Re: Refugees and refugee camps
Posted: Thu Mar 10, 2016 5:19 am
*** Also see post prior to this one for more info ***
Emotional Issues that Effect the Response to Refugees Worldwide:
1. Western issues of arrogance: feeling more entitled to a piece of God's Earth than others, 'guarding' property and borders out of a sense of lack or fear
2. Denial that emotional injuries of people who live in affluence (which are played out in policies and politics of nations) have directly caused the issues that displace people
3. Judgement towards the anger or problems of people fleeing for their lives (refugees) when a person's own condition is no better (if not worse). From God's perspective the abuser and oppressor is in far worse condition than the abused.
4. Similarly, using emotional and cultural injuries in refugees ('they are unloving, angry, violent' etc) as an excuse not to be compassionate or giving. A loving response does not tolerate unloving attitudes or actions in anyone (including ourselves) but neither does it punish or exclude those who are hurting and injured and in need. Those who wish to turn away people who they judge as violent are either prejudiced and uninformed or they lack security within themselves and lack systems within their society to respond lovingly to violence (a loving response would include restriction but not attack and further violence). A society which is secure in its humanitarian ideals would not exclude based on fear but rather respond to situations proactively based on loving principles.
5. Those who become 'righteously angry' about the suffering and plight of refugees and humanitarian concerns and act from this emotional injury are avoiding their own history of oppression, abuse or injustice. Thus they do not serve to solve the problem but rather are attempting to gain 'closure' on issues within themselves. This doesn't work well.
Emotional Issues that Effect the Response to Refugees Worldwide:
1. Western issues of arrogance: feeling more entitled to a piece of God's Earth than others, 'guarding' property and borders out of a sense of lack or fear
2. Denial that emotional injuries of people who live in affluence (which are played out in policies and politics of nations) have directly caused the issues that displace people
3. Judgement towards the anger or problems of people fleeing for their lives (refugees) when a person's own condition is no better (if not worse). From God's perspective the abuser and oppressor is in far worse condition than the abused.
4. Similarly, using emotional and cultural injuries in refugees ('they are unloving, angry, violent' etc) as an excuse not to be compassionate or giving. A loving response does not tolerate unloving attitudes or actions in anyone (including ourselves) but neither does it punish or exclude those who are hurting and injured and in need. Those who wish to turn away people who they judge as violent are either prejudiced and uninformed or they lack security within themselves and lack systems within their society to respond lovingly to violence (a loving response would include restriction but not attack and further violence). A society which is secure in its humanitarian ideals would not exclude based on fear but rather respond to situations proactively based on loving principles.
5. Those who become 'righteously angry' about the suffering and plight of refugees and humanitarian concerns and act from this emotional injury are avoiding their own history of oppression, abuse or injustice. Thus they do not serve to solve the problem but rather are attempting to gain 'closure' on issues within themselves. This doesn't work well.