"On the road to vengeance...one discovers life (Andre Malraux)."
REFLECTIONS/QUESTIONS: We began by imagining what makes evil people like Katis, the Greek communist "judge" who sentenced Eleni to death, tick. How do they come to be? Ideology of whatever stripe seems to curtail our humanity because we have to choose between a humane response and a cause. Katis was a "true believer" in that he truly believed that what he was doing was right. True believers act boldly yet sadly without considering their very real human context. Paul gave an example of when as a fundamentalist he betrayed his friend's petition for church membership because he believed his friend wasn't pure enough in his belief. The conversation moved even closer to home when Paul suggested that all of us have something we hold dear or believe passionately about. The line between passion and oppression seems so fine. How can we have the courage of conviction without imposing our values on others? Is there a difference between values or principles and a "cause"?
Bev noted that Eleni, who confronted her oppressors with her truth, should not be taken as a statement on motherhood but on what happens in rare individuals. We then talked about how all the lesser "devils" in the story must have fared, perhaps haunted by their guilt. All those soldiers who shot neighbors and the neighbors who betrayed friends. Because of their fear, they gave up their integrity for security - a common occurrence. Yet if everyone had said "no" like Eleni and the dwarf-like woman, perhaps the revolution would have been short-lived.
In our own circles, we see situations of "selling out" daily, both on the news and in our offices and workplaces. Bev talked about how her office managers planned painting during working hours. Several workers became sick from the fumes, one even was hospitalized. Although her colleagues complained bitterly amongst themselves, no one had the courage to "vote with their feet". What is it that encourages or motivates individuals to choose integrity over compromised security?
The story of Cornerstone (Watershed Community's former incarnation as a Mennonite church) is an interesting case in point. For several years we basically knew we were not cut out to be a institutional church, either socially or theologically. Yet we didn't leave until we were virtually forced out by the "mother" church's intolerance of Paul's divorce. Merely knowing where our values lie intellectually is not enough for courageous action.
We moved the discussion from courage to grace. Was Nick motivated by grace (or forgiveness) when he refused to kill Katis? Or was it only a kind of humane pragmatism, not wanting to baptize the granddaughter with the same haunting he had? We seemed to agree that we could not judge Nick's actions. Perhaps if Nick had followed through with his killing plan, justice would have been equally served from another perspective. As it happened, Nick felt he could begin to accept his mother's love without avenging her murder, and to pass it on as best he could to his family.
We talked about places of existential, moral ambiguity. A conflicted parent-child relationship, when we realize that the love we deserve from a parent will never occur. Or when we will never reach that educational goal we set out to attain. Or when reconciliation with others who have wronged us in the past will never happen. How can accept this lack of closure? Is it even possible? These realizations need not promote a victim stance, but can be acknowledgements of deep sorrow and ambiguity. Eldon suggested that perhaps we can't understand grace or mercy until we experience moments that lack this needed gift. At the same time, aspects of non-grace in our lives create tensions within us that simply may not be resolved in this lifetime. From this perspective, how do we respond when we become aware of having "sold out" on being fully human?
An interesting angle came up when Paul talked about the "statute of limitations" mentioned in the movie. (Greek Civil War criminals were absolved if not prosecuted and convicted within 30 years.) Existentially, there seems to be none. He asked: Are we who we are right now, or are we the sum of all the actions of our lives? In other words, what would it look like if we fully realized that we're carrying all the baggage that has been caused by all the poor decisions we've made during our lifetime? What difference would it make, in terms of how I act and respond to people, to see myself as my whole life - past, present and future?