Children Of A King
There Is A Healthier Way To Live
by Eric Elkin
Do you think the engineers who invented cell phone technology ever conceived their invention would lead to “Karen Videos”? It is hard for me to imagine engineers would spend endless hours of creative energy developing new ways to capture human stupidity. Although it should be noted the first cellular telephone call ever made was a prank call.
Cell phones have radically transformed our culture. They provide communication services to remote villages in Third World countries and play a critical role in emergency communication. No one is ever truly alone if they have a cell phone.
Human anger existed long before our ability to capture it on video. I wonder if recording angry confrontations plays games with our heads. Maybe since we can put together a whole clip of these encounters, it makes us feel these events happen all the time. I cannot remember my last personal “Karen” encounter, but I can watch them for an hour on YouTube.
An angry person demanding their rights seems petty. Yet, isn’t that the same impulse behind most wars? Getting mad is one thing; using our anger to hurt someone else is another thing. This is true even when anger hurts the angry one.
A group of us spent the last month watching the Simon Schama series, The Story of the Jews. Essentially, we gathered every Tuesday evening to watch history repeat itself. Jewish communities find a place to build a life. They live for decades in harmony with their neighbors. Then one day, out of the blue, the neighbors turn on the Jews.
History is bigger than the Jews, though. Their plight, while unique, has company. Millions of Ukrainians were also slaughtered during World War II. Warring parties eventually get tired of fighting. When they do, leaders search for peace. Yet, peace has a shelf life. Before too long, humans get back to the business of fighting.
Watching “Karen Videos” reveals something about us all. We can lose perspective on what is ours. If we see the world as ours, we assume the right to do whatever we want. And, it is easier to lose sight of this than we care to admit. In the First World, it is very easy to lose perspective.
In episode 4 of The Story of the Jews, Simon Schama references a quote by Chassidic Rabbi Shlomo de Karlin. The rabbi once said, “The worst thing that the evil urge can do is to make us forget that men are all sons of a king.” All the rabbi did was quote an even older phrase. One found in a psalm, “The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it;” This is a healthy view of life. An approach to living that will improve your well-being and keep you off YouTube.
Click to read Psalm 24
Reflection Questions:
Have you ever encountered a “Karen” type meltdown?
How did it effect you?
What makes you angry about the world? What rights do you see being taken?
When have you taken rights from someone else without realizing it?
How are you the child of a king? And what does it mean to you?