One way to define a term is to go to its opposite first. We are asking: What might be the opposite of weird?
Is it weird to tell someone in a violent marriage that they should stay married for the sake of the children? (VP candidate Vance supports that policy.) Is that as weird as calling women without children “childless cat ladies”?
Might the opposite of “weird” be Caring?
Non-caring is weird. Not caring about oneself; or not caring about others. No self-love; no other love.
Thus, not caring about the environment, about climate change, about the rising of seas and the increase in wildfires and droughts and floods and the intensity of hurricanes and warming of the oceans and fate of rainforests and millions of species the world over upon which we depend. That is weird.
And not caring about the warming of our planet that all are experiencing is weird. One entire political party in America believes in denying climate change—and apparently many Roman Catholics seem okay with turning their back on Pope Francis’ encyclical, Laudato Si. Such people are weird.
So Caring might be the opposite of weird. Another word for caring is compassion. Compassion is unweird. Caring is unweird. Giving a damn is unweird—about what counts, about the common good, about the privilege it is to be alive in this astounding universe on this astounding planet.
Giving a damn only about yourself is narcissism and narcissism is not only weird but dangerous, foolish and a sickness.
Taking stock of yourself is unweird. Self-criticism therefore. Self awareness. Would that all presidential candidates practiced self-awareness.
Honoring the dignity of others is unweird. Seeing others exclusively in the light of envy and competition is weird. But common.
I wish politicians who lose an election fair and square had the integrity and manliness to admit they have lost and move on. That’s the unweird thing to do in a democracy.
Sadly, in January of 2021, one politician was so weird and self-serving that he tried to burn down our democracy and riled up thousands of Americans to charge the nation’s capital to interfere with the electoral count rather than admit he lost an election. Millions are following him as he seeks the presidency another time.
Such an underdeveloped human being needs prayers, not votes. Sometimes weirdness and self-ignorance are dangerous to others and to democracy as a whole.
See Matthew Fox, Creation Spirituality: Liberating Gifts for the Peoples of the Earth.
And Fox, A Spirituality Named Compassion.
And Fox, Original Blessing.
And Fox, Essential Writings on Creation Spirituality.
Banner image: Caring is supporting LGBTQ+ folks. Vice presidential candidate Walz at a Twin Cities Pride Parade in 2022. Wikimedia Commons.
Queries for Contemplation
Do you know people who are in denial about climate change and its effects? And do not want to contribute to fixing it? How do you think that is possible? How do you deal with such people and help them?
Recommended Reading
Creation Spirituality: Liberating Gifts for the Peoples of the Earth
Fox’s spirituality weds the healing and liberation found in North American Creation Spirituality and in South American Liberation Theology. Creation Spirituality challenges readers of every religious and political persuasion to unite in a new vision through which we learn to honor the earth and the people who inhabit it as the gift of a good and just Creator.
“A watershed theological work that offers a common ground for religious seekers and activists of all stripes.” — Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice.
A Spirituality Named Compassion: Uniting Mystical Awareness with Social Justice
In A Spirituality Named Compassion, Matthew Fox delivers a profound exploration of the meaning and practice of compassion. Establishing a spirituality for the future that promises personal, social, and global healing, Fox marries mysticism with social justice, leading the way toward a gentler and more ecological spirituality and an acceptance of our interdependence which is the substratum of all compassionate activity.
“Well worth our deepest consideration…Puts compassion into its proper focus after centuries of neglect.” –The Catholic Register
Original Blessing: A Primer in Creation Spirituality
Matthew Fox lays out a whole new direction for Christianity—a direction that is in fact very ancient and very grounded in Jewish thinking (the fact that Jesus was a Jew is often neglected by Christian theology): the Four Paths of Creation Spirituality, the Vias Positiva, Negativa, Creativa and Transformativa in an extended and deeply developed way.
