After a long run of peace and prosperity in Canada, is there a seismic upheaval coming to our way of living?
Shifting
Can you feel it? Things are shifting. Canada isn’t what it was forty years ago, let alone four years ago.
We’ve had an unprecedented run of regional peace and relative prosperity for 80 years. That’s a luxury I’ve taken for granted. Our attention is on how to optimize our potential, be healthier, earn more, top up the RRSPs, invest better, or enjoy a nice holiday.
Things started to shift before the global pandemic in 2020. Russia invaded Crimea in 2014 and when left unchecked invaded Eastern Ukraine. In 2022, the first war in Europe in 80 years. escalated with Russia’s full scale invasion. Add to that war in the Middle East, a global economy on the downturn, and violent, antisemitic protests across the globe.
These and more are indications that the future likely won’t look like the recent past. But it could resemble an older past.
Maslow’s Pyramid
I’d been searching for a descriptor of what people in the West are experiencing. Matt Gurney gave me the metaphor.
Gurney, writing for The Line, related a story from his experience at the Halifax International Security Forum in December. (HFX is an independent, non-profit, non-partisan organization based in Washington, DC. HFX believes that true security is achieved only when people enjoy the benefits of democracy. Democracy leads in turn to economic prosperity and lasting peace.)
In discussing the state of the world, someone at the event observed that the West is “being evicted from Maslow’s penthouse,” a play on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, which is often visually depicted as a pyramid.
Basic survival needs constitute the bottom, widest layers, and the layers get narrower as you go up. You start with things like food and water and, as you achieve those things, you can focus on other things — love, material success, education, spiritual and emotional fulfillment, and the like.
Matt says, “After a few generations of peace, we have become very focused on and invested in furthering our success in the higher levels of the pyramids — the penthouse, in this joke. But now we’re being evicted by reality, forced to relocate to one of the lower levels — safety, security, basic needs. It’s a jarring transition, and it’s being forced upon us. An eviction, indeed.”
Comfortable
Christmas 2021 in Mariupol
Living in the West, and especially Canada, is not like life in the rest of the world. That became clear in my travels through Ukraine. I had priceless opportunities to hear the stories of women
and children whose communities were invaded and occupied by Russians. They escaped with the clothes on their backs. The lucky ones were able to take a suitcase. There are six million refugees within their own country. They live in the basement of Maslow’s pyramid. And they find a way to cope. They have a long history of coping.
If something even close to the upheaval happening in Ukraine, came to Canada, would we cope?
I’m quite comfortable with my level of comfort, thank you very much. The penthouse has a nice view of the world. Canada isn’t perfect but it’s a far cry from Mariupol in Ukraine.
And yet, just three years ago, life in Ukraine was much like ours. It would be easy to mistake Ukrainian Christmas celebrations for ones in Canada. Their streets were festive and decorated. There were carollers where now there is devastation.
Canada Tomorrow
But Canadians don’t have Russia for a neighbour. Upheaval like that could never happen here, right?
Churches in Ukraine are thriving. Three years ago, Christians were on the fringe of culture. Now, government officials and the military meet with pastors to pray and receive support. God is at work. The fulfillment of God’s purposes can be counted on at any level of Maslow’s pyramid through a humbled Church seeking to love.
What do you think the future holds for Canada?
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Very thought provoking, Bob! In Canada, we have already seen the bump, not only from the penthouse but from some of the lower levels to the bottom. More and more people are struggling to achieve even the most basic of needs. It challenges us, as the Church, to step up to be salt and light to our hurting communities.
I spotted a book in my library that I hadn’t read since the 70s, so picked it up again recently. How Should We Then Live by Francis Schaeffer.
Here is Amazon’s summary:
As one of the foremost evangelical thinkers of the twentieth century, Francis Schaeffer long pondered the fate of declining Western culture. In this brilliant book he analyzed the reasons for modern society’s state of affairs and presented the only viable alternative: living by the Christian ethic, acceptance of God’s revelation, and total affirmation of the Bible’s morals, values, and meaning.
Sounds a bit like 11Chronicles 7:14 to me …
For a more modern discussion on Public Life and the Christian ethic I might suggest reading Faith Leadership and Public Life by Preston Manning. Leadership Lessons from Moses to Jesus
Schaeffer was popular in the 70s when I attended University and Bible College. Remarkable when someone’s writing endures over decades.
Salt and light is never more needed, Glenda. There was a Christian band from 60 years ago called “The Salt Company.” I always liked that name for a band or a church. Thank you for joining the conversation.