Why, to many people, we are incomprehensible ?

“On that day, Jesus left the house and sat by the lake. Immediately such great crowds gathered around him that he got into the boat and sat down, while all the people stood on the shore. And he spoke many things to them in parables, saying:

"Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he was sowing, some [seeds] fell on the road, and the birds came and devoured them. Others fell on rocky places where they had little soil; and immediately they sprang up, because the soil was not deep. But when the sun came up, they were scorched and withered, because they had no root. Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. Others finally fell on good ground and yielded crops, some a hundredfold, some sixtyfold, and others thirtyfold. He who has ears, let him hear!”[1].

Moments later, Christ explains the parable to his disciples:

“So, listen to the parable of the sower! To everyone who hears the word about the kingdom and does not understand it, the Evil One comes and snatches away what is sown in his heart. Such a man is the seed sown on the road. Sown on a rocky place means one who hears the word and receives it immediately with joy; but it has no root in it, but is unstable. When tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, he immediately breaks down. Sown among thorns means the one who hears the word, but worldly cares and the deceit of riches choke the word so that it becomes unfruitful. Finally sown on fertile ground, it means the one who hears the word and understands it. He also bears fruit: one a hundredfold, another sixtyfold, another thirtyfold.”[2]

Isn't it puzzling why people respond differently to the experience of knowing the truth? The learned man will shout - "free will!" – being right about it. However, this is not – despite its correctness – a fully exhaustive answer in the face of what we currently know about human nature[3]. This resource of information can be combined in an extremely interesting way with what Christ draws attention to his disciples. In the parable he compares people to soil. He divides recipients who reject the Good News into four categories:

- roads (feature: incomprehension),

- rocky places (feature: instability),

- thorny places (feature: attachment to the temporal and pursuit of wealth),

- fertile lands (features: listening and understanding).

This is quite remarkable - more than 2,000 years have passed since then, and this biblical description of human nature is still accurate. And it is he who is the answer to the current debate regarding our communication with society. There has been a recent emphasis on language adaptation and the use of modern media. These are wise pieces of advice on how to reach your audience - especially those who are like "roads". There is a danger here, however. A poorly understood postulate of adjusting the language may lead to a relativizing “discourse”. We should rather put emphasis on the clarity of the message, and not on accepting the linguistic constructs imposed on us by ideological circles. Respect for adversaries does not mean recognizing their opinion as consistent with reality, much less does it have to lead to the development of a “consensus”. We must use language wisely and responsibly, but we must not make any concessions in the fight for the truth.

As the above fragment of the Gospel indicates, in order to share our values, it is not enough to use appropriate language, technical means and the ability to use them. We need to go even deeper - into something that may seem elusive to us on a daily basis.

Note that in models of language communication[4] we do not have only the sender and what appears as a result of his action. What we want to tell someone about and show as good may be rejected for reasons other than clarity and quality of the message. So the next – and at the same time the most difficult – barriers that we need to overcome are in the recipient of the message. After all, people who are like "road" may not understand the content we provide for many other reasons. You need to find them as soon as possible! Is it the shortcomings created by a poorly organized education system, personal issues, or other obstacles? We cannot do anything without this knowledge. So too will it be with persons such as “thorn places” or “rocky places.” And it will never change - these are constant human flaws manifested in various historical contexts.

The teaching of this passage from the Bible, of course, cannot be treated pharisaically. In our thoughts and actions, let us remember that in fact we are all a bit (or worse - not just a bit!) Like a road, rocky places or thorny places. We are all torn by various vices, and we must strive to become like fertile lands, while working on the development of the rest of society.

Fertilizing human mind

Personally, I was moved by the fact that the above words of Christ are unusually connected with the Latin source of the word culture . As Fr. Mieczysław Krąpiec pointed out: “The expression 'culture' comes from the Latin language and originally meant 'farming'. […] quite early, since the time of Cicero, the expression «cultura» was used metonymically, to mean the culture of the spirit – «animi cultura»; and this was understood as the ennoblement of the human mind essentially through philosophy. Of course, such an understanding of the term "cultura" was to a large extent a continuation of what the ancient Greeks called παιδεία [paidéia], which was also the comprehensive "cultivation" and rational upbringing of man, in the individual and social aspect.[5]

