God, AIDS, Africa & HOPE

Reflections / Gedanken

06/14/2020 • 11:58 am 1

Time to realign…

What the elections of Donald Trump and Boris Johnson have indicated looking at how they came to power; what the refugee drama in Europe with the most famous quote of Angela Merkel “Wir schaffen das” has suggested, what “black lives matter” are yearning for since years again and again –  Covid-19 now has confirmed and is confirming in all mightiness:
Our systems are not really holding water not withstanding the dawn of technology and interconnectivity, the human race has not caught up with the challenges it faces in the new millennium on so many levels. It has lost direction and momentum and like on a sinking ship everybody tries to save what he or she deemed important in the times of confusion.
It is not the year 2000 with the magic of heralding a new time in number but the year 2020 which will determine which direction the global village will take and whether it entails a unified human race abolishing the selfishness on so many levels:

As a human race – we have to decide whether we acknowledge each other as equals, or we continue to fight each other as black and white and all the colours in between.
As humans, we have to decide whether we acknowledge being part of the world around us, part of planet earth or whether we want to try to continue pretending to be master of the universe.
As societies, seeing our brokenness we have to decide how we deal with the past, with hurt, pain and memory of the sometimes unspeakable.
As countries, we have to check in again how we are governed and what forms part of our contract between those, we give the power to be our leaders for a period of time.
As individuals, we have to re-assess our values, our commitments, our belief system and our ways of life.

Politicians love to speak of moments in history, of historical times – and I guess, those who have an interest in history have asked themselves often when reading about upheaval of historic proportion how people might have felt or whether they understood the severity of their times. I guess, now we know if we pay attention.

Systems and technology alone will not save us, mighty wannabe leaders with pseudo-messianic aura will turn out like the Pied Piper of Hamelin – there is hard work to do and it has to done on all levels of societies with a strong input of civil societies and religious bodies.
It is time to unite in diversity, to listen to each other, to keep silent with each other to be able to find a sensitive way forward acknowledging the past without being prisoner of what lies behind us. A real new dawn carries the pain and errors of the past like scars, visible but not hurtful anymore, forgiven, but not forgotten.
We need to connect to our roots as the human race while stretching to touch the stars of hope and destiny leading the way forward.

It is a monumental task we are facing as the human race – but there is no alternative. We either face it or we humans will one day in spite of all cleverness be only a footnote in the history of the blue planet living on without us.

 

 

Filed under: Africa, General, Politics and Society, Reflection, Religion and Ethics, Society and living environment, South Africa, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , , ,

06/07/2020 • 10:06 am 2

Black lives matter

BLMYes, they matter – but I hesitated to write about it because it seems almost everybody on this planet is at the moment is on this topic. But that is not all:

My hesitation is not about that I would not agree with the slogan – my hesitation also does not deny the continuous human rights violation by a race theory, which is complete artificial, but has brought so much pain and hurt and destruction on people of colour.

My hesitation – as a human being- to say something is rather about the inside, that I am born into a system I am not able to escape – I enjoyed the fruits of racism, colonialism without being guilty of anything and even all my activism cannot overwrite this birth right.

As I theologian I would say: If there is any meaning in the term “original sin” – then the question of race, the question of white domination is an example par excellence for this theological concept.

As a German I grew up with the sense, that “we Germans” are guilty of Jewish genocide, of Auschwitz and the gas chambers – and I still recall the comments of elderly people in France verbally spitting at us young Germans touring the country.

So I am not sure where my place is in all of this;

while I am observing the hopefully last white right wing macho-stand off symbolized by the egomaniac in the White House and his cronies trying to keep an old world order alive which can’t be resuscitated;

while I am almost unable to watch the over 8-minute agony of Georg Floyd;

while I am aware of so many video clips of unnecessary violence and brutality;

I try to find a way to remain myself:

Observing, acknowledging, standing in solidarity but also knowing that the mark of Cain will always remain with me – innocently guilty

I also know that the yearning for a society without the term “race” can only be given birth if we overcome the prisons of language and perception on all sides but for that to happen there must be a longer period of silence and acknowledgement, of listening and enduring the voices of pain and despair of our wounded brothers and sisters.

There is no cheap solution,
no cheap escape –
protests,
kneeling,
standing together against unjust systems
can only be the starting point for a long journey ahead.

Filed under: General, Politics and Society, Reflection, Society and living environment, South Africa, Uncategorized, , , , , ,

06/03/2020 • 8:23 am Comments Off on Sheer irrational government decisions

Sheer irrational government decisions

It happened again – yesterday a court came to the rescue of millions of South Africans trapped into regulations partly defying any common-sense or logic. The North Gauteng High Court declared the rules and regulations of level 4 and current level 3 irrational and set aside – giving government 2 weeks to change the way they conduct business in the Covid-19 crisis.

For somebody, who has questioned sharply the thoughts and authoritarian behaviour of Cele, Mbalula and Dlamini-Zuma, but also other ministers and governmental bodies in the last week it comes not as a surprise, but still as a relief that judges share the sentiment, that many of the rules are arbitrary and serve nothing else than a hidden agenda – but not the fight against Corona or the protection of people.  “Sheer irrational” were the regulations when it came to Corona – sheer rational when you look at it as a tool to satisfy ideology and the temptation of power.

This all adds to the advice of the medical advisory council that our current level does not serve any further health purpose and as Dr Gray spelled it out, even before many rules were simply not justified at all.

