Imagining Compassionate Societies

The scenes over the past few days of thousands of people walking for miles and sitting bewildered on railway stations of European Cities, could not but move our hearts to the very fibre of our being. However, of course the scenes we viewed told only a fraction of the awful and horrible experiences that so many of these people have gone through, before they ever put foot on European soil.

Myself, like many many others have gone through a roller coaster of emotions from anger, to despair to shock to hope and back again as we watched the scenes of sadness and loss replayed again and again across all media sources. While we waited to see some unity and concrete responses from our European leaders.

Looking at this dreadful humanitarian crisis firstly as a human being and then as an intuitive and sociologist my thoughts and feelings are focused on the  ‘imagery’ of these scenes and how they have and are challenging the ‘comfortable elite leaders’. These leader’s responses in the main to date is through the pressure and outrage of ordinary European citizens who have decided that something must be done NOW to assist and compassionately respond to this growing humanitarian crisis. One wonders what the leaders responses would have been if such public pressure was not put on them to do something? because, such scenes of death and torture have been playing out on our screens for years in war torn countries.

As increasingly over the past number of months on European oceans we have ‘viewed’ the stories and seen the ‘statistics’ of thousands dying trying to escape from war and torture and of those who have survived desperately needing assistance. Such scenes have manifested a call to action and to demonstrate the true compassion that should befit caring and not harsh civilised societies, however, those arriving have experiencd and we have witnessed both.

So what can we learn from all of this, for we must ensure that lessons are learned, and that our societies both in responding to humanitatian crises, and also to the social issues of poverty and homelessness, within our own European countries, is done in a conscious, caring and compassionate way.

So let us dare to imagine what truly ‘compassionate societies would be like, with a deep awareness of a shared humanity, and how they would truly respond to a humanitarian crisis and to indigenious social issues.

For example.

• The imagery of a re-energised civil, civic and active society.
• The imagery of true equality for ALL.
• The imagery of immediate accessible health care for ALL.
• The imagery of fair distribution of wealth.
• The imagery of a conscious education system.
• The imagery of accessible and affordable childcare.
• The imagery of open and honest politics.
• The imagery of humane and compassionate social policies.
• The imagery of core value systems of integrity, inclusion, empathy, accountability, transparency, collaboration, respect.
• The imagery of Conscious Leadership in government, politics and business.
• The imagery of true representation of public and individual issues and needs to ensure the holistic wellbeing and best interests of ALL citizens and communities.

Such images listed above calls for what I have termed ‘New Conscious Conversations’ between the public, (citizens) and political leaders, to consciously look at how we can best shape the future going forward. Imagining the kinds of relationships that this calls for to ensure that these conscious conversations are truly meaningful has profound implications for who WE are and the World WE are creating for generations to come. The responsibility is upon us to ask, to dare to dream and to so create ‘Compassionate Societies’.

Bernadette Phillips. MA., B.SocSc Dip/SocPol/Crim

Bernadette Phillips is Founder of NEW INSIGHTS FOR CHANGE and an Intuitive Coach, Social Scientist, Motivational Speaker, Conscious Educator, Social Entrepreneur, Poet and Writer, with over thirty years experience working with and in, Community, Business, Leadership and Education.

Website: www.newinsightsforchange.com / www.bernadettephillips.com 

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