Our principle must be the acquisition and use of knowledge about the "cultivation" of man. When hostile ideologies seek to deconstruct society in such a wicked way as messing with the educational model, we need to learn their mechanism of action, analyzing the postulates of their representatives in terms of the possible effects of their implementation. Let's just remember that this will not give us a positive program that needs to be constantly built. However, we do not have to reinvent the wheel. Today, we are helped by a huge body of work on human development. Let's reach for such authors as Erik Erikson, Jean Piaget, Lawrence Kohlberg and Lev Wygotsky. These are, of course, just sample figures - let's discuss, look for other voices or holes in the research and thoughts we found! Perhaps classical education will be useful in this work[6], referring to the concept of virtue forgotten by the world? We can be sure of one thing - getting to know the theological, philosophical, scientific, cultural and historical achievements should be an extremely important element of our self-education. Let us discover who we are by seeking the truth with faith and reason.

We should get rid of aesthetism [pięknoduchostwo] in our actions. It is naive to think that what is old and nice-sounding is good. Just because Marx had a beautiful beard doesn't make him a sage. Culture itself does not have to be inherently good - it can be evil and criminal. Did Arno Breker lack artistic talent, and the songs of the Alexandrov Choir were poorly performed? And can't a politician who embezzles public wealth or cheats on his wife lead a refined life, drinking expensive wine at banquets and listening to classical music? The fact that something is well done on the outside does not necessarily have to be good, true and beautiful in its content.

Another deplorable manifestation of aesthetism [pięknoduchostwo] is a ridiculous sense of elitism. The fact that someone goes to the theatre, wears well-tailored clothes and listens to niche works on some exotic website or reads ambitious titles, does not make him or her better than someone who participates in culture in a different way. If the latter is content with undemanding music on a daily basis[7] and at the same time can take responsibility for his loved ones, and the representative of the "elite" shows all the features of the Peter Pan syndrome, then there is really no need to waste pixels on the screen (or ink on paper), to indicate who is the more orderly person.[8]

To sum up - works of art are not supposed to raise the ego, but they should serve a man - in particular in his development. This applies to both the author and his audience. It can also open him up to true transcendence, for which various false concepts are poor substitutes. The renewal of souls, for which we have to fight, should go together with the careful mending of minds, broken by the modern world. Through internal ordering, man becomes immune to deceptive ideologies preying on human weaknesses. However, in order to do so, no one can remain passive. Building a positive program for culture is not a job only for artistic circles – it must belong to all people of good will.

Let's not destroy the art!

It is worth considering here what art is. Nowadays, it has been reduced only to artistic creation, which is a huge mistake. It and its creators were exalted above society, which made them break away from it, drifting in their beauty bubble. Let me again recall the words of Father Krąpiec, who recalled the true meaning of art during a conversation with Henryk Kieres:

“We have already pointed out that man, by updating the nature around him and updating himself in nature, by removing deficiencies, imitates nature in that he somehow rationally organizes it. So - as we said - on purpose, according to a certain plan. Art is not just informed performance, as it is in a computer. […] A man who creates can constantly correct himself, constantly improve himself. It is an understanding imitation. According to the plan, the artist arranges a certain material in such a way that it fulfills the intended purpose”. [9]

A moment later, Fr. Krąpiec also pointed out: “So there is an internal urge to understand that I can contribute something to the existing reality. I notice some deficiencies in this reality (personal, general, social) and through my activities I fill them. I complement them with my creativity, which manifests itself in various ways. Logic fills these gaps in a different way, a doctor differently, and an artist differently”. [10]

Such an understanding of art leads to a simple conclusion - every human work is needed if it is directed at the good of another human being. Thus, both a person working in a factory, a school teacher or a mechanic servicing vehicles in his workshop deal with art. Of course, in our everyday use, the word "art" refers more to issues related to artistry. Even if we make such a reduction, we should have a broader definition at the back of our minds. It is she who can save the creator's soul from pride.

An artist is priceless - just like every human being is priceless because of his inherent and inalienable dignity. So the end of admiration for the moral fall of creators, which was so loved by salons and used in a hyena-like way by the media, must come to an end. The artist is only (and as much as!) a part of the great social mosaic, to whose glorious service he is enlisted.

