Similarly, a country divided against itself can never stand. It seems that some politicians in South Africa are cynically determined to divide the country along lines of party, ethnicity, income, or simply whatever causes the most chaos. It is not in their interest to have a functioning democracy where most citizens have a say in how the country is run.
When it is divided, the devil can enter and plunder the country: destroy state-run enterprises, award fraudulent tenders to buddies, eviscerate health, education and transport infrastructure, and allow the despoliation of the mineral and other natural resources that are meant to be the inheritance of all the country. We don’t need to look for a fiery red man with horns, a long tail, and a trident. That is the worst kind of distraction from the real evil
that occurs every day. Sadly, we have become so used to the failure of our state that we no longer denounce it as a crime and a social sin.
We all allow ourselves to fall into factions and oppose ourselves to people with different opinions and experiences. But many of these divisions are entirely artificial. When we consider the majority of our fellow citizens, we see that they are upright, industrious (if they had the
opportunity), honest, concerned for the future, and wanting to get ahead – just as we are. Of course, there are the crooks who want to take shortcuts, enriching themselves at the expense of the majority and promoting their special interest groups. Nobody has the right to own or control millions and millions of Rand when large numbers still live in the poorest circumstances. We naturally attach ourselves to people who claim to have our best interests at heart. But we should not forget the common
good – the advancement of all of our fellow citizens.
Am I truly trying to build a united society? Or am I implicit in the division of my home, workplace, and country? Do I use language that offends or alienates people? Am I willing to live simply so that others can simply live?
Reflections by Peter Knox SJ
