Hero in the Urban Slums of the World

Sitting here right now, if I were to respond to the call of an earthly hero to join in a mission, it would be that of Jockin Arputham, founder and president of Slum Dwellers International. SDI is a network of global urban slum development organizations, with the goal of empowering the citizens of the world's urban slum to have a voice in the how their communities develop. Arputham's dream was to create global solidarity amongst the world's urban poor, forming a unified voice to show governmental organizations that they possess the knowledge to participate in community development, firmly believing that urban poverty will never be reduced without the cooperation of those living through it.


Arputham's community urban planning and development work on an international scale exemplifies Ignatius's notion of "good, noble deeds." Like Ignatius, he lives with "a foot off of the ground," (or in the air, I don't remember actually), traveling to urban slums around the world wherever the opportunity to affect change surfaces. His work is particularly appealing to me, as I have lately entertained the idea of pursuing urban planning based in participatory community development, urban regeneration, and cultural preservation. I also have a strong interest in foreign cultures, and would like to embark on a career that would allow me to live in countries wildly different from the one where I grew up in, and so Arputham's mission seems to align very closely with mine.

Although my mission remains vague, I strongly feel that I want to work in and with communities, having a deep understanding of their various histories and cultures, and dedicating my career to improving quality of life, increasing opportunity, preserving culture, and ensuring open access to education and artistic expression to all of its citizens. I hope to began my answer to this Call next year by making my first radical move, to the Cidade Maravilhosa itself, Rio de Janeiro, as I mentioned in my last reflection paper.

Accepting Ignatius's indifference to move past our own indifference

“We should not fix our desires on health or sickness, wealth or poverty, success or failure, a long life or a short one.” - Ignatius of Loyola, on indifference

These words of Ignatius of Loyola pose a challenge of unbelievable magnitude to probably just about anyone who reads them. He is quite literally telling us not to place importance on the very things we have been taught to cultivate and value most in life. It goes without saying that I have failed in this challenge up to this point, as we all have. 

I admit that I was initially hesitant to accept Ignatius' indifference, because I had misunderstood what he really meant. He did not advocate indifference to the world around us, but to the things in our life that tend to preoccupy us, and distract us from our higher purpose that God has planned for us. I then saw that this "indifference" to our well-being actually translates into the opposite of indifference; love and action for the betterment of our fellow man. 

 

Ignatius is warning us not to let ourselves be guided by material concerns when trying to find our path in life; all of these concerns combine together to form a mass of dissonance and confusion that prevent us from true discernment. I have not adopted wealth as a false god, however I am guilty of placing too much importance on health, success, and a long life. I cannot seem to find the exact quote, but I remember reading a quote from German filmmaker Werner Herzog, that expressed his admiration for people who did not try to preserve themselves, who lived their lives free from those kinds of constraints. Ignatius' teachings have made me think of this notion in a new light; to truly be free and capable of pursuing my higher purpose, to love fully the people who I am close to, I must drop my attachments to personal well-being in a material sense, and focus on the end rather than the means. Perhaps if I focus on the ultimate goal that transcends material attachments, these material things will take care of themselves. 

I have noticed how my attachments relating to self-preservation have come up when I have considered going to serve in parts of the world affected by disease and famine. I need to move past this if I am to achieve this balance and freedom so valued by Ignatius. I also feel attachments to the people in my life, which I think Ignatius would approve of, as these sorts of attachments are not material, however I do find myself thinking how I can see myself making serious decisions in my life as far as where I will go, largely based on where my loved ones will be. I would like to get to a place where I can find a balance between my attachments for people, and what I feel I must do to get closer to my purpose and my God, whatever that means. With "one foot in the air" as Ignatius put it, is how I want to go through life, always ready to go where I can do the most good, without worrying so much about my own material attachments to health and success. This will be an ongoing and incredibly difficult challenge, but certainly one worth fighting to achieve, for only then will I be able to fully love through my work and actions.

Who am I supposed to be?

As easy as some people find it to brag about themselves on a superficial level, flaunting information related to the size of their bank account, their car, or the number of women they sleep with, it is incredibly difficult to take an honest look in the mirror and deeply reflect on what parts of us actually make us who we are. Outwardly expressing what we find in an impartial way is even more difficult, as we must step out of ourselves and look at ourselves in the way that other people who don't inhabit our brains are capable of. How can we differentiate between what we are objectively gifted in, and what we think we are gifted in? In the latter scenario, we deeply want to be gifted in some area, and so we train our brain to believe that we actually are. Sometimes it has seemed to me that we can only come to know our gifts through the opinions of those around us, that we are good at something because everyone says that we are.


As I have grown a little older, and have become a little more self-assured, I realize the inherent falsity of this notion. We can come to know the gifts that have been bestowed upon as that makes us the unique beings that we are; what remains is the enormous challenge of discernment. I am now at a point in my life where I feel the need to look inside and figure out for myself what my strengths are, and how I can best use these strengths to make a positive contribution to the world before leaving it.

Looking at myself from the outside (as best as I can), I find that my most important gifts are all related to the goal of living for and helping others. I am able to see the best in people, in spite of their deep flaws (which we all have), and care deeply about their happiness. I have a strong passion for and understanding for art and cultural in its various mediums, and from where I stand today, I believe that perhaps my purpose in life is to transmit and fight for equitable access to art and cultural education, because for too long art has been exclusive and seen as something for the elite and intelligentsia, and I am tired of this. My dream would be for people from all socioeconomic, ethnic, racial, etc. backgrounds to be able to enjoy the same access to culture, and to not only have a dominant culture imposed on them, but to be able to contribute to the culture, to have their own voice in the larger conversation. Essentially, I want to improve the lives of others and create an inclusive environment through access to art and culture, because I know that art has improved my life, and I hold a deeply rooted conviction that it can for everyone else. Although I am not technically religious, I do like the conception of artistic creation as humans continuing the creative process that God began; creating truly beautiful and meaningful art and sharing it with humanity is, after all, one of the highest accomplishments.

I have not yet figured out how I will accomplish this goal, but I can see it being the work of a lifetime. Using my passion and skills for serving and understanding others, and cultural knowledge and appreciation, I believe that I could make a difference in the lives of others. I don't want to live only for myself anymore; this is a childish approach to life that Ignatius managed to shrug after his battle injury at Pamplona, and I aim to follow his lead.