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St. AUGUSTINE'S CHURCH NEWSLETTER
Autumn 2009 No 75
SEEK THE COMMON GOOD
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'Honour one another and seek
the common good' is one of those phrases that appears in the prayers in a
number of versions of the Anglican liturgy. Against the background of the
recent collapse of the financial markets and the recession we have been living
through we might well ask where the common good actually lies and how we go
about seeking it!
As we look back it is glaringly
obvious that a number of people have been more interested in their own
gain rather than any common good, whether that be in a big way, making huge
profits and bonuses in the city, or to a lesser extent by making money
out of the rest of us by abusing public office, as the revelations about some
of our M.P's expenses showed us! Whether it be financiers or politicians,
people we trusted have let ordinary people down. The events of the past months
have left some of us rather shocked, where do we go from here? How do we
put the financial markets right, how do we raise standards of integrity and
honesty in those who serve us in public life? Where is our money safe? Who can
we trust? Who is going to safeguard the well being of all our citizens and seek
the common good we ardently pray for?
In a time of crisis its not
easy to come up with the right answers, decisions made in haste usually prove
to be wrong in the long run. Certainly we need to take a hard look at the free
market economy we all seem to be part of , with its promise of prosperity for
all! For too many years we have been putting our faith in this system as
the best means to achieve the common good. We have heard the bright
promises of politicians of ever expanding markets that will benefit not just
us, but all our neighbours in the global village. Instead we have all become
slaves to the 'market', for the rules of the market place have come to take
over every aspect of our lives; health, education, defence, the environment,
even individuals are treated like commodities to be bought and sold, everything
has its price- the market has come to define who we are in a post modem world.
What should we do about it?
First we need to remind ourselves that people are more important than money and
profit. All people are created in God's own image, seeking the common good
means we want a world where everyone has a place to live, food to eat, a right
to education and basic health care- there is a certain dignity which goes with
being a human being. Whether we are people of faith or no faith, we all need to
honour and respect that dignity! Apart from profit making there are moral
values that should apply on a national and global scale amidst the shifting
sands of economic fortune.
Although the free market, on a
global scale, has raised millions of people out of poverty, one person's gain
has often meant another's misery; as we have witnessed the undermining of
workers' rights, the downsizing of social security systems and the exploitation
of the environment. Seeking the common good is about seeking the common good of
the whole human family, but that does not mean neglecting the needs of those
who live in our 'own backyard'!
The church certainly doesn't
have any clever answers to solve our present economic problems, but then
neither do the politicians or financiers. However the Church does have a
mission to proclaim the TRUTH in LOVE in every time and every circumstance and
accord to each person the respect and dignity we all deserve. May be its time
for those who direct the affairs of this world to replan the human journey and
set a few new rules, paint a new vision rather than just leave things as they
are. Somehow the recent announcement of more big bank bonuses whilst the dole
queue grows, doesn't sound much like anything is changing I
Your friend and priest
Father Keith
LOOKING BACK
LOOKING FORWARD
PREVIOUS EDITIONS OF REACHING OUT
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