Protagonist or Not

YouTube recommended a video of an interview with Brian McLaren, a Christian pastor and author. He's a naughty boy in the evangelical scene, a heretic for his social and theological views. I enjoy hearing his alternative ideas.

In this video, he was talking about taking action to make the world a better place. He said there are two opposite forms of apathy. One is nihilism, where one says "what's the point" and does nothing. The other is wishful thinking, where one believes everything works out in the end and does nothing. He said that we need to remember we are the protagonist in our life and should take action.

The Christian world view is one of salvation. The world needs to be saved and we are the ones called to do it. This idea has led to good and bad events. It spurred the creation of hospitals, but also gave us the Inquisition. McLaren put forth the challenge that we need more respect for nature and neighbor. He thinks we need to hold the fossil fuel industry more responsible for the current state of the climate and use our vote to elect people that will require change. He also thinks we need to develop more empathy towards all people, not just the ones we agree with.

I mentioned in a previous post that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Every action we take has both intended and unintended consequences. We can try to legislate energy reform through tax and regulation, but that leads to added costs for families and potential job loss to less expensive geographies. We can support the Palestinians and alienate the Israelies or we can support the Israelies and alienate the Palestinians. In the comment section of the video, some folks called McLaren anti-semetic for comments he's made about thr Gaza situation. 

Over my past deconstruction period, I've been more in the nihilist camp. I've watched fellow deconstructionists change their minds and go from fundamentalist right-wingers to fundamentalist left-wingers, keeping the same level of emotional certainty. I don't want to get fooled again into joining another dogmatic group. So I tend to sit in the "what's the point" state of mind. If I was told by one group they had the right answers and were wrong, why should I assume another group claiming to have all the answers isn't also wrong?

In Hinduism and Buddhism, the world is seen as "maya" or an illusion. A cosmic drama that feels real but isn't. These faiths claim the goal is to wake up, to not be hypnotized by the story. Rather than embrace your role as a protagonist, they would say to remember that you're an actor, not a character. Watch the story unfold, but don't lose yourself to it.

There's a certain peacefulness about this idea. Rather than get hijacked by emotions to the point of anger, fear and despair, one can remain calm and collected, knowing ultimately everything is fine, has been fine and will be fine.

I think I'd like to fall somewhere in the middle. I don't like the idea of being obligated to do things out of guilt. If maya is true, then we don't need to take things too seriously. But we can still choose to help shape what kind of story is being told. We can practice our acting craft with skill and make it a good drama to watch.