Our developing nation

Earlier this month I joined an audience of more than one hundred students at an event hosted by the Veritas Forum. Headlining the event was Bishop John Rucyahana of Rwanda, whose work with the Rwandan government has precipitated a dramatic trend in the traumatized nation. Over the past decade, tens of thousands of murderers, rapists, and arsonists have sought forgiveness from victims and their families. In response, the grief-stricken victims have forgiven their former tormentors. This, in turn, has produced communities in which neighbors productively work together, despite the horrendous acts that stain their past.

As his presentation came to a close, Bishop Rucyahana reflected on his country’s recent progress and the huge obstacles that remain for the small country. He then turned his attention to the students looking up to him. I expected his benediction to center around Rwanda’s needs and how we could contribute to the recovery. But he did quite the opposite. He charged us, instead, with learning as much as we could in Morningside Heights so that we could become better Americans and serve our own country with that knowledge.

Those parting words struck a nerve. Why is this bishop telling us to worry about America when countries like Rwanda need the types of leaders and educated people that Columbia churns out? Why doesn’t he charge us with going out into the developing world, armed with our education and a desire to help countries less fortunate than ours?

His final comments reveal his truly unique view of the health of a nation and the reason he’s concerned about ours. He assesses a country’s progress in more than economic or even political terms; he looks to the spiritual and moral health of its people. Rwanda’s harmony and productivity have taken a dramatic turn for the better as its people are finding freedom from their debilitating fury or crippling guilt. Because of this rally around the Judeo-Christian values of justice and forgiveness, it is more unified than ever, paving the way for many other types of national successes.

This analysis struggles to find traction in today’s America. Given our society’s postmodern proclivities, any sort of talk about morality, spirituality, and worldview invites a relativistic response: After all, some may say, who are we to criticize our country for its lack of a moral value like forgiveness? How dare we presume to critique others for not adhering to the arbitrary and meaningless dictates of Western Civilization or the Judeo-Christian beliefs that fuelled it!

We have reached a point—and I think this may have been what the Bishop was getting at—where we have reneged on Dr. Martin Luther King’s fabled mandate of judging each other by the content of our characters. Why? For one, the concept of “judging” someone is taboo. Secondly, lately more than ever, we haven’t the faintest idea of what good character is. How would we find the standard to apply to that sort of judgment? Today, Reverend King would be best received if he shirked that admonition and suggested that, if we find ourselves in the uncomfortable position of judging a man, we do it after inquiring by what standard he believes he should be judged.

Our country has come a long way, though there’s much left to achieve. We may have more impressive economic figures, infrastructure systems, and political stability than Rwanda, but the achievements risk coming to naught if our society is not sustained by unified values. Thankfully, the potential that Bishop Rucyahana sees in us students exists in the works that we study. Literature Humanities and Contemporary Civilization are courses that were originally intended to acquaint the student body with the underpinnings of our prosperous Western society. With those values, generations have witnessed thriving communities and resilient civilizations.

The risk now is that these classes are less training in critical values and more detached reviewing of antiquated ideals. If there is anything to be learned from the good Bishop in Rwanda, it is this: We do not have the luxury of passive classroom observation. For our country to maintain the vibrancy of its economy, society, and politics, we need to return to the values that have proven their importance over the course of centuries. Rwanda has been transformed by their return, and I am with the Bishop in the belief that they could do the same for our nation.

Derek Turner is a Columbia College junior majoring in anthropology and political science. Opening Remarks runs alternate Mondays.