Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Common Good.


A friend posted an article about a recent chemical spill in West Virginia.[1]  It got me thinking about what is the common good?  

Perhaps our political will for the common good of society is best articulated in the Preamble to the Constitution:

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence,[2] promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.


We all benefit from shared common good efforts.  For example, no matter how fast your car can go, without paved roads, you not going very fast or at all.  So paved roads, police and fire departments, education systems, military, parks and libraries are some of the common efforts our society has valued for the shared common good.  To maintain what benefits all citizens takes shared costs, planning and the will to make a difference. 

Years ago I was visiting one of my favorite zoos, Brookfield Zoo in the Chicago area.[3] Speaking of common good the Chicago Zoological Society is a private nonprofit organization that operates Brookfield Zoo on land owned by the Forest Preserves of Cook County.  But I digress.  Among some new displays at the Zoo was a nest of South American roaches.  I took one look and said, “No one can contain roaches!”  Visiting the Zoo several months later, I was not surprised to see these same roaches in the Primate House.  Good news, the monkeys were eating them.

Whether it is a tiger in Indian, oilspill in the Gulf or roaches in Brookfield, we need to know that for the common good we must realize that all our best efforts to contain dangerous and destructive forces will fail.  Containment needs to be made while plans for restoration are put in place when containment fails.  Such plans require a common effort of all parties involved. The storage facility in West Virginia had not been inspected for 22 years.  Not a good choice for the common good.

Our society also has a deeply engrained value of individualism.  Such value is also found in our foundational documents such as the Declaration of Independence:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

My individual pursuit of happiness may not include exploring a national park or cleaning up a chemical spill in West Virginia or even driving a car, but I understand that my communal bonds require sacrifice for the common good of the whole of my society of which I am a vital part, as are all people.  

The need for support of the common good is also a strong Biblical value.[4]

The prophet Mica wrote:
“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” 6:8

The early church found value in the common good: “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need.” Acts 2:42-45

Jesus said, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.” John 13:34

Individual life, liberty and happiness are vital to a free society but never at the cost of the common good.  Balance between these two often competing values must be struck.  I think this is also true of our private life.  I think we all have a bit of Gollum[5] in our desires, “I wants it!” is not enough to thwart the shared value of our common good.  I am grateful for paved roads, running water, soldiers in our military and teachers in our schools.  I live move and have my being in a world designed by our Creator to provide us all that we need as long as we share with one another.

I dedicate this blog to all those who sacrifice so much that we would have a common good to share.
Blessings, Linda




[2] In the hand-written engrossed copy of the Constitution maintained in the National Archives, the British spelling "defence" is used in the preamble (See the National Archives transcription and the Archives' image of the engrossed document. Retrieved both web pages on October 24, 2009.)  For more see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preamble_to_the_United_States_Constitution

[5] Character from Lord of Rings

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