The state capture of a different nature we witnessed in the last weeks has been brought to a hold – one day in the future, people will realise how much they own the courts to uphold the constitution and protect them against politicians who with all their greed for power and their feeling for entitlement on so many levels, keeping the masses depending on their handouts.

The new South Africa will only start to prosper when old mechanisms and ideologies are left behind and the ruling party starts to understand themselves as a political party amongst others and not as the masters of South Africa’s destiny with a birthright of power because they contributed heavily to the freedom of all in the country. Truth is: Many forces came together – many sacrifices were made in so many ways – many lives lost – and the greatness of liberators is not measured in the power they keep but the humanity and humbleness with which they serve the people and with the openness for changes in a democratic political system where there is no enemy but a struggle of minds within a clear set of constitutional rules.

Filed under: Africa, Politics and Society, Reflection, Society and living environment, South Africa, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , ,

05/27/2020 • 7:19 am Comments Off on Churches, but no hotels, restaurants

Churches, but no hotels, restaurants

Yesterday evening again President Ramaphosa appeared on TV to introduce a day of prayer for South Africa, but also declared religious leaders essential worker and opened up church services under level 3. He did this obviously under strict conditions and with limitations to the amount of people attending.

I feel this decision is health wise premature and when there is one lesson to learn from other countries opening up for church services then it is that those are becoming the hotspots and origin of new clusters. And this in countries where religion is much more organised while here in South Africa every self-declared prophet can open up a church. Adding to the concerns is that in the traditional churches, the age group of worshippers is more and more moving to those which government want to stay home: the over 60.

Obviously we all know that mega churches and some African-Christian churches are a political factor in South Africa – and the push to open up for business again and bring money in the kitty was obvious after the meeting between religious leaders and government last week.

With this decision government leaves again the grounds of the rational decisions  and shows, that all their talk about science and taking advice from other countries is more of a smoke screen.

Most traditional churches were very quiet during the lockdown – while some pastors tried to mitigate poverty and hunger, the official representatives lacked somehow the “option for the poor”  in words and deeds.
The kairos of Covid-19, the reflection of this sign of the times and the chances it offered for a review of worship practice, theological considerations and house churches was often wasted and replaced by video and zoom maintaining status quo.

I missed the voice of churches in the last weeks and months, I also have not seen really lots of theological discernment here in South Africa. And I fear that the opening of places of worship trigger more hotspots than the opening of hotels and restaurants could ever have done. It has to do with the nature of the beast:
Religious ceremonies are not about distancing, they are about hugging, singing, touching, speaking in voices and trance if you are pentecostal – you simply can’t degree a thousand years all practice to change with the 1st of June.

I guess it is a choice of emotions and not science if politics or society allow for worship again – but then justice demands that also other sectors, where indeed livelihoods hang in the balance, can be open under the same strict measures to allow to earn the money, the religious leaders certainly will claim now again from their faithful.

Filed under: General, Politics and Society, Reflection, Religion and Ethics, Society and living environment, South Africa, Uncategorized, , , , , , ,

05/25/2020 • 2:07 pm Comments Off on Frustration remains prevalent

Frustration remains prevalent

It was a somehow defiant performance of the President of South Africa yesterday when he addressed the nation – he certainly learned the lesson that referring to the questionable Covid-19 Command could bring him into hot waters. Especially after the Chief Justice of the country encouraged people to take government to court if their action does not meet constitutional standards.
Moving to level 3 not directly but with still one week to go shows that there is a need for more discussions amongst those in charge to fine tune new rules and regulations – the president appears much more reserved on details of the new rules and avoiding so being contradicted by his own collective.

And there were certain points completely ignored or only mentioned in passing by:

* The question of feeding those without food and the controversy about Minister Zulu’s attempt to control the NGO sector in this portfolio
* The question of the emergency pay out via SASSA which is not really happening on a great scale
* The question of the tourism industry which is bleeding on a scale not seen before and already now partly not reversible
* The question arising out of the Khoza court proceedings judging the behaviour of police and military
* The question of how the emergency solidarity fund is safeguarded against corruption and how it is really administered
* The question of the black market for tobacco products which eliminates the advertised advantage of forcing smokers to stop smoking

As a president one has to have a feeling for the prevalent debates in society and to address those, especially in times of crisis. So the question has to be asked:
Is it a sign of complete disconnect with “our people” or the fear to hurt the ideology of the ruling party not to voice discontent with comrades in public but leave the discourse behind close doors.

Be it as it may be – there were clear signs that the unhappiness and frustration and the danger of these boiling over has reached the highest echelons of government. And this is a first step in the right direction. The coming days will show how the small print will be spelled out by the relevant ministers and the lady in charge: Dlamini-Zuma.  Her past track-record and her crusade against smoking while intrinsic connected to those cashing in on the black market makes her current position and power in a normal democratic society unbearable. But as said: in a normal democratic society. South Africa has still a long way to go to achieve this status.

If Covid-19 has positive aspects so is certainly one of them the mere fact, that this crisis showed all the cracks in our young democracy left after all the state capture and looting. Lots to work on to make South Africa a vibrant democratic state where the rule of law and the respect for human rights and human dignity is paramount at any given moment.

Filed under: General, Politics and Society, Reflection, Society and living environment, South Africa, Uncategorized, , , ,

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