Will we ever learn?

By circumstances, I joined a WhatsApp forum of people in a home owner association group. The members come from different backgrounds and nationalities, hence different languages.

At the beginning of the conversations, the focus was towards uniting efforts to stand against an exorbitant amount of service charges that the management was going to impose in the near future.

The number of members jumped from a handful to more than 200 in just a few days, thus achieving the main purpose of the group; getting as many members as possible.

When we all seemed to be on the same page, one of the members suggested that all communication should be in English, so every one understands what is going on. Another member told her that they should use a local language and she can use Google translate to follow the discussions. This did not go well with her and a few others, so a storm of languages started brewing. Before it turned into a calamity, the two groups were separated into their language of preference group. Consultations continued on both fora while new members kept joining.

Once most were settled, and while covering details of their grievances against the management, the issue of a place of worship came up. Someone had opened a Pandora box! And before long, another feud started between two members, tones changed and language became harsh. Again someone had to intervene and guide the consultation back to the main objectives of the group.

This experience was not new. I have witnessed many times how aggressive and unkind we can become towards one another; ethnic clashes, religious wars and other man-made conflicts are but a few examples of how a brother turned against his sibling because of religious beliefs.

While the holy scriptures seemed not to help the situation any longer, I thought the new teacher by the name of Coronavirus- that has brought the world to its knees- would be a reminder that we are all hanging by a thread. And we may fall at any given time!

I am not so pessimistic, there are a few who are seeing things a bit differently because of this pandemic. For many, its business as usual but what would it take to make that fundamental change? It is up to you to investigate the truth.