Do you find yourself tripping over your words more than usual lately in the effort to appear politically correct? This past Christmas season, more than in previous years, I have been especially aware of the awkward ‘holiday’ jargon. To me, it is obvious that we belong to a society whose members are so fearful of stepping on toes that they often do not step out at all.
This past spring, I spent a month working in the shantytowns of Peru with the Canadian Catholic Student’s Association (CCSA). While there, we had the chance to work with the Christian Life movement, a spiritual family founded by a priest named Luis Fernando Figari, about 30 years ago. On one particular evening our group of 60 university students from all over Canada had the chance to hear Fr. Luis Fernando speak. I will never forget this meeting. At the beginning of his talk, Fr. Luis Fernando warned us that many of us Canadians would find him abrasive and some of us would be offended. Luis Fernando then proceeded to speak at length on all the ‘hot topics’ such as abortion and pro-life issues, ‘state-driven’ degradation of marriage, and materialism. He told us that we were headed toward destruction if we continued to create our own truths (i.e. defining where life begins, redefining the covenant of marriage). Figari entreated that because God's ways are so above the ways of humanity, we must not lean only on our own understanding. Fr,. Luis Fernando was right. Many people were offended and some people walked out. On the bus on the way back to our lodgings, I remember hearing people protest that there were too many exceptions to his absolute ideologies or that Figari obviously did not understand the multi-cultural reality in Canada.
When I think about the conundrum of political correctness, I think about a verse from John: “If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples , and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32 ). This freedom that Jesus speaks of does not suggest an obsessive fear of insulting people. We learn from the scriptures that while on earth Jesus used tact, but He was far from what we would call politically correct. If we follow Jesus, He promises that sin will not lay a claim on us. In this spirit of obedience to God, we are not promised popularity but we are promised peace for living in the Word. This is not to say of course that we should become blunt or ignorant, but we should not live in a country where we are frightened to fully embrace the faith of our ancestors. Lingo will continue evolving, and our children will frown at the ‘correct’ terminologies of our time, but Jesus, the source of our salvation and the realities of His Church, will not change.
I often reflect that the people who have most radically changed the world for the better; these unanimously exalted individuals throughout history were not politically correct people. In fact, the most admired of the world’s heroes defended their beliefs sometimes to the point of death. It is becoming clear to me that becoming bold does not mean becoming reckless, but it does mean reconsidering who it is that we live to please. Let us not be afraid!
“ You will arraigned before governors and kings because of me, as a witness before them. But the gospel must first be preached to all nations. When they lead you away and hand you over, do not worry beforehand about what you are to say. But say whatever will be given to you at that hour.” (Mark 13: 9-11)
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