Many religious organizations show their unyielding theology and Male Centered Autocracy.
Large Corporations with their entrenched Corporate Culture.
We all face stumbling blocks within our lives and careers placed before us by others. Whether they are protecting their positions in an organization, or simply keeping the corporate or organization line, these people make our lives more difficult, stressful, and challenging.
The image is the first woman, or nonwhite, aboriginal, gay person allowed to become a member of a previously closed association. You’d think this would be a reason to celebrate, but surely these new entrants will suffer numerous difficulties before the organization they are members of will truly change. Like Rosa Parks, changing attitudes, that will allow a nonwhite to sit anywhere they like to on a bus took forever it seems. To say it is a struggle for all those on the bus seems crazy, but when one is dealing with seemingly nonbendable cultural and social rules, everyone involved suffers and struggles. Society can only change when the members of it struggle to change their beliefs and concerns from within. Often Fear and social pressures are the likely culprits that need to be dealt with on a personal and then community level. Most people do not want to share what they have, what they possess with others, whether that be status, a position in an organization, a cultural or social privilege, or personal ownership.
The Church of Rome will not let Women become Priests, mostly because of the financial costs such a move would have upon the Church. That and a man-made myth brought about by Kings, Emperors, and their Bishops hundreds of years ago at The Nicea Conference. Admitting that you wrong is sometimes not done. So rolls the Church. Men’s clubs such as those found in corporations, political parties, and social clubs will invite those who never were members, only when they are forced by social, political, and financial pressures. Social Media’s powerful pull also has a direct effect upon organizations that keep others out, creating an exclusiveness that can be oppressive. Image is after all everything these days.
I wanted to marry a young woman long ago who happened to be Canadian born of Chinese descent. Wow, the response I received that day I approached her parents. They opposed this relationship because I was not Chinese. Their tight, close-knit family unit tried to force me out for over a year. Only after much time did this family become family to me. Religious, cultural, and social myths, personal and social codes of conduct, and acceptance stand before us saying “stand back stranger”. It takes a great deal of courage, patience, and understanding to step forward and claim your prize. What is this prize?
The comedian Groucho Marx once proclaimed “I refuse to join a club that would have me as a member”. Perhaps we need to become members so we can change and assist these organizations in a better transformation. After all, if you see a stumbling block before you please remove it, if not for yourself then for those who will follow you.
Bradford, Ontario
skaszab@yahoo.
