C6: Hope

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The Jewish angle

This is where Judaism comes in. The origin
of many civil institutions is the Torah. It
all started in Genesis. Every day of Creation
God was satisfied with His work: "God saw
that it was good" it says seven times. (Genesis 1:10,12,18,21,25,31) But there is one thing that was not good: "Said the Lord God: It is not good that Man should be alone" (Genesis 2:18) Now these words are not just an editorial comment, they are a real fact of life. So what did God do? He gave the first person a partner, and only then did history begin.

The first grouping was not political, it was civil. It was not about control or about rules, it was about caring and love. These are essential for a good life. If you think about it you'll see that the entire book of Genesis is about people trying to sort out their relationships: husbands and wives, children and parents, small communities and peoples, all of them trying to find a comfortable way of living together.

Getting personal

Look back at the many problems that were listed at the beginning of this chapter. They are not there to shock you. They are there because they are the very real problems our society is facing. But they are social problems and they need social solutions. Strengthening civil institutions will help much more than the government can. Of course both are necessary, but the development of the more intimate, smaller and more personal parts of our society is what is required.

We know that there are two faces of Britain. On the one hand there is the society we read about in the newspapers, see on TV, and worry about, the Britain of violence and crime, the break up of families, homelessness and depression. But on the other hand there is the Britain you and I encounter every day, of politeness and friendliness, of kindness, courage and help, the Britain in which three-quarters of the population give regularly to charity and at least a million are involved in some kind of voluntary work. These are aspects of civil society that should be cherished, nurtured and valued.

Caring circles

The Jewish view of how we care about other people is built on concentric circles. In the most inner circle is you. But immediately comes the next circle which is your family. They are your origins and your future. They are the people you have grown up with and will grow old with. They are close and special. In the next, bigger, circle come your wider family, cousins and relatives, as well as your friends. Beyond these come your community which involves the places you regularly visit and the things you really care about. Next comes your country and so on outwards, like the ripples a stone makes when you throw it into a still pond. Clearly, we care about the people closest to us and that is how the civil part of our society works.

Community building

Some communities in this country have begun to rebuild institutions in this way. There are local advice centres for legal problems. There are local marriage counseling services for couples with problems. There are drug awareness groups especially for the young. All these are small initiatives organised by people in their own communities. Often the Church, Synagogue or Mosque is the community central building that they use to run these programmes. You probably know of your own in the Jewish community. These centres are not set up by the state, they are organised by small bands of people who know about the problems of where they live and who they know. That is there concern, that is there expertise and that is where they can make a difference.

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