Are we HUMANS Good or Bad?
By Rev. Fr. Michael Martin, SSC

In 1954, an Englishman, William Golding, wrote a novel, Lord of the Flies, which won the Nobel Literature Prize. Suffering from depression, he created a story about human nature, about how humans behave. It features a group of British schoolboys and looks at their interaction and behavior after their plane crash on a deserted island, killing the adult passengers and only these children survive.

It was depressing reading for Rutger Bregman, a Dutch historian and writer, but it stimulated him to tell the world about how real people cooperate and care for one another, often bringing out the best in each other.

This next story, which is historical and true, embodied what he wanted to say.

In 1965, six Pacific islander schoolboys from Tonga, aged 13 to 16, “borrowed a boat” and were shipwrecked by a horrific typhoon; they endured swimming and floating in the ocean for over a week, and then survived on an abandoned remote volcanic island until they were rescued more than a year later. They learned to support and forgive each other, and inspired by their Tongan culture and faith background, they worked and prayed together daily. Humans, the Dutch historiian wrote, are basically good.

Both of the above stories are about unsupervised schoolchildren.

Are we humans today good or bad? I have certainly met people who fit into these opposite categories: I had schoolmates who were saintly in their relationships and behaviour, and others who made life miserable for many.

The “gutter” press certainly makes their newspapers readable and saleable by presenting readers with stories of bad behavior. The next two stories are well known.

In 2010, 33 Chilean miners were rescued after more than 2 months nearly half a mile underground in Northern Chile. They survived longer than anyone else trapped underground in recorded history. We all gave thanks and celebrated.

The fourth story is about the Thai junior school football team and their 25 year old teacher, providentially trained in Buddhist meditation. This widely publicised cave rescue saved the lives of all the members of a junior football team who were trapped inside a cave in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand in June and July 2018. Twelve members of the team, aged eleven to sixteen, and their 25-year-old assistant coach entered the cave on 23 June after football practice. Shortly afterwards, heavy rains partially flooded the cave, blocking their way out – the world heard about it and rushed to their successful rescue.

The 2019 film The Cave was written and directed by Thai-Irish filmmaker Tom Waller and features many of the real-life cave divers as themselves.

The world followed and watched these recent events which got top media coverage. Discussion followed on just how good, and just how bad, people can be to one another. Critical situations certainly make us think. And care. And act. And be glad that we did.

Then COVID 19 came. We soon became aware that we were all in the middle of a global crisis. We began to learn in new ways that: “Yes, we are our brothers keeper.” So, locked down for months, there could be no real celebration of my 80th Birthday – a Filipino cultural imperative – but avoiding the risk of spreading the VIRUS was communal wisdom and an absolute necessity. Congratulations flowed in, but the party must wait. Such events helped us appreciate in a new way that sharing and caring have been at the heart of the peoples’ response to the CRISIS in dealing with the Covid virus.

We humans are called to recognize and respond to each new crisis. Health workers, families and care givers displayed self-sacrifice, commitment, compassion and love in saving thousands of lives. But tragically, and sadly, and partly due to stupidity, mistrust, blindness and greed, people have died in the thousands - by mid-June 2020, the global COVID 19 pandemic death toll is close to half a million people.

Great things have happened in our world. Our ancestors sacrificed so that we would have a better life. Today’s possibilities are far beyond their expectations. As children of the light, we are not afraid of darkness, even when it limits our vision of the way forward. Let our light shine in the darkness.

The other crisis which hopefully is on everybody’s awareness and horizon today comes from climate change and global warming. Pope Francis’ LAUDATO SI has led the way in opening our eyes to the crisis and encouraging urgent collective – and individual – responses. Our present patterns of exploiting the planet – if we continue in that direction - are propelling us towards an unstoppable disaster which will put an end to the human culture and civilization that has evolved and developed for our use, our knowledge, our enjoyment, our blessing and our happiness.

We can do it!

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