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| Along the Way 9-3-10 |
 Guess who left Rome on the same day as Bonnie and I? None other than Colonel Muammar Qaddafi, the unpredictable leader of the North African nation of Libya. This nation, an Italian colony for 30 years, sits just a short jump from the heel of the Italian boot across the Mediterranean Ocean. Colonel Qaddafi, followed by the ever present paparazzi, strolled through the same piazzas recently habited by Alex, Bonnie and me.Two years ago Libya and Italy signed a friendship treaty. Italy apologized for its colonial attitude and pledged millions of euros in reparations for the next 25 years. In return Libya is pouring oil money into Italy, staunching the flow of illegal Libyan immigrants into that nation and giving Italian companies preferential treatment in commercial relationships. Who cares about this, you ask? And in some ways I agree, although Qaddafi’s ham-handed effort to convert Italian women from Christianity to Islam might make one take notice. But if Qaddafi’s trip had been anywhere other than Italy I surely would have ignored it. One member of the Pont Sant’ Angelo Methodist Church told me that her first hand experience with Americans is that we are sadly lacking in international perspective. I have heard this before from citizens outside the United States. We Americans have a poor grasp of world geography and a marked disinterest in international news. It is as if we can only see things from within the context of our own national boundaries. To some extent this phenomenon is understandable. We are thousands of miles from most other nations of the world. We do not need to be conversant in multiple languages to live our daily lives. Furthermore, we are the most powerful nation in the world. Perhaps we secretly harbor the notion that other people must understand us, but not the other way around. Having returned from a Methodist congregation that, though small, was international in membership, and having spent a month among the Italian people, I am more aware today that Americans must cultivate an appreciation for and understanding of the peoples and nations of our globe. We live in one world. I look forward to being with you once again this Sunday! Creede Hinshaw |
