Soul Thoughts

Faith and relevance in the 21st century

Month: October 2009

Book Review – The Depression Cure

October 30, 2009 /

Click here to buy this bookThis very good book starts by hammering home some truths that speak powerfully to our Western way of living and explain quite clearly how depression has become nothing less than an epidemic in our culture. The author, Stephen Ilardi, highlights the fact that our modern way of living is a wonderful recipe for depression. Although written primarily for a US-based audience, our very similar lifestyle in Australia makes this book particularly relevant for us too.

Some of the facts that the author points out are the following: 

  • The only American people group that hasn’t been hit by the epidemic of depression are the Amish – and we all know their slow-paced lifestyle
  • In third-world countries, the rate of depression is a fraction of that in the West. But it has begun to increase in those countries that are moving from a more traditional-based lifestyle to a more American (read Australian) one
  • Modern day hunter gatherer groups, like the Kaluli people of the PNG highlands, have almost no incidence of depression at all
  • Despite the soaring rate of antidepressant use in recent years, the rate of depression is actually increasing 

These findings reminded me of research that US psychologist Martin Seligman has done which found that the rate of depression in industrialised countries has risen tenfold since the Second World War. My dad, who lived through the war, sometimes points out to me that “we’re living all wrong”. I couldn’t agree more.

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Just Holy Hardware

October 25, 2009 /

Did you know that there is a high likelihood that some of the stuff you buy at Christian bookstores is made by child slaves? That cross you wear around your neck could be made by people in China who are paid no more than 11 cents per hour.

just-holy-buttonClearly, such working conditions are a stench in the nostrils of a God of justice and love. The Justice & International Mission Unit of the Uniting Church in Victoria and Tasmania (JIM), among others, have started a campaign called Just Holy Hardware which calls for “Christian communities, retailers and suppliers [to]…work together to try to ensure that the fundamental human dignity of those who make Christian-related products are respected”.

So far,  Central Catholic Bookstore and UniChurch Books are involved in the campaign, and just recently, Koorong have agreed to meet with the JIM unit. However, Word have not responded to several attempts to start a conversation about this issue.

This concern has arisen because Word sells a variety of products made in China, and other countries, where there are documented cases of human rights abuses of workers.

The campaign recognises that, just because a product is made in China doesn’t mean it has been made by slave labour, but without investigation we don’t know. In today’s global village, ignorance can no longer be an excuse, at least not for very long.

Click on the logo in this post to learn more and send a message to Word to get in on the act, especially as Christmas approaches and sales, and therefore possible abuses, increase.

Today is the day

October 24, 2009 /

The International Day of Climate Action has finally arrived. Join with millions around the world to show our leaders, particularly in the lead up to Copenhagen, that now is the time to put a serious deal in place that will protect our children. check out the following video for some inspiration:

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One planet, one people

October 16, 2009 /

I was recently at a training day where several ‘stations’ were set up, much in the tradition of the stations of the cross in the Catholic Church. One of the stations had a video showing of this guy called Matt who goes around the world being filmed simply dancing. Of all the stations I went to that morning, and all the reflecting I did, this one had the most impact on me. Although, looking at Matt’s website, it seems as though he is just doing this because he loves to travel, for me the following video speaks of something deeper. Through his dancing exploits around the world, he is bringing people together and releasing a sense of joy.

There is something about joyful dance that makes the spirit come alive. King David danced for joy, and for millennia it has been an expression of exuberant pleasure. What this video reminded me of was the fact that whoever and wherever we are, from the sights and smells of Jerusalem to the nearby occupied West Bank, to the wartorn mountains of Afghanistan, to the shopping malls of western suburbia, we are one people, living on one planet. We are all children of God; as Bono put it, “Jesus, Jew Muhammad. It’s true – all sons of Abraham.” Enjoy.

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Climate change and the world's poor

October 14, 2009 /

As we count down to Copenhagen, we have recently been told here in Australia that climate change has slipped down a few rungs in terms of priorities for us. I find that quite frightening. Whilst it is understandable that people are still concerned about the global financial crisis and the recent rise in interest rates, we face an inevitable, much larger, financial crisis if we do not become serious about what Kevin Rudd has called the great moral challenge of our time.

Unfortunately, as is often the case in issues of justice and human actions, it is the world’s poor who will be overwhelmingly affected by the changes to the planet’s climate over the next 50 – 100 years. As my colleague, Brett Parris, says,

“They are least able to protect themselves from its effects and they are least able to recover from climatic disasters. They tend to live in the most vulnerable areas, such as low-lying land prone to flooding, or marginal agricultural land prone to drought. They are the most vulnerable to the spread of tropical diseases. They are more likely to have to leave their homes in search of water or to escape flooding. They are the most vulnerable to the effects of the conflicts likely to arise from international tensions over water, energy and displaced people. Climate change will exacerbate poverty and the solutions proposed to help mitigate and adapt to climate change will affect the trajectory of every country’s future development.”

Fortunately though, there are plenty of ordinary people like you and me who are taking serious action in their local communities and online, in actions like Blog Action Day, to deal with this great moral challenge. Join them today and ensure you can look your grandkids in the eye when they ask you what you did to combat the major threat to our planet in the early years of this century.

Power of a lyric – Brilliant Disguise

October 8, 2009 /

‘Is it me baby, or just a brilliant disguise?’ – Bruce Springsteen, Brilliant Disguise

Photo by Nathan GreyThis one is all about integrity. We can fool many people with the masks we wear, even ourselves if we take the delusion far enough. If we fool others, we may say that no one is going to know. But that is not true. You will know, and you have to live with that. Everywhere we go we have to take ourselves with us. Keith Green sang many years ago that you can run to the end of the highway and not find what you’re looking for. People in 12 Step programs call it a geographical. The Pretenders also sang ‘let me inside you, into your room. I hear it’s lined with the things you don’t show’. Beautiful words of acceptance, love and the invitation to come in and be friends.

Such is the offer of Jesus. To broken people like us he says take off your masks and come and be healed. Jesus’ harshest words were for the hypocrites of his day, those who wore the masks and made out that they were far more holy than they really were. But Jesus saw right through them. He didn’t have time for their games. He sees right through us and wants to cut straight through the rubbish to the deepest parts of our soul, those parts where we often put on a brilliant disguise to hide our true selves, lest people find out what we are really like and reject us.

Who do you project to the world? Is the you that you project the real you? If not, what do we have to hide? What is the fear that underlies our hiding? When Jesus said he came to give us life he meant what he said. Soren Kirkegaard spoke of the leap of faith that everyone must make. If we take that leap of faith we will find that Jesus is waiting with outstretched arms.

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