THE ANATOMY OF APOLOGY
Among the many things I learnt from my parents is that “to apologise” is to not only generate good karma but to also release oneself and others from the grips of evil spirits (or jumbies/duppies). Knowingly or unknowingly, if one’s actions or that of a member of one’s family (and this means extended) have caused harm to another, to apologise and make good is imperative in order to exorcise these evil spirits and restore harmony to the community. There must have been elements of their Hindu and Muslim heritages at work here. My parents also taught me that to apologise is not necessarily to give up any commitment to fight against every kind of oppressive act. To apologise is not about being nice, gentle or proper.
During the last year (2007), I was looking forward for the British government to apologise for the Transatlantic Slave Trade. The best that oozed out was regret for the actions. Some ecclesial establishments did slightly better – though regret was the general mood. The present Australian government have done much better for the role of their ancestors in the exploitation of Aboriginal communities. They, like the Canadians, finally understood how they have benefited from that exploitation and what it means to take corporate responsibility for the evil logic of an earlier time that was premised on the notion that Aboriginal children were in need of “civilising” by inculcating them with European values through experimenting with an early form of eugenics that will “breed out their colour” [try viewing the movie The Rabbit Proof Fence].
Yes, there are still those who refuse to apologise claiming, for instance, that the Transatlantic Slave Trade has nothing to do with them, as they were not authors of these policies: so why should they apologise. No wonder the spirits are still roaming and a nation like Britain remains shackled to her drooping tail of bad karma. And the fact that we live as obsessive individualists and are conditioned to only remember the events of the last 48 hours work against any notion of a corporate responsibility.
Historical amnesia is geared towards wiping out peoples. I wonder how many British folks are aware of how their ancestors exterminated almost the entire tribe of Tasmanian Aborigines. And I also wonder how many are aware that mantelpieces in London were decorated with the skulls of some of those Tasmanain Aborigines! And what, may I ask, was the role of Fabian socialists in justifying the idea of eugenics? And how did the espoused theology of day supported this?
Britain has much to answer to and it is time to move beyond the usual disgusting English rhetoric of “lessons are to be learned”, properly apologise and mean it. For, the ability to apologise is significant in the shaping of a necessary morality for the common good society strives after. Apologies can add moral weight to ”social, political and economic reforms” if they are followed by tangible benefits. Citing the case of the Canadian government’s financial commitment to first nation peoples economic development and self-governing initiatives (among others), Melissa Nobles writes that “what gives them weight are the policies and actions that surround them”. Churches also need to do more in this regard – especially as we scrutinise our theology.
Our inability to apologise as individuals, ecclesial communities and nation(s), mean that we remain shackled individuals, communities and nation,s whose utterances on matters of justice smacks of hypocrisy and gives the Divine chronic heartburns.
© copyright Jagessar August 5, 2008
