C10: Rebellion

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Stage one: dreaming

Have you ever sat back
and tried to think of your
own ideal society? What
would this type of world look like? What features
would it have? One way of trying this exercise is to
consider the dreams of other people. On the back we
have printed the visions of two such dreamers, namely John Lennon and Martin Luther King. Do you agree with their vision entirely? Are their things you want to take out or add in?

Both of these examples lived in the twentieth century, but the idea of dreaming of a better future is not unique to our century. Listen carefully to the following vision, written by the prophet Isaiah:

"In the last days, The mountain of the Lord's temple will be re-established as chief amongst the mountains. It will be raised above the hills and all the nations will stream towards it. Many people will come and say, 'Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the god of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his path.' The law will go forth from Zion and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He will judge between nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation. Nor will they train for war any more".

Isaiah was a real dreamer. He lived in a world which was by no means perfect and few believed in his vision and mocked him. Yet he dared to dream. His image of swords and ploughshares can be found as an image outside the United Nations building in New York. A dream that has been in the minds of people for thousands of years, and yet is still not fulfilled.

Utopia

OK, so lots of people like to dream. What's the point? Dreams are great but they are all very theoretical and highly unlikely. Lisa Simpson dreams of world peace. She prays for it, plays music about it and it forms the first of her three wishes when her brother Bart gets hold of a magic lantern. But we all know it's not going to happen. Such dreaming is pointless; you can live in your dreams like a daydream believer but nothing will change. Homer, her dad, tells her to focus on eating doughnuts instead. Wake up Lisa and stick to reality. Doh!

Utopia is a word that is given to represent the imaginary society that is meant to be ideal and perfect, the place that should embody all your dreams. It actually comes from two Greek words put together that literally mean: "No place". This hints at the fact that all this dreaming is a waste of time and very unrealistic. Utopia is no place, it will never be created. So maybe Homer is right; dreaming is pointless.

Let's slow down a little here before we leave with such a pessimistic conclusion. Homer would be right if we stopped at stage one in our programme of rebellion, dreaming. But there is a stage two, surveying.

Stage Two: surveying

The dream has given us the overall destination; it has allowed us to leave our reality behind for a bit. Now let's look at our own reality, survey our own world around us. What immediate problems do we see? What specific difficulties must we deal with and in what order? This practical approach takes Lisa's grand dream and makes them practical. What do you think are the biggest problems in your area at the moment, be it your home, school, community or the world at large? Would you say your society is ideal ad that everyone is getting fair treatment? What needs to be changed and what problems should be tackled first? Is there anyone who is trying to attempt to deal with them? What can you do?

Stage three: Just say no to Status Quo!

How did you respond to that long list of questions? Some people look at this list and get all excited and busy. They join groups protesting about exploitation of infants in Malaysia, set up committees to prevent racism in the UK and set up helplines so that people who are bullied in school can call for support. These people have achieved all three stages of our rebellious programme. They have dreamed, surveyed and gone into action.

Most however do not respond like this, and consider our first group of people to be idealistic geeks. Some get defensive and shrug their shoulders. 'What can we do? We are young / powerless / insignificant / irrelevant / busy (delete as appropriate). It is naïve to think we can make a difference'. Yet others do not respond at all. They can't be bothered. 'That's the way the world is! We were born into that and there's little anyone can do to change it.' Sometimes speaking out and protesting is also difficult. You have to have a degree of self confidence and belief, and not be entirely affected by public opinion. The cynic or the one who can't be bothered are most comfortable with the world as they know it and don't want to rock the boat. 'Long live the Status Quo'.

The rebel is the person who says No! The mover who rejects the status quo and tries to change the world they live in. "It is not up to you to complete the task, yet you are not free to desist from trying". In some sphere where they feel passionate about and feel they can make a difference, the rebel will attempt to do just that - irrelevant or not of what people say. The sages stated: "Even if a person did not learn Torah nor kept any of the commandments, but they had the opportunity to protest against injustice and they protested, on this account they are considered blessed".

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