“Original Blessing makes available to the Christian world and to the human community a radical cure for all dark and derogatory views of the natural world wherever these may have originated.” –Thomas Berry, author, The Dream of the Earth; The Great Work; co-author, The Universe Story
Matthew Fox: Essential Writings on Creation Spirituality
Selected with an Introduction by Charles Burack
To encapsulate the life and work of Matthew Fox would be a daunting task for any save his colleague Dr. Charles Burack, who had the full cooperation of his subject. Fox has devoted 50 years to developing and teaching the tradition of Creation Spirituality and in doing so has reinvented forms of education and worship. His more than 40 books, translated into 78 languages, are inclusive of today’s science and world spiritual traditions and have awakened millions to the much neglected earth-based mystical tradition of the West. Essential Writings begins by exploring the influences on Fox’s life and spirituality, then presents selections from all Fox’s major works in 10 sections.
“The critical insights, the creative connections, the centrality of Matthew Fox’s writings and teaching are second to none for the radical renewal of Christianity.” ~~ Richard Rohr, OFM.
9 thoughts on “Caring: The Opposite of Weird? continued”
Maybe we should just move on from ‘weird’ and call some actions taken and some words spoken as ‘shameful’ or ‘outright lies’, whatever the case may be, and ‘call a spade a spade’. — BB.
Ignorance, racism, greed, controlling/oppressing others, unbalanced patriarchy, egocentricity, unhealthy duality have been around a long time in human history contributing to destructiveness, wars, poverty, unjust societies, misogyny, ecocide, and much human suffering… Since society is made up of individuals, we have to pray for those unhealthy lost souls, and continue maintaining our Faith in God’s Living and Present Spirit of LOVE , Truth, Peace, Justice, Healing, Freedom, Creativity, Joy, Compassion, Diverse Wholeness~ONENESS with-in our daily lives with one another, with Beautiful Sacred Mother Nature/Her living creatures/graceful abundance, and the spiritual realms….
Thank you Matthew for sharing these thoughtful reflections and for your own caring and compassion for the country and our planet.
I think Walz is absolutely correct is pointing out that we give Mr. Trump too much power with all the scare language about the end of democracy and that simply pointing out the truth to take away the impact of his lies is the way to go–without mentioning him. I think we need to have compassion towards the people who blindly follow him out of fear and find ways to alleviate those fears. Compassion includes listening honestly to what people think and fear and not putting them down but rather trying to establish a basis for relationship. Those who are following out of a desire for power might be swayed when they sense his “power” is empty.
Sue is following the real path of Christ like inspiration here.
It may be difficult and sometimes impossible but the alternative would be endless frustration and disappointment. Well said.
I remind everyone that our ex-President NEVER WON AN ELECTION. Hillary Clinton won the popular vote, but he had more electoral votes, thus was APPOINTED by the Electoral College. She graciously conceded, since that is the Law of the Land. What a concept!
Hi Matthew, What is really weird is to say that Joe Biden is a Vatican II Catholic after he endorsed sending the arms that massacred thousands in Gaza.
Thank you for this. It is the “unwierd” people who have to do the work of making a better world come about. Compassion, cooperation, the common good. Courtesy and respect, self-discipline, informed consciences. Recognition of the need for real skills in being a leader. Multicultural diversity, team-building, trying to aim at what matters and what lasts, and what is worth building. Those of us who believe in God’s creative energy and transformative energy moving through process, through evolution, toward a grace-filled future see this as a time to move forward, not back. The Not-Yet God, the Noosphere, the interdependence of humans who relish both individuality and complex cooperative efforts aim us at the future. We see the photos of that little blue marble floating in the vast blackness of space, and we have to care about the rest of humanity, and how to learn to get along in peace, in ways that will protect the planet. It feels like maybe we are heading in the right direction after all! Thank you Fr. Matt, for your deep insights and care!
“Weird” has quickly become trite, in part becuse it is applied to so many vicious behaviors. One could easily say it is “weird” for American states that refuse federal grants offered to alleviate poverty of healthcare, schooling and infrastructure. A moment’s thought could find more fitting terms, like “cynical,” “hard-hearted” and “inhumane.” In the case of states beholden to fossil fuel interests, their rejection of or harsh restrictions on renewable energy sources may be called “weird,” but more accurate terms could be “corruptly suicidal” or “deludedly irresponsible.”