Editor's Desk — January/February 2012

By Fr. Guy Pilote, C.Ss.R.

The End of the World in 2012?

We all know that at the scale of the Universe, our beautiful and wonderful planet is only a piece of dust. But from our vantage point, it is enormous! And so many things are happening on it; we can find a little bit of everything - from the best to the worst. If you travel to Buenos-Aires, Tokyo, Moscow, Reikjavik or Port-au-Prince, you will get the impression that you are visiting just as many different planets. Everything seems to divide us; while it is the middle of winter here, it is beautiful summer in the Southern Hemisphere. We even dress, eat, speak, think, and celebrate differently; everything appears strange to us. And yet, we have many things in common: we are all human beings with similar feelings, desires, needs, strengths, weaknesses, and passions, and we can all live our lives for the better or for the worst. We even ask the same basic questions - even when our realities differ.

The twentieth century has made major population movements possible and effortless, either through tourism or immigration, which have brought about entirely new situations. Thus, all major cities are becoming “cosmopolitan”: places of discovery and enrichment, where new ideas are shared; but they are also, in the worst of scenarios, places of confrontation, bitter rivalry, and ghettos.

There is a lot of learning to be done that will require an open mind and heart, and a genuine desire to build a new sense of fraternity, while bridging the language and cultural gaps to see others for who they really are — son, daughter, father, brother, or sister — true gifts from heaven.

The means of communication at our disposal allow us to visit, at least “virtually”, all the countries in the world and to discover just as many enchantments and wonders. They especially allow us to get in touch with individuals and create relationships that enrich us, as we discover what we can do to quietly lay the foundations of a new world that will improve our way of life.

You might say, “Changing the world is not within our reach.” I agree that I have no control over the world or others, but I do have control over myself. In fact, I am the only one who does. And, if I become a better person, the world will surely gain something from it. I am well aware that this is nothing new, but what would be new and interesting is if we actually got down to it and put it into pratice… Maybe, it would be the beginning of the end of a certain world… as we lay a single stone and help build the Kingdom for which Jesus gave His life.