Carolyn Baker – Disaster: the gift that keeps on giving

Or, finding paradise in hell

…Major loss in our personal lives usually isolates us from the community whereas “When the loss is general, one is not cast out by suffering but finds fellowship in it.” One of the most profound impacts of disaster for its survivors is the extent to which their deep longing for community is typically met as they come together to meet each others’ needs.

Solnit notes that horrible disasters have shaped the lives of some people who have become luminaries of healing and social change. One notable example is Dorothy Day who was eight years old when the San Francisco earthquake struck, and the most profound memory she took from the disaster was that “While the crisis lasted, people loved each other.” The impact of that love shaped Day’s life and work as she devoted herself entirely to organizing people to meet the needs of the poor and to create a more just and magnanimous society.

Speaking Truth To Power