Reflection: What is clear to me about blurring
Growing up in the 1950s, I played with “trucks and cars”. When I added a new vehicle to my collection, I instinctively knew whether it was a “truck” or a “car”.
Then, over time, the distinction between trucks and cars faded and evolved.
But that’s not the only instance of the blurring of lines of distinction.
Think about it:
- Professional sports vs. amateur sports
- Work time vs. vacation time
- Casual attire vs. dress attire.
More examples of blurred lines?
If we eat breakfast cereal at a time other than the morning (as do a significant number of Americans), is it still correct to call it “breakfast food”?
That raises another question: What is “food”?
If a label says an item has artificial coloring, artificial flavors and virtually no nutritional value, should we still call it “food”?
And then there are those ubiquitous electronic devices that most of us carry around all the time that blur lines by serving as a phone, communications device, learning tool, camera, flashlight and more.
For some, spotting blurs can become a type of game. For instance, if a health care practitioner is
able to earn a doctorate degree in nursing, should we address that nurse as “Doctor”?
However, blurring can be very serious. With the onslaught of Artificial Intelligence, will we be able to distinguish between what is factual and what constitutes fake news?
And what about actual photographs vs. fake images?
What does blurring have to do with faith and religion? Actually, a lot. Consider how some have blurred the line between male and female.
What’s more, blurring has led to a redefining of marriage by segments of our society.
Each distinction that is erased makes it easier to eventually obliterate all distinctions. But it is “the big one” that troubles keen observers of society — and it’s the one that worries me.
This tendency to blur everything logically leads to erasing the line between what is right and what is wrong. That is “the big one”. In other words, the blurring of all lines of distinction transforms, for example, the Ten Commandments into a historically interesting, simple list of “suggestions”.
While cryptocurrency (such as Bitcoin) continues to blur the definition of money, here are some fundamentals that I personally find clear:
Direction is given through the message of Jesus in the Gospel;
Guidance is provided through the teachings of the Catholic Church;
Inspiration is delivered through the example of the saints; and
Support is offered by the community of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity parish.
For me, these are realities, they are not blurry, and my hope is that they will stay this way.
Ron Polaniecki
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