Watch this excellent video from Verge Science
We are all in this world together, we are collectively God’s child, made in his image.
Yet we are broken with defective wills, we are in a word lamentable. We do terrible things to each other and destroy the world around us.
But we are not living in a black and white world governed by the terms of expressive individualism or moral agnosticism. There is right and wrong, there is good and evil.
But because we ALL are broken that evil runs through the middle of EACH of us.
Humanism is a failure as have been other intellectual attempts at perfecting Man.
One such failing has been our Consumerism. The false belief that having more things will make us happy. Of course, we all know or should at some point that the novelty wears off and we repeat the cycle over and over to no avail, filling our homes with junk.
Our responsibility to other people even to those around the world is greater than we think or care to acknowledge.
A flourishing religious community is at the heart of a world/society that flourishes. This is historically evident throughout human history. Theologian Miroslav Volf points to the Hebrew Bible via the words of Moses: “One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord” (22). Globalization then is another IDOL tempting humanity to “live by bread alone”; whereas world religions remind humanity of the transcendent reality operating behind the scenes, the ultimate reality.
Ethical manufacturing and Sustainable procurement have in recent years helped to address some of
Ethical Manufacturing attempts to make commerce more equitable through consumer activism based on dollar voting. Which means that there is intentional buying of ethically-made products that will support small scale manufacturers and local artisans while protecting animals and the environment, and boycott' products that exploit children as workers, are tested on animals, or damage the environment.
Sustainable Procurement is a spending/investment is typically associated with public policy and is also applicable to the private sector. Organizations practicing sustainable procurement meet their needs for goods, services, utilities and works not thru private cost–benefit analysis, but with a view to maximizing net benefits for themselves and the wider world
There are a number of Ethical manufacturing / Sustainability certification standards and organization out there, such as Green circle, World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO), Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production (WRAP), Fairtrade International, Flocert, Ecocert, Fairwear Foundation, Rainforest Alliance, Goodweave, Social Accountability International (SAI), Global Organic Textiles Standard, Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit (SMETA), etc.
Flourishing runs against the grain of human nature. Humanity is tribal, self-deceptive, and self- righteous-minded. Flourishing tells us to remember our shared humanity. In that respect, Volf has crafted Flourishing to echo a central message of the world religions. What remains unsaid, and arguably equally important to consider, is how to confront the long list of religious groups currently wielding religion as a sword and making the job of the New Atheists a lot easier.
So, we come to our Cell Phones. We are all addicted it seems to theses devices and we always need the latest model, or so we think. This video points out how connected we really are and how our greed and wants for more can results in our death or illness not to mention the well being of the people across the world trying to survive by fulfilling our needs.
This all takes place in the Republic of the Congo. How can you help these people you ask? Well first do not go out and buy the next great cell phone if the one you have is still working well. Another way is to support product that are part of the Ethical and Sustainable procurement movements. And you can donate to CongoAction or many others that help your fellow man in that part of the world.
Be Christ-like in all that you do!