“The power of questions” was the theme of my class at the college of Saint Benedict and St. John’s University this past week.
Right before the break, I asked, “In the spirit of questions, do you have any questions for me?” I told the students they could ask me any questions they wanted.
There was a lengthy silence and then one student, Mason, raised his hand and said, “What scares you about the future?”
I paused for a long while. I did this not because I didn’t have an answer, but because I wanted to honor his question and reflect upon it.
When I was ready, I said, “The reason I paused is because my faith tells me not to be afraid.”
I pressed on saying, “Apparently, in the Bible, the phrase “Be not afraid” appears 366 times.”
I then offered this quip, “That’s once for every day of the year including leap year.”
As such, I told my students I am not afraid.
I am, however, concerned.
I am concerned about our rapidly changing climate and what it means for future generations.
I am concerned about the rise of authoritarianism and the loss of democratic norms.
I am concerned about the accelerating pace of technology and what it portends for the future of jobs and what that may imply for many people’s search for meaning.
I then shared a short story with my students. My mom once gave me a piece of sage advice. She said, “If something both scares you and excites you, do it!”
I can’t remember the precise context in which she offered this advice, but I suspect I may have been interested in asking some young woman out on a date and I was simply nervous about being rejected.
My mom’s advice is still good advice. I say this because the future does concern me, but it also excites me.
The paradox of holding both excitement and fear in balance is what we must wrestle with.
We cannot, however, afford to allow fear to win out and tip the balance of scales.
Fear cannot be the governing principle of the future.
The truth is this: We are not passive actors in the future. We possess agency.
As creations of God, we possess the ability to create.
We must never forget this.
Our earthly responsibility is to acknowledge the fears and concerns and then do our best to address them, while never forgetting that we also possess the ability to imagine alternative realities into existence.
This is one reason I continue to speak openly and publicly about the idea that the direction of the future is Spiritward.
I sincerely believe that we are called to grow spiritually. And, as we do this–both individually and, collectively, as a society–we will create a better future.
In fact, in the long, long run I believe we will transform and evolve in ways which seem almost unimaginable today.
P.S. I continue to write daily on these more spiritual matters. If you are interested in following me, I invite you to subscribe (for free) to my Substack feed. It’s called “The Sprouting Acorn.”
Here are a few sample posts from this week: Thomas Merton, Artificial Intelligence, and Moral Reasoning and Thinking About Thinking.
