we could piece together our sense of self. However, we cannot be certain that our personal internal essence, the little hamster that keeps our wheels spinning, would remain with us or be restorable through such efforts. So where am I going with this? If you’ll bear with me, there is one solution I can offer.
Data is eventually killed by members of the poisoned civilization; his body rescued and rebooted by his crewmates. After a simple restart, he is back to normal. While we cannot hope for such a simple solution to a hypothetical situation, there is something I believe we can take from these confusing ponderings to our everyday lives. As I was wasting time debating this supposition, the only real answer I found myself believing, was to seize the day. More than likely, we will not be faced with a power surge and sudden loss of memory. But if we conveying the ethics, morals, and values we hold dearly to those around us, we develop relationships and opportunities through which both we and they are strengthened and renewed.
Communicating values out of a dread of amnesia is not likely enough to get the ball rolling. To get started, we are left relying on our general sense of good will. If we look at this from a faith based theological perspective, we see better how through the sharing of our faith we not only offer ourselves the chance to see how widely and deeply the power of God impacts our lives. We also offer others the opportunity to see hope beyond all sorrow, light in darkness, and direction amidst confusion. If we limit this sharing to a ‘fuzzy’ secular realm, we are still fostering relationships with other people, opening doors, and to steal a repeated phrase from John Kerry, ‘forging strong alliances’.
Some argue that such openness keeps us from conflict ‘cough-Iraq-cough’. More importantly, as we share the ways our lives have been impacted by God, Christ, and those who have gone before us, we are making Christ known. Not only to others, offering them new perspectives, encouragement, and peace. But also to ourselves, offering a ‘blessed assurance’, we were not aware of; giving us the purpose, certainty, and peace that we need so desperately as we struggle in a brave new world. And isn’t that what we’re looking for?
Yours in Christ,
danallama@gmail.com
Watching more television than I’ve intended, I have discovered that I am slowly evolving into a really big loser. Case in point, last Monday an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation was on SpikeTV. Within this episode, Commander Data, the ship’s sentient android, finds himself within a primitive civilization on a remote planet. This civilization isn’t primitive to our standards, but if you’re used to flying around in a spaceship all day, it ranks as such. Through the course of the episode, Data loses his memory and through an unfortunate series of events ends up accidentally giving the civilization radiation poisoning. He is faced with the stresses of hostile consideration and being outcast by their society. At the same time, he tries to save them from their plight with the scientific means and methods he apparently remembers how to use. While reading this you may develop the impression that watching TV is an inane waste of time, and you’re right. However this episode got me thinking, so I’d like to dive into another realm of soft delusions. Strap on your boots, this is going to be thick.
Another collection of shows I watch entirely too much is CSI. When finished with Chorale, I am thrilled there are ‘back-to-back’ episodes of CSI on SpikeTV. Plus I like to enjoy the current Season 5 as it is syndicated weekly. CSI: New York isn’t that bad either, it’s the Miami one that stinks, because … well David Caruso can’t act. Anyway, as you are probably aware, the theme song for CSI is ‘Who Are You’ by The Who. I don’t understand why, but it sticks in my head and makes me thing. I did get to wondering though, what would it be like if we, like Data, lost our memory? Would we retain the ethics, morals, and values that are so vital to our integration with larger society? We can theorize that by looking through our mementos, our favorite CDs, highlighted bibles, old emails, saved love letters, and personal diaries, we could piece together our sense of self. However, we cannot be certain that our personal internal essence, the little hamster that keeps our wheels spinning, would remain with us or be restorable through such efforts. So where am I going with this? If you’ll bear with me, there is one solution I can offer.
Data is eventually killed by members of the poisoned civilization; his body rescued and rebooted by his crewmates. After a simple restart, he is back to normal. While we cannot hope for such a simple solution to a hypothetical situation, there is something I believe we can take from these confusing ponderings to our everyday lives. As I was wasting time debating this supposition, the only real answer I found myself believing, was to seize the day. More than likely, we will not be faced with a power surge and sudden loss of memory. But if we conveying the ethics, morals, and values we hold dearly to those around us, we develop relationships and opportunities through which both we and they are strengthened and renewed.
Communicating values out of a dread of amnesia is not likely enough to get the ball rolling. To get started, we are left relying on our general sense of good will. If we look at this from a faith based theological perspective, we see better how through the sharing of our faith we not only offer ourselves the chance to see how widely and deeply the power of God impacts our lives. We also offer others the opportunity to see hope beyond all sorrow, light in darkness, and direction amidst confusion. If we limit this sharing to a ‘fuzzy’ secular realm, we are still fostering relationships with other people, opening doors, and to steal a repeated phrase from John Kerry, ‘forging strong alliances’.
Some argue that such openness keeps us from conflict ‘cough-Iraq-cough’. More importantly, as we share the ways our lives have been impacted by God, Christ, and those who have gone before us, we are making Christ known. Not only to others, offering them new perspectives, encouragement, and peace. But also to ourselves, offering a ‘blessed assurance’, we were not aware of; giving us the purpose, certainty, and peace that we need so desperately as we struggle in a brave new world. And isn’t that what we’re looking for?
Yours in Christ,
danallama@gmail.com