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The American Soul
8/17/08
Is it plausible to believe that our Nation, comprised of immigrants from every corner of the planet, has a unified soul? A soul that is greater than our individual heritage, greater than our individual religious beliefs and moral compasses and if so, what are our individual sacrifices to insure the viability of a National Soul?
But what is a National Soul and how does it differ from Human Soul? Surely, when a Nations time comes to pass, it’s fundamental core does not rise unto the heavens nor consigned to the abyss of Hell. Like the Human soul, it is not part of the physical world, and yet like our souls, it is capable of emotion. Emotion as in when citizens cry out in unison against injustice, regardless of their differences. But how can this be when injustice to some is not to all? How can this be when injustice is pointed out by those who have suffered by its hands, and not by those who have never suffered the hard hand of injustice. Is it a single loud cry of those who have suffered who define the American soul?
I could offer an argument that our National Soul lies in the words of our constitution and is derived from the belief that “All men are created equal”. I could argue too that it is our history that defines our ‘soul’. The problem is, most Americans are actually unfamiliar with both the words of our founding fathers and our history as well. Quick, what were the dates of the civil war?
I could also claim, and easily, that our ‘soul’ as a nation is defined by our media. That we cry out as a nation when an injustice is covered far and wide, that we are aggrieved when we are commanded to be aggrieved. Yet this is not our soul, it is a manipulation of our ‘soul’.
Perhaps the root of who we are as a people is in who we elect to public office, from the local level to the Presidency. Perhaps our current federal administration is nothing but an anomaly. The truth is, The Bush administration is a reflection of where people were eight years ago, but how times change.
Is it possible parts of the above work together to define our National Soul, that like a machine, we are the sum of all our parts and that when individual parts start to show wear, efficiency is lost or worse, the machine just comes to a glaring stop. The problem here than, is in identifying what part is about to give out and where would you like to point the finger?
No, it’s none of the above and like our own personal souls, we don’t know a lot about them and all individuals struggle to define exactly what a soul is, and that definition is steeped in religious beliefs.
Hazarding a guess, I think our National Soul is not defined, cannot be described by religious beliefs simply because it is not a living, breathing entity. That said, our soul is defined in human terms in way of our actions. Not necessarily our political actions or our moral outcries, but our daily actions at an individual level. Every time I open my mouth, write an article or hold a door open for someone, I am embodying the American soul. I give credence to the belief that our Nation has not only worth and value, but a living, breathing soul. The American Soul is a quiet one by nature and dwells in the simplicity of mankind, in the core beliefs that reside without the need of morals and religion, without the need of politics and entertainment. It is that fundamental core that gave rise to the Constitution as well Religion and such things as morality and ethics. Our nature is simply the desire to try to do what is right.
There are those who claim our soul is becoming diluted with an influx of immigrants, a loss in morals and a movement away from God. Perhaps! But I cannot deride another man because of their color or their heritage or because their belief system is far different than mine.
That is simply not right.
That is not to say I am not concerned, that it does not bother me when I see my way of life disappearing, because it does bother me immensely. But if what follows my way of life is better for all humanity, for all Americans and there comes a greater degree of equality across the board for all Americans, I will sacrifice my way of life because all things come to pass for a reason, often with much pain to the soul.
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