Meeting Gandhi in a Catholic Church in Mississippi

The world's great champion for non-violent civil disobedience, Mahatma Gandi would be 145 years old on October 2.  His birthday is a national holiday in India.  It is also recognized by the United Nations General Assembly as the International Day of Non-Violence

Last Saturday, I was sitting in a little classroom in a parish center in a church in the heart of American South. Christ the King Catholic Church in Southaven, Mississippi offered an all day adult faith formation / catechist certification workshop. Attendees came from five area parishes, making up the northern deanery of the Diocese of Jackson.  Most participants came as catechists fulfilling requirements toward certification.   A few others, myself included, came for the adult faith formation.
The session I attended was titled: Prayer and Spirituality.  In the afternoon, Gandhi paid a visit.  Not in body, of course, but in spirit.  Our facilitator introduced us to Gandhi's Seven Deadly Sins, those traits which the holy man considered to be spiritually perilous to all mankind:

Wealth without Work
Pleasure without Conscience
Science without Humanity
Knowledge without Character
Politics without Principle
Commerce without Morality
Worship without Sacrifice

These, Gandhi wrote in  Young India,  on October 22, 1925, are the roots of violence.

There is, of course, universal truth in Gandhi's observations from nearly a century ago, observations that seem to be ignored in much of our modern world.

There is much focus today on the reality of sociopaths in our midst.  Experts claim 1 out of every 25 people is a sociopath.  It seems to me that these are  the people who are aware of the perils of the seven deadly sins, and sin anyway because it is of no consequence to them. What care they of the consequences to you or to me or to unnamed multitudes?  

There is, of course, nothing new, under the sun. Even the Scriptures say so.  But for those of us who claim Christ, we also claim to be made anew, in His image.  So as we near Gandhi's birthday. I wonder: Do I demand work, conscience, character, principle, sacrifice from myself?   Do I model them to my children?  Do I expect them from my friends, my leaders?

Do you?

Maybe the best way to honor the memory and legacy of Gandhi is to take a long hard look at ourselves and the culture we are building.

Then as Gandhi also said:  Be the change that you wish to see in the world.