Pray the News » Helen Robinson

A desolate statistic and reality

Denis — Sat, 04 Jun 2011 16:00:44 +0000

How much suffering is too much suffering? 1 in 5 New Zealand young people are suffering the long term affects of a ‘woefully deficient’ mental health system.

And in the face of such a desolate statistic and reality , a tentative sense of hope is created at the very fact that this report was asked for. We only ask for information when we know there is a problem and are generally ready to hear the answer.

That there is a problem is clear. Are we ready to engage, however, with the difficult tensions that must be held to find a way through to stop this suffering? That is a whole other question.

That makes me most anxious is seeing the report measure suffering against economic viability. How much money is well being worth? How much is the alleviation of suffering worth? Are we really so lost or morally deficient that economic viability is the only factor we consider?

Where is our dignity?

How much must our young ones suffer before we say enough is enough.

A child and a cellphone: The call to conversion

Denis — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 07:18:07 +0000

Bullying is not news. It’s not new or out of the ordinary, no recent stats have been released, no expert analysis published. Its not even that unusual. Ask any group of young people and they will tell you just how common it is. (As will any research document) Yet this week the power of the cellphone as a recording device (plus the Internet as its publication forum) has unleashed a storm which has thankfully reached the Prime Minister.

I don’t know why we can’t see the horrific levels of violence that pervade every part of our society. Or why we refuse to acknowledge just how vulnerable the vulnerable are. I don’t know why when faced with violence we refuse to see the complexity of the situation and become vitriolic and determined to blame. I don’t know why we can’t see that that kind of response simply echoes and perpetuates the very violence it rages against.

I do know that through the recording of the incident with Sydney based Casey Heynes a response of outrage and clarity has occurred. Our common humanity has been sparked. The violence is wrong. Deadly wrong.

And I suspect, addressing this issue as John Key is requesting, will call us all, not just the punch throwers to conversion. So I agree John Key, lets talk. At least its a start.

And thank you Child with the Cellphone for helping us see. I pray we will have the courage to respond.

God is in the suffering????

Denis — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 08:09:12 +0000

God is in the suffering????

Who in Cambodia wins? What was achieved by the Khmer Rouge? What end was served by the death of 1.7 million people during the Khmer Rouge Campaign? What point is there ever in such suffering? At such a horrific level? The horror, terror, death and destruction is so widespread and simply so bad, I cannot make sense of it.

The suffering is hard ( but yet possible?) to ignore.

And now, what is achieved by an International Court Process that tries and sentences key figures in the Khmer Rouge Campaign? What will 30 years in prison for this man do? What will this sentence do to the 1.7 million dead? Or to the many others who suffered through imprisonment, interrogation, torture, deprivation..to name a few of the tools of this regime? Will it alleviate the suffering? Will it provide some symbolic form of a bandage to a wound that seems so deep it becomes unfathomable?

I cannot make sense of it. I want to. And I feel that as a person who seeks (and perhaps claims?) to live by the Gospel, surely there is a message of something here?

And all I see is the suffering. And perhaps that is all we must see.

God where are you in this?
Are you anywhere in this?
Are you in the suffering?

The perspective of the poor

Denis — Mon, 24 May 2010 08:39:53 +0000

Arguments over the consequences of the GST hike abound. As a relatively intelligent observer I have found it nearly impossible to see the wood for the trees on the issue to figure out what the consequences really will be. I long for a society that has as its starting point the perspective of the poor. Where decisions are critiqued against the impact they will have on our most vulnerable. Mr Harawira’s stand feels like a complex game of chess. He disagrees, but ultimately will sign off on the budget anyway. Set against a context of his party that is unhappy with the GST rise but will acquiesce to ensure bigger issues are won. I cannot determine his motivations in this scenario and am left wondering what is really going on. But at least he is saying something about the poor…right or wrong as it may be.

I do know I want more voices speaking at this level and every level about the poor . Consistent, reasonable, clear voices. Reflecting on Mr Harawira’s response does cause me wonder about my decisions and how much I consider the impact they have on my ‘neighbour’, and especially the poor. And it makes me wonder how often I speak what needs to be said in the care of those who are poor.

I pray for us all, for eyes to see and mouths to speak.

Simply put – we must do something

Denis — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 06:49:28 +0000

How do we measure the efficacy of a social marketing campaign? Could money be spent more wisely in this area? And perhaps most importantly what values inform those decisions? Violence only harms. That is a fact. How we respond, still remains the question. What we do know, put simply, is that we must do something.Violence against those physically and systemically vulnerable is a very human story. Its occurence across all cultures and its commonality everywhere speaks of a disorder that it deep in our human soul. How do we as a people attend to such disorder? And how do we make decisions about the use of common resources? It is all too easy to condemn the decision made to stop funding the ‘It’s not OK’ campaign. And perhaps it should be condemned. Given the prevlance and long history of silence around domestic violence (and the knowledge that this sustains its existence) it seems senseless. The urge to protect the vulnerable and to do so in the name of God resides deep within. However, the second glance tells me it is not as simple as that. Who is making the decision to cut funding? Based on what criteria? What other realitlies are they juggling? How transparent are those decisions? And how are they accountable?

Compassion or Mercy or Truth?

Denis — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 01:27:54 +0000

This story has all the hallmarks of a great scandal; the cop, the prostitute, the courtroom. Sex, power, public office, corruption. Yet the vilification of the individuals involved, particularly of the police officer and less so the prostitute sits uncomfortably with me. There is a striking similarity with this story and the old Biblical story of the woman caught in adultery.

Some may argue that the publication and shaming of the individuals here has a public interest incentive to stop such acts of corruption. While there may be some truth in this, I cannot help but think the telling of this story is more about pointing the finger towards the ‘bad’ and ‘shameful’ individuals and away from ourselves. It denies the truth that the abuse of power often channelled sexually is endemic in our society even in the so called ‘ clean, green paradise ‘ of New Zealand. And while it effects all, it cannot be denied it is also a deeply gendered story. The female character, vulnerable at the outset made more vulnerable. And how? By the use of sex. An old, old story

I am left then with a question. How to respond? And I am not sure I know. The issues here are many and complex and at times competing. I do know that shame and shaming never brings life – not for the giver or the receiver. I wonder what Compassion would say? Or Mercy? or Truth? I wonder what the ‘woman caught in adultery’ would say, had she been the lead reporter of this story? Certainly, that I will never know, but it does make me think.