This is from a book I am reading by Elie Wiesel. It is dedicated to someone who watched his brother turn his back on suffering. This is a story that goes back to Cain and Abel. When will we humans ever learn?
"He did nothing to console his brother, to cheer him up or appease him. He who was responsible for Cain's sorrow did nothing to help him. He regretted nothing, said nothing. He simply was not there, he was present without being present. No doubt he was dreaming of better worlds, of holy things. Cain spoke to him and he did not listen. Or else he listened but did not hear. Therein lay his guilt. In the face of suffering, one has no right to turn away, not to see. In the face of injustice, one may not look the other way. When someone suffers, and it is not you, he comes first."
p. 57 'Messengers of God'
How would you apply this thought to those who are suffering through unemployment?
ReplyDeleteDo you provide help to the unemployed? Or do you forsake them under a banner of budget cutting?
Do you console the unemployed? Or do you turn away with a misery grasp and regret nothing?
I fear that humans continue to refuse to learn and continue to turn away from suffering.