THE LAW CANNOT SAVE US
LET’S MAKE A SOCIAL CONTRACT
In a recent case in
these COVID times, a widowed mother had to lock herself in the house and call
the neighbors for help. The son, living in the outhouse on the compound, was in
the habit of demanding money from his mother whenever he required it. The son,
a college graduate, was not interested in doing any work for a living. As fate
would have it, this time his mother did not have money. The neighbors came to
the woman’s aid, in response to her call, saving her from a threatened beating.
A few days later the mother came to plead for her son’s release from custody.
He was released because she was not willing to make a statement convicting her
son of any misdemeanour. Instead of having the matter dealt with in a
substantive jail term as per the law, she staked her hope on society.
This story happening in many generic forms in these COVID times. The
pressures of life have risen to “distress levels”. What kind of social contract
can sustain us in times like this where we face rations and restrictions are
imposed by a condition well beyond our control. Is this a special or unique time
or are there lessons we can extract from this season to take us into the
future? What will help us resolve our social crisis in times like these where the
“law” is handicapped. The answer I believe lies in committing to a five-fold
social contract.
The
Fear of God
The first frame of this social contract is to acknowledge that God is
overall and in control and that He has not lost control. This requires faith,
but taking the law into your own hands is not to get even, but to deny and
despise the presence of God. To take the law into your own hands is to advise
God that He is not doing his job and that He needs a little help from you. To
address the God of all creation on these lines is an effrontery if ever there
was one. It is to challenge authority only slightly more powerful than a police
station. You may not call upon him regularly, but it behoves all of creation to
fear him for maintaining the Universe. If we all observed this law, we would
resolve half the problems of the legislative universe.
Truth
The second frame is to observe the truth. Lies inflame and entangle and
make a mess of relationships and life. They waste the jury’s time trying to
find it and make a mockery of anyone who calls himself an upstanding member of
society. Truth. Truth is absolute and it is liberating. If everyone told the
truth we would not have these family innuendos between husband and wife,
children and would be good neighbors. The Bible counsels that the truth will
set you free. But it can also earn you forgiveness speedily, speed your way in
business and in every endeavor in life. In truth you will not need to look back
for anything. It will resolve the problem of integrity and chastity. You will
only have to speak once. The next action in repentance will be to work out how
to make things right. The truth is not the truth because you said it. The truth
is the truth simply because it is the truth. It is a scholarly, enlightening
and empowering discipline to pursue the truth. You will do well to make this
your life’s call.
Wisdom
The third frame of conflict resolution is wisdom. All cultures are the
accumulated wisdom of the ages condensed into practices that to negotiate and
resolve issues in concert and character without loss of social standing with
others. There were no jails. Your family culture will have a conflict
resolution framework that will work for you and allow you to look wise if you
follow it. Religious teaching offer plenty of advice. The Bible instructs a
four-step process that if you exhaust you will be free of all sin in the
matter. Wisdom is important because it helps you negotiate and resolve solve
problems on a daily basis, before they become a crisis. When you become a wise,
people will seek wisdom from you. Indeed, if you are wise you will have no
problem with the law. But if you must be a fool then the fines you must pay to
carry that title will wear you thin and grim.
Peace
The fourth is the frame of peace. Peace is not the absence of war, but
it is the absence of violence against another. It is a conduit to prosperity of
soul and the health of the body. It is the gift you receive when you do not
give way to stress and chose to seek redress. Peace is a principle of life. It
is sought after as a condition of success. Do not give up your peace on any
account and in this you will rise to your full potential. While peace is
challenged by the emotions of anger, regret and guilt - you know what you must
do to release yourself from these false wizards of destiny. In as far as it
depends on you live at peace with all men. It is possible to walk away.
Respect
Finally, respect. I do not have to love my neighbor to live next to him,
but I can resolve to do him no harm by respecting the way that marks the
boundary between my house and his. It is not the boundary wall that marks my
respect, but the fact that I do not waste time to plot and plan to disturb his
peace by my presence or agents of my presence. Respect is to acknowledge the
good in others and respect good in yourself. To respect is to live above your passions
and pride. It may require that you humble yourself and perhaps agree to humbled
to the extent that good may come out of it. Incidentally you cannot respect
others if do not respect yourself. There is no justifiable reason to
force respect. It does you and others no harm to stay in your space. Stay safe.
