Here's a picture of Sydney Harbor at midnight December 31, the first to welcome the New Year. The pyrotechnic show lasted twelve minutes and cost 6.8 million dollars to pull off. That same night there was a UNICEF info-mmercial telling us that a child dies of hunger somewhere in the world every five seconds. And so during the 720 seconds it took to blow up 6.8 million dollars of fireworks, 144 children died of hunger somewhere in the world. Similar spectacles circled the world as the clock struck twelve: Dubai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Berlin, Paris, London...
But I thought London's explosions, which rained down edible confetti on the revelers and filled the air with the scent of fruit, to be the most troublesome in the world where a child dies of hunger every five seconds. Does the world have a right to these kinds of displays in the face of this statistic?
Someone said, "It might be impossible to find the end of the thread that leads to the people who authorize, sign off on, create and fund these global New Years events." That shouldn't prevent us from asking, "Does the world have the right to this kind of extravagance?"
Some people will say: The priest is a kill-joy, no fun, doesn't understand that corrupt governments cause hunger, doesn't understand economics or the World Bank, that the poor countries shouldn't be having babies, that the cost of global fireworks would be a drop in the bucket to solve the problem, there's always been world hunger.
But should a TV commercial be begging for quarters to feed the world's dying children while we spend billions on pyrotechnics, wars, sports stadiums, player contracts and space explorations? A six billion dollar project has been announced to establish a space station on Mars; the project getting underway in 2018.
Someone might ask in return: "If we have to question the moral rightness of New Year's Eve celebrations and war preparations and sports - then what about taking a vacation, going to a restaurant, buying a new coat, owning a camera, sharing a bottle of wine, owning a second pair of shoes or a vehicle?" Well yes, I suppose. If we're paying attention, we all have to ask ourselves probing and maybe uncomfortable questions. But we might begin with the cultural practices that are most glaring - most obvious. And somehow I see the issue as having spiritual significance:
Do we remember the Book of Exodus Bible story about the ancient Israelites being freed from Egyptian slavery by God's hand. That they were led through the Red Sea and into the wilderness where God fed them with manna-bread from heaven. And they were satisfied for awhile but then began to grumble, complaining to Moses and wishing they could return to Egypt where they had leeks and cucumbers to eat.
They were satisfied - but only for awhile. We can well imagine that next year's displays are already being imagined and created, to be even more satisfying (and more expensive) than this year's. Edible confetti! Can it get any better than that? The new manna-bread!
Human consciousness is very low much of the time. A homeless woman froze to death in Rome and a new bronze statue of Jesus the Homeless was recently placed near the Vatican Radio Tower to remember her. In ROME of all places! There's a superabundance of empty rooms in Rome's convents, monasteries and rectories. There's an army of young and strong religious men and women who are studying in seminaries, novitiates and colleges all around Rome who could be out in shifts every winter night scouring the streets looking for someone - likely mentally ill - who needs to be picked up and taken in. The last thing Rome needs is another statue. The pope has echoed this in saying, "When the stock market loses two points it makes the news, but when a homeless woman freezes to death, it's not reported."
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But I thought London's explosions, which rained down edible confetti on the revelers and filled the air with the scent of fruit, to be the most troublesome in the world where a child dies of hunger every five seconds. Does the world have a right to these kinds of displays in the face of this statistic?
Someone said, "It might be impossible to find the end of the thread that leads to the people who authorize, sign off on, create and fund these global New Years events." That shouldn't prevent us from asking, "Does the world have the right to this kind of extravagance?"
Some people will say: The priest is a kill-joy, no fun, doesn't understand that corrupt governments cause hunger, doesn't understand economics or the World Bank, that the poor countries shouldn't be having babies, that the cost of global fireworks would be a drop in the bucket to solve the problem, there's always been world hunger.
But should a TV commercial be begging for quarters to feed the world's dying children while we spend billions on pyrotechnics, wars, sports stadiums, player contracts and space explorations? A six billion dollar project has been announced to establish a space station on Mars; the project getting underway in 2018.
Someone might ask in return: "If we have to question the moral rightness of New Year's Eve celebrations and war preparations and sports - then what about taking a vacation, going to a restaurant, buying a new coat, owning a camera, sharing a bottle of wine, owning a second pair of shoes or a vehicle?" Well yes, I suppose. If we're paying attention, we all have to ask ourselves probing and maybe uncomfortable questions. But we might begin with the cultural practices that are most glaring - most obvious. And somehow I see the issue as having spiritual significance:
Do we remember the Book of Exodus Bible story about the ancient Israelites being freed from Egyptian slavery by God's hand. That they were led through the Red Sea and into the wilderness where God fed them with manna-bread from heaven. And they were satisfied for awhile but then began to grumble, complaining to Moses and wishing they could return to Egypt where they had leeks and cucumbers to eat.
They were satisfied - but only for awhile. We can well imagine that next year's displays are already being imagined and created, to be even more satisfying (and more expensive) than this year's. Edible confetti! Can it get any better than that? The new manna-bread!
Human consciousness is very low much of the time. A homeless woman froze to death in Rome and a new bronze statue of Jesus the Homeless was recently placed near the Vatican Radio Tower to remember her. In ROME of all places! There's a superabundance of empty rooms in Rome's convents, monasteries and rectories. There's an army of young and strong religious men and women who are studying in seminaries, novitiates and colleges all around Rome who could be out in shifts every winter night scouring the streets looking for someone - likely mentally ill - who needs to be picked up and taken in. The last thing Rome needs is another statue. The pope has echoed this in saying, "When the stock market loses two points it makes the news, but when a homeless woman freezes to death, it's not reported."
A child dies of hunger somewhere in the world every five seconds.
