God’s project – bring people together

By Fr Kwesi Alleyne, a member of the Maloney Parish Clergy Team

If we look at the related field of ethics. For both ethics and morals spring from a conviction that there is good and evil. We see that different professions establish codes of ethics to guide the actions of persons within a particular sphere, whether it be medicine, engineering, or teaching.

These are meant to communicate an expectation that as individuals perform the tasks unique to their job, they do so in accordance with a universally just standard. In this country, we do this even for our politicians through a Code of Ethical Political Conduct.

A comparison and contrast can be made here with morals. Morality is not an ethical code that is imposed by an institution from the outside, rather an individual’s morality springs from within and consists of the principles that guide his or her actions.

These, however, should be informed by universal principles of goodness. It is incumbent upon persons, therefore, to form their conscience, that place where God speaks, in accord with such principles.

The individual is then called as a moral being to bring forth these principles in whatever sphere of public engagement undertaken. This is especially so in times of crisis when the person is called to reflect on these principles and allow them to inform life.

Similarly, for a politician, universal principles are to take a particular incarnation in the leadership rendered in the public sphere. Therefore, it can be said that politics has a morality particular to the demands of the call of the politician.

The Catholic Church, in taking seriously its mission in the world and recognising the need for the light of goodness to continue to shine, outlines in its Social Doctrine universal principles that govern social life in accord with justice.

The first of these is the Dignity of the Human Person. This is the primary and most foundational of all of the principles. It informs every other principle regulating action in the public sphere.

It says that human beings are of immeasurable worth because they are created in the image of God. It challenges the leader to reflect: does what I am trying to advance in the public sphere uphold the worth of other persons? Does it uphold their goodness? Does it celebrate who they are? Even if I have to defend my people or my nation, is it done at the expense of the dignity of others?

Another principle that is to guide public life is the Common Good. What is the common good? Simply put, it can be described as the good of each person, every person and all of the person.

It calls us to seek in whatever social endeavour to advance not the good of some but the good of all. In speaking of the good of all, it refers to the physical, emotional, and spiritual good. In short, we look for the wholeness of the entire human being and of the entire community. I cannot, therefore, be just about myself and my party.

This comes to the fore so often in the divisions along race and party lines that mark our local politics which block us from hearing positions objectively. We receive reality and act in the world not based on what objectively serves the good of all but so often coloured by partisan considerations, which play on tribal fears.

A lesson from La Divina Pastora

An essential part of the Epiphany and an important part of the meaning of its celebration is God coming for everybody. We see it in the imagery of Isaiah 60 in which all the nations flock to Israel.

This is Israel’s call which today they need to be reminded of. They are chosen not for themselves but for the world, to welcome all nations. This is what the Church is called to be.

In the gospel reading what do we see? The Wise Men are not from Israel. They are from pagan peoples. Here, it is the pagans who are more aware of the coming of the Christ-child than the people of Israel to whom His coming was first addressed.

In our local context, this always brings me to La Divina Pastora, Siparia Mai. If Mary is humble enough to welcome gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh from pagan peoples, who are we today on Mary’s behalf to refuse the same from the Hindu community who come asking her blessing?

We are meant to pray for them and as the opportunity presents itself, we share the story. We allow them to have their encounter and we trust God to direct them by a different way.

Our vision must be the universal vision of God. The project of God is to bring people together. That is the project of God with this La Trinity. I am convinced of it. God wants to display something through us, and in politics the tension of it comes to the fore.