I have been thinking about the plight of refugees recently. It's one thing to purposely emigrate to another country because you would prefer living there. It's completely different when you would really rather stay "home" but due to war, oppressive government, or other threats, you leave your native country with what little you can carry to start with nothing in a strange land. Adding to that misery, when you get to the strange land, you may be greeted with hatred and resentment. Refugees are not all innocent, good people. I realize that. However, I would bet that the majority of those who are forced refugees have no ill intentions. They have to struggle with survival: learning a new language, finding shelter, obtaining food, finding a job, and often needing medical help.
Last night Russ and I went to a show at the Kennedy Center here in Washington, DC. Shen Yun is a beautiful display of newly written Chinese traditional culture. To quote the program notes: Ten years ago leading Chinese artists from around the world came together united by a mission: to revive authentic Chinese culture. They formed Shen Yun. Independent, non-profit, and based in New York, Shen Yun's artists now present these magnificent traditions on stage.... Shen Yung Orchestra delivers this musical experience by blending the singular beauty of Chinese melodies with the precision and power of the Western orchestra. ( Their orchestra has mostly Western classical instruments but also includes traditional Chinese instruments so the sound is familiar to both cultures.) .. Nowhere else can you see the authentic Chinese culture that Shen Yun presents. Sadly, this culture has been almost completely destroyed in China under communist rule. Throughout the program notes you get a sense of the love and appreciation of traditional Chinese people, scenery, culture, and even some beliefs. In ancient China artist used to cultivate virtue. They believed that art was meant to celebrate the divine and nurture goodness. They often practiced meditation and self-refinement, seeking to create art from a pure and humble mental space...Shen Yun performer's draw their spiritual inspiration from the meditation discipline and self-improvement practice called Falun Dafa. Also known as Falun Gong, it is rooted in China's ancient spiritual traditions, and its practitioners strive to live by the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance......Traditional Chinese culture is based on the idea of harmony among heaven, Earth, and humankind. But the Chinese Communist Party's doctrine teaches just the opposite; officially atheist, it sees this spiritual culture as a threat to its power. For decades it has tried to destroy this ancient heritage.
I realize that a PR expert probably helped word the program. However, we know from a study of history or even current events that there truly are places in the world where the government strives to strangle anything inherently individualistic and does so through violence, actual or threatened. I can't express enough how grateful I am to have been simply born in a country based upon the idea of inherent rights of freedom for all people. We don't always behave as tolerantly as we ought. That isn't the fault of the original concept or Constitution. It's the fault of each one of the citizens who expresses prejudice toward any group of people based on a generalization they have used to label others. There is wickedness on this earth, that's for sure. We each have a responsibility to seek out righteous principles and live by them. But we are not judges of other people, only judges of principles. We can reach out to those who are different in some way and strive to understand the good in them if we don't readily see it. We can hope they are diligent in doing the same toward us.
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