I grew up in an insular part of the United States. People were considered "different" if they participated in another denomination of Protestantism that we did. Teenagers were banned from dating outside our church. No one could understand why I could possibly want to learn Spanish when we all spoke English.
Concern about the rest of the world seemed to end at the edge of my dinner plate, where my mother seemed to be quite concerned about starving children in China or India, who would apparently be even more malnourished, if I didn't eat my overcooked-to-slimy spinach. Actually, that isn't quite true. Our church was concerned about sending missionaries out into the world who would convert the rest of the world to be just exactly like us. No one ever question whether that would be a good or moral thing to do.
The ways of my home turf never quite "fit" me. Almost as soon as I was old enough to do so, I bolted to the coasts--first the west coast and later east--where, as I had been taught when I was younger, people were much more "liberal." "Liberal" meant anyone that didn't 100% agree with our inward-looking ideas. They were right. Some people, even a lot of people, had different ideas.
I have just learned about the word "ubuntu." "Ubuntu" is South African, and it is used to describe the desire God created in us to need each other. Archbishop Desmond Tutu describes it further as "my humanity is caught up and inextricably bound up in yours."
Ubuntu has come into my vocabulary today because this month marks the 10th anniversary of a partnership between my church in Washington and a school in South Africa. There are many kinds of sponsorship relationships in our world. This one is an interactive partnership, not just a matter of a writing-checks relationship. At least once a year, a relatively large group of people from our church go to the school to work. They get to know the people, and they listen to what is important to them. Occasionally, as happens this month, some people from the school come to spend time in our parish.
Our lives have become inextricably bound in each other. We care what happens there. We know our lives and our world is richer because of the relationships we have.
I am fortunate to have a number of people in my life that interacts regularly globally. We have all come to understand the concept of Ubuntu, even if we may not know the word. A work colleague of mine, who did international development work for many years, is concerned with the growing popularity of quinoa in the United States. Quinoa is a grain, which contains protein. It has been cheap source of high nutrition in many poor countries. As Americans have been discovering quinoa, the global price has increased significantly, making it hard for those people to afford. She understands that her actions at the grocery store in the Washington Metro area are impacting poor people all over the world. Her world is inextricably bound to theirs. She knows it, and her grocery cart reflects her conscientious.
Another friend of mine, a surgeon, goes for several months each year to teach surgery in many poor countries. For the 15 or so years that I've known him, he has been adamant that he not go to do surgery, but that he go to teach surgery. That way the impact of his time it these poor continues long after he has left a country. He understands how his world is inextricably bound to his students and their patients.
A retired judge friend of mine travels for many months at a time to countries that are new to democracy and the rule of law to work with new judges who are attempting to learn how to administer the rule of law. As he's bounced from country to country, I find myself more attuned to events in those countries. Last year, he was in the new South Sudan working. I am sure that my heart has ached more keenly during the current humanitarian crisis in that country because of the awareness he has brought me about the struggles there. My work is inextricably bound to theirs as it wouldn't have been before he brought new awareness to me.
Ubuntu was not a concept that most of my family could have understood. I know 2014 is a different time, but I am not sure that, if we went back to my old neighborhood in 2014, things would be much different. I am sad about that and for the richness those people miss by not being aware of how we are all inextricably bound to one another.
At the same time, I am grateful that I do have Ubuntu in my life and that I now have a word for it. I have known almost forever that we are connected, and I have frequently written about it in this blog. However, I am concerned that I have done so in a passive way--we recognize the connection. I sense that Ubuntu is more proactive. We are not only connected, but the decisions that we make in our daily lives are made with the awareness that even the smallest decisions that we make in our lives, like what grain to buy at the grocery store, have huge consequences in the world.
I've been environmentally aware of the impact of my decisions for years, and I am proud of the decisions that I've made, like moving into a high rise, getting rid of my car, and refusing to eat most meat that is raised in "food factories," all of which have significant consequences on the environment.
Yet, I know that there is more I can do. It is funny how such a simple thing as having a word for something has shifted my thinking. Although the description of Ubuntu that I read is for a noun, I am challenging myself (and others if they choose) to turn it into a verb. Ubuntu (the verb) could become the action we take because of the understanding of the noun. Ubuntu (the verb) becomes an intentional shifting of my consciousness so that I act in adherence with the understanding of Ubuntu (the noun.) I like that. I am about to head to the grocery store where I hope I will discover how I can Ubuntu (the verb) more actively and not only have an impact on the rest of the world, but to actually realize and choose what impact I will have.
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