On Shame, Debt, and Why I'll Never be Prime Minister

We live not just in an age of anxiety, but also in an age of shame. I find very few people who do not feel inadequate, stupid, dirty, or unworthy. Guilt is about things we have done or not done, but our shame is about the primal emptiness of our very being, an ontological question. It is not resolved by changing behavior as much as by changing our very self-image, our alignment in the universe.  -Richard Rohr

When I received the quote above in my inbox the other morning, I couldn't help but smile.  I've had shame on my mind a lot these days, as I continue to work through some areas of healing, and as I begin an online course called Ordinary Courage:  Lessons on Love, Shame and Worthiness.


A different part of my mind has been trying to wrap itself around the global financial crisis, what's happening in Greece, and the Wall St. protests (Mike Todd has a post up with some good links, if you're interested).  The issues are very complicated, and to cope, my mind has a way of boiling very complicated things down to a very simple essence.  After the reading I've done to date, I can see two commonalities behind the financial mess we're facing:  over consumption and greed.  Obvious, I know. 


We all have a habit of over consuming.  We all want what we don't have.  For some the habit is more obvious than others, but we all do it.  What makes me so sure?  


Over the years, I've become convinced that over consumption and greed are rooted in shame.  It is a hallmark of shame to try to cover over pain, to bury it, to anesthetize it.  We all know the "keeping up with the Jones'" syndrome. We recognize that sub-conscious voice that tells us we're not enough.  


It is no different for governments.  We are the government (though it's easy to lay blame far from our own feet).  Governments are made up of fragile, fallible people who also happen to wield a lot of power.  When you mix shame with greed, the resultant over consumption, and power...  it's a recipe for the establishment of societies who want to take, but don't want to contribute.  Shame is a taker.  When shame is healed, there is life.

Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can. Arthur Ashe

I can't do anything about these broad global problems.  I can't fix any of it.  But I can start with myself. I can find healing for my own brokenness, and I can live in the opposite spirit. In healing, I can be more generous, and love those I come into contact with in healthier ways.