February 2006

Western Development vs the Orthodox Church

I am really glad that we read Erich Fromm's Escape from Freedom before I came here. So many Western development agencies assume that democracy and 'freedom' are basic human desires. But, according to Fromm and real world examples (Iraq, Romania), humans flea from responsibility, from the chaos of 'people ruled' government. That's what I really appreciate about this organization -- NH doesn't assume that values needed for democracy are intrinsic in the Romanian people. Communism pretty much destroyed Romania's moral education and social capital is non-existent. So, through service learning projects and basic moral and ethical teachings (love your neighbor as yourself, respect one another, work together, don't steal, cheat, lie), NH is attempting to get kids off their ass and do something about their situation! And that's hard, exciting work.

Of course, all of this is making me think a lot about the way Romanians view the Self (before, during, and after Communism). It seems that the only thing that really gives anyone any sense of purpose here is cheating their way out of responsibility, doing as little work as possible, and drinking a lot. It's almost a cultural pathology...which I guess is controversial to say. But yet, the Orthodox Church has remained one of the only social institutions that Romanians trust. They are a highly religious people....so it would seem that the Church could be harnessed to provide a moral education for its parishioners. However, the Church hasn't played a prophetic role in society for a long, long time. I find the Orthodox Church fascinating nonetheless and really think that their theology (human containing potential for good rather than human as depraved animal) can be used to bring about change!

Visiting an Orphanage

Many of you probably associate the word 'orphan' or 'street child' with Romania because of the media coverage of the early 90s. State-run orphanages at that point were hell holes, institutions holding far too many kids with too few resources. Many of the children were confined to dark, dirty basements for most of the year with no sunlight and meager food. Most had major vitamin deficiencies. Plenty of reform has happened since then and many state-run institutions have turned private. The one we visited is run by a Baptist church and held 20 children under the supervision of 4 or so adults. The place was clean and safe and the children seemed happy and well-fed. You could tell, of course, that these children had had their share of difficulties in their lives. Many of them were underweight for their ages. Two of the smallest children (I guessed 4 and 5) were actually 8 and 9. I was shocked. Many of them were Roma (Gypsy) children who automatically face greater challenges in their lives just for being Roma. We played games with the kids for a while and brought them oranges and held their hands. Those who've been so deprived of touch, of basic human affection, want nothing more than to interact physically with those willing. These kids were itching to touch and be touched, even by a stranger. How vulnerable they are to exploitation! How open they are to human love and compassion!

Communicating Cross-culturally

Tomorrow I am helping lead a required seminar for all staff called "Leveraging Traditions," attempting to integrate Orthodox theology with development work. My presentation is on the Capabilities Approach (Martha Nussbaum) and I've already had trouble with translation (there is no word for 'capability' in Romania...so we used 'capacity'). Much time here is spent tossing a single idea back and forth until both parties (Romanian and American) understand -- that's why it takes longer to accomplish anything here. And, inevitably, stuff gets lost in the translation. But, I've actually really enjoyed some of the conversations I've with folks like Cornel -- he really helps me to take my ideas out of the clouds and make them accessible to those who literally don't speak my language. And, in the end, you realize that all the high-and-mighty vocabulary, all the literary allusions, all the witty alliteration may only serve to barricade a potentially weak, ill-formed idea. A strong idea really is one that can speak for itself.

Hyper-individualism vs Hyper-collectivism

The importance of being true to one's self is all the more evident now that I'm in Romania. After 40 years of deception, corruption, and denigration of the individual (the self), people have lost sight of who they are and who they could be! You said quite poignantly, "it is criminal what happens to human beings when hope is rendered meaningless." How about when the self is rendered meaningless? How can you be true to what you've been told does not exist? Or, what at least has no value? Perhaps quite similarly, American Christians, having been raised in a nation where the individual is worshipped, don't know how to be faithful to their true selves because they've been so blinded by the facade of individuality that America (the West) feeds them. How can you be true to yourself when you are alienated from context, history, society, others? How can you be true to an over-exalted self? An island among islands?

Save the Children - HIV Positive Youth

Bethany, and I visited Save the Children in Petrile yesterday and had a good visit. They've had an HIV-AIDS integration group running for about two years, thanks to a grant from the States, which works with infected youth to help them integrate into the local communities. There is a lot of stigma here against HIV-positive kids, as there is anywhere. Perhaps the most tragic thing is that these kids were infected passively, not by drug use or sexual activity, but by corrupt medical practices -- doctors and nurses who performed blood transfusions with dirty blood and dirty needles.

I've written about this before, but it still plagues me. I asked the woman who ran the group if there had been any reparations from the hospitals for their malpractice and, in a very Romanian way, she responded with "No, not really." It's a very 'hasta este' attitude -- it is what it is. She said that this program was established to respond to the problem, not necessarily to seek justice. Of course, you can imagine the look on my face when I heard that. In the US, those hospitals would have suffered from serious malpractice suites, those doctors and nurses would be out of jobs, and those kids would be receiving medical attention (potentially). But here, life goes on. People fuck over other people and that's how the story goes. Where's the justice here? the restitution? These kids were given death sentences before they could even walk, ...and most won't live past 18 (their cases are very advanced), all because of corrupt medical practices. [Very often, people have to pay medical professionals bribes to receive good care, otherwise they come out worse than they came in and are then more desperate to receive care than before. Sick, I know.] Anyway, this is just a drop in the sea of injustices that have occurred in this country over its long, sad history. Imagine injustice after injustice going unpunished year after year and what that will do to your psyche. Fatalism is the best defense, presumably.