On integrity

The floods in Queensland... What can I possibly tell you that you wouldn’t have already seen in a news broadcast somewhere or maybe even experienced personally? Well, the thing most people have been commenting on is about the great assistance that is being provided not just monetarily but also in physical labour. People have been impressed with the overwhelming assistance absolute strangers are lending each other following the devastation from the floods. These aren’t just emergency personnel or paid workers, but just random other people from everywhere and anywhere who have been moved to lend a hand. Why is this such a newsworthy observation? Why is it that to share human compassion, to empathise, to feel compelled to “do good” such a novel thing?

It’s a novel thing because it is not a common occurrence in this world. It’s not a common occurrence in this or any other nation or town. I guess you could say it should be because it seems like such a logically human thing to do, but the truth is that as a humanity we rarely allow ourselves the opportunity to act humanely. In an earlier post I’ve already discussed how things like consumerism and the personalisation of everything have contributed to our drift away from behaving traditionally human, i.e. the things that impress us now when we observe it: selflessness, compassion, personal sacrifice, etc.

I remember reading in Mark DeMoss’ book ‘The Little Red Book of Wisdom’ about this thing called integrity. It says, “Integrity is not what we do when it serves us. It is who we are in the dark and how we treat people who we cannot benefit from”. It’s most probably a reworking of another quote, but the idea is the same. James D. Miles, for example, said “You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him”. So what is it about this thing called integrity, this human character? Well, the thing is during many natural disasters, during war-time devastation, and during political or social unrest there have been acts worse than the initial assaults observed: people looting, stealing, taking advantage of the lawless state and taking advantage of their peers’ vulnerability. It doesn’t just happen sometimes, it happens all the time without a doubt, and it’s always sad to see.

I think big congratulations should go out to ALL the people who lent their assistance in the post-flood clean up, both paid and unpaid workers. Money could not compensate enough even those who received salaried payments for their bit in the rebuilding. I know the council road workers, those working for the electricity companies, cleaners, retailers and many more people who are at times described as having “menial” jobs have really put an incredible effort in, beyond description, often working around the clock when they could have just as easily gone home to their families to be comforted. To me, that is integrity; that is a great character trait. Don’t get me wrong, though, those that did go home to their families to provide for them, to comfort them, to assist them personally are equally virtuous because I can’t imagine any of them having gone home in cowardice when they had their children and families to tend to. A big thank you and big congratulations to all those that assisted in one way or another.

“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great...” – Luke 6:32-36.