Fear and flattery can disrupt the inner compass and lead us in the wrong direction. I can only speculate about what the prisoners thought and believed, but I suspect that they were never taught that this is 'the path to the dark side'. Fear, anger, hatred, suffering – at some point you have to be able to break the chain of evil. Isn't that what the churches should be teaching young people?
The visit to the prison astonished me. How could such seemingly nice and kind people become so cruel and brutal in certain situations? Was this a collection of extremely sick individuals? Or were they human beings, not very different from us?
I think they are more like us than we would like to admit. The problem of fear, anger and hatred concerns us too. Who is completely immune to the great driving force of evil – the intoxicating sense of power? Does anyone have an inner compass that works perfectly?
A misaligned compass can create hell on earth and lead to a spiritual prison. We need to be guided more by wisdom and compassion. Not only the body but also the soul needs medicine and exercise. Everyone needs to build inner health and resilience.
What makes us human?
There is a fundamental difference between training an animal – like a dog – and nurturing the growth of a human being. A dog may be unruly at first, but with rewards and punishment, it can be moulded into well-behaved conduct. It learns to wag its tail at familiar faces and to bark at strangers.
Unlike animals, human beings are capable of moral development – shaped by reason and compassion rather than by rewards and punishments. Integrity cannot be imposed from without; it must be nurtured from within.
But what happens if we raise a child as if it were a dog? At best, the child may become well-behaved – but without a genuine sense of right and wrong. It may learn to “bark” at strangers simply because they are different. It will lack an inner moral compass.
Good and Evil
Is the struggle between good and evil an external or internal conflict? The frightening reality is that charismatic psychopaths can rise to become leaders of nations. These individuals believe that might is right and they can seduce millions of people into blindly following them. Hitler is a case in point. When this happens, there is an external conflict. Then we must resist firmly, resolutely and fearlessly.
But if we see the drama of the world only as a struggle between ‘us’ and ‘them’ – us who are good against them who are evil – we walk on a dangerous path. When we think we are morally superior to other people, we may feel entitled to humiliate them and put them down. If we call others ‘monsters’, we risk becoming ‘monsters’ ourselves. We can become so blind that we do not see the contradiction. That is when we lose our moral compass.
The battle between good and evil is not only something that happens out there, in the world, or between nations. It is something that plays out inside each of us.
The ancient Greek thinkers encouraged self-reflection. ‘Know thyself’, they said. Socrates' believed that a life without self-reflection – an "unexamined life" – has no meaning. This is essential for us to grow and develop as human beings.
Many churches dedicate a part of the mass to self-reflection and confession. They believe that divine love frees us from fear and reduces the need for false defences and excuses. This makes it easier to recognise and deal with our own dark sides. Self-awareness is key to avoiding moral blindness.
These two traditions are commonly symbolised by 'Athens' and 'Jerusalem'. Athens represents philosophy, reason, education and research. Jerusalem stands for faith, spirituality, divinity and hope. This is the good alliance that we need to rediscover and revive.
