Fr. Richard Ho LungWE ARE in a period of darkness. No doubt, a new light will shine. But for now, it's as if we are in a dark tunnel with no sight of light ahead. Yet my heart is filled with hope. But that's because in the 1970s I confronted the meaninglessness of modern culture. Both in the United States and in Jamaica, I had been through the lawlessness, the immorality, and the senseless rhetoric.
The sexual revolution, the call of freedom against all restraint, the anti-war protest against the Vietnam war, the murder of Martin Luther King Jr., John F. Kennedy and Robert Kennedy, the attempted assassination of Pope John Paul II; the acceptance of nudity, gambling, lewd lyrics and movies, the flirtation with communism, the liberalism of capitalism, endless wars, the total rejection of God, authority and the soul as realities.
Today death seems like a sumptuous escape from the realities and responsibilities of life, thus the emergence of abortion, euthanasia, assisted suicide and war. The endless blood and violence of TV, movies and music have driven people to enjoy cruelty, hatred, vengeance, and the excitement of viewing and even experiencing the murder or the most daring and wicked of acts which place people on the razor edge of life.
Loosing God, we have lost the author of life, and the life itself. Bringing forth children more than two is considered ridiculous. Sacrificing our lives for others is foolishness in the eyes of the world. The weak, the sick, the elderly, the child in a woman's womb are considered a hindrance to progress in our personal lives. A period of selfishness, the totality of pleasure, much money - lots of it - is the purpose of life, the total freedom without restraint in pursuing personal ambition, individualism and personal rights above everybody else's is the call of the day.
When we look at what is considered progress in our times, we cannot help but wonder if the arrival of the principle of "survival of the fittest" and the implied reality of the destruction of all others - in pursuit of personal goals - is not what modern life is all about.
Jamaica is not exempt from the shadow of darkness that is covering our world. We have not done a critique of our times. Everyone seems to be hurling themselves forward into our modern world - which is unconsciously lives in a culture of death. Even drugs and sex are narcotics against the nourishment of life.
I left behind money, power, prestige, and position in modern society and even in the Church. Jesus was my Saviour, the words of Christ called me. In my imagination and prayer, I saw Christ among the sick, the dying, the cripples, the blind, the deaf, the hungry, the naked - giving his life, sharing his life, bringing light and life to those who were so close to death, and moreover, promising eternal life to us even after we pass away from this world.
The brothers, all these brothers from all parts of the world - East and West, young men, enthusiastic men - the Missionaries of the Poor - have come to Jamaica to follow the light which is Christ Himself. They are here in our island but also on missions in Africa, The Philippines, Haiti, and India. They carry the light of Christ, and the hope of eternal life to those who lived in despair.
Whereas our work centers on Christ and the most forgotten of people, we want this light, this spirit of sacrifice, selflessness and service to infuse politics, church business, education and family life - all areas of life - then there will be life and light once again. In the meanwhile we seem incarcerated in the culture of death. But I see a light-and I want to share it, not only with the Missionaries of the Poor and our friends but also with all men and women - so that as our modern culture of death fades, a new light be seen.
The Very Rev. Fr. Richard Ho Lung, is Founder & Superior General of The Missionaries of the Poor.
