I will begin this article with a couple of simple questions:
Is solidarity a value or a virtue? If it were a value, can I transform it into a virtue? And to answer these two questions, let’s refresh the concepts associated with value and virtue.
Value.- It is a quality or idea that is considered important in a society since it is associated with its beliefs and principles.
Virtue.- It is the disposition of a person to act according to ideals associated with good, truth, and justice, among other things.
From these definitions, we can conclude, then, that values in general are on an abstract level and that when we personalize them they immediately become virtues.
Our beloved Peru, for different reasons and motives, has a series of problems and difficulties, in which all of us, without exception, are called to be part of the solution. More than six decades ago, John F. Kennedy said, “Do not think what your country can do for you. Think about what you can do for your country.”
We are all aware of the needs of many other Peruvians on different fronts and that should generate a genuine desire to share their concerns, interests and real needs to alleviate them, without expecting anything in return, only in this way will we convert the value of solidarity into the personal virtue of solidarity.
Today, we have various initiatives, to mention a few, from the private sector.
- Peruvians for Peruvians.
- Entrepreneurs for education.
- It is Today.
- Conscious Capitalism.
- Caritas Peru.
- Association of the Beatitudes.
- Roof for my country.
- Home Project, etc.
This is in relation to this Sunday’s gospel, where in one part, John says to Jesus: Master, we have seen someone who was expelling demons in your name, and we tried to stop him because he is not one of us. To which Jesus responds: do not stop him… because he who is not against us is with us…
I am going to share brief experiences lived by our family both in Peru and in Argentina, where we have been living for a short time, for example: volunteering in activities associated with Christmas is Jesus, support in Proyecto Hogar (construction of houses from prefabricated material), support for the Inspira Shelter, support in the reinforcement of Mathematics in a slum 31 here in Buenos Aires, among others. The idea of sharing these experiences is not to obtain ephemeral applause, it is simply to make tangible that if you have desire and will, you can put solidarity into practice and at the same time give thanks for what you have.
Let us add to any of these initiatives and others that surely exist and do extraordinary things, for our less favored compatriots. We need that through solidarity, the flag of the common good can be displayed.
Below, I bring some thoughts that could lead us to NOT take action.
- It is not from my group (work, study, club, etc.).
- They are people who think and act differently than me.
- They are not GCU! (people like me).
I invite you to open yourselves to the opportunity to interact with different people, who have a different experience, approach to the problem, to solve, etc. It is easy, of course NOT, it is very difficult… but who said that good things are simple…! I assure you that there you will learn even more about everything associated with mutual respect and the search for the common good through solidarity.
I conclude by paraphrasing what Kennedy said… “Don’t think about what another person can do for you. Think about what you can do for them, but put it into concrete action.” And this can be through volunteering, one-off donations and even some kind of sponsorship program.
So… Are you ready to go out and meet other people, seek the common good and row against the current?