When creating art, we should also be guided by the quality of its execution, which should be in line with its usefulness. This is especially evident in works of art. Holding a stylus, brush, pen, tablet or other working tool, it is worth for the artist to have these clear words of the Trappist Father Thomas Merton in the back of his mind: “A Catholic poet should be an apostle by the fact that he will first be a poet, and not try to be a poet by being first and foremost an apostle. For if he presents himself to the people as a poet, he will be judged as a poet, and if he is not good, his apostleship will be ridiculed . "[11]

Of course, you also cannot be completely paralyzed by fear of judgment - the same author notes a few lines above: “If a writer is so careful that he never writes anything that can be criticized, he will never write anything that is readable. If you want to help other people, you must choose to write things that will be condemned by many .”[12]

Let us never forget what is really important - the artist should remember about the orthodoxy of his faith, which, by organizing his relationship with God, directs him towards the good. Every artist will stand before Him and account for his work. The British writer and thinker Gilbert Keith Chesterton observed that: “In the end, it doesn't matter whether we wrote well or poorly; whether we fought with a sword or a flail. It will be important which side we fought on”[13].

Many valuable comments on the artist's workshop were also made by Andrzej Trzebiński - a poet of the Columbus generation , co-creator and third editor-in-chief of Art and Nation - who in his ethical guidelines for artists included the following thought: “The lively style of the artist (style, but not mannerism) is probably one of the highest ethical categories in art. The artist's style is the fruit of many sacrifices, self-crossings, it is proof of a fixed, though living, system of values ​​inherent in the artist. The true style requires the inner composition of a man, the creation of his own, crystallized personality, the choice of one - and the most valuable - from among endless possibilities. And here a window could be made for the educational role of art in life. In order to compose well, one has to be someone in life, someone who has not been realized yet, but in any case a potential one”[14].

No pain, no gain

If an artist - or anyone else - wants to produce well-made goods, and at the same time containing content that builds another human being, he must be aware that he faces a difficult task. In the process of creation, the artist submits to an internal compulsion. However, it is not a skill we are born with. Such a mechanism of self-motivation develops in us during the upbringing process[15]. If we want to build culture, we must, above all, emphasize the development of this potential in man.

Efficiently functioning self-motivation in man is also a way for him to gain freedom. Of course, the most important thing for human development is freeing oneself from his weaknesses - a person locked in prison can be much freer than a person who is free. However, if he wants to survive, he needs goods - this is a biological necessity. Only they can guarantee him freedom to act. These goods can be obtained in two basic ways[16] - by stealing and by exchanging goods on the market. Self-motivation allows him to participate in the production process, thanks to which he can obtain means for survival - this means that he will be able to satisfy needs in a way that does not deprive others of their properties.

If we do not want culture to be evil in its content, it should condemn theft. And in order for this not to be an empty postulate, it is essential that we include work in the ethos of our society. Properly shaped awareness, reminding us that freedom is not free, should free us from the chains of passivity. And if we want to speak to the public, we need a plan of action.

"Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."[17]

In order to create favorable conditions for a culture that will be defined by the developmental influence on man, we must strengthen the influence of the transcendent and absolute justification for rejecting theft. It was deeply embedded in people's thinking centuries ago, above all[18] through the missionary nature of the Church community. Many examples can be given of this. This was clearly shown, among others, by the discovery of America and its colonization by Europeans. There was a clash between the supporters of Indian slavery and its opponents[19]. It was also attended by Pope Paul III, who in the bull Sublimis Deus announced:

“We who are unworthy to represent our Lord's authority on Earth, seeking with all our might to bring those sheep of his flock now outside to the fold entrusted to our care, nevertheless consider the Indians to be real people, not only able to understand Catholic faith, but according to what we know, eager to receive it. […] Indians and all other people who may later be discovered by Christians must in no way be deprived of their liberty or possession of their property, even while remaining outside of faith in Jesus Christ. And they can and should and legally and freely enjoy their freedom and what they have. They cannot be imprisoned in any way, and if such a thing were to happen, it would be null and void and therefore could not be enforced.”[20]

It is this striving to stop the darkest human impulses, written in the teaching of the Church, that is the antidote to the ongoing activities of the anti-culture. That is why we should unite around it today.

Let's not hide it - we have different ideas, we profess different political doctrines and in a different way we assess the current situation of the Church community, the pontificate of Pope Francis and the last council. However, we are ousted from artistic life by salons because of the values ​​we profess. And this process is likely to deepen. It is the Catholic Social Teaching and the morality flowing from the doctrine of the Church that will allow us to survive the most difficult time. We should be extremely careful when using this treasure - the teaching office does not belong to us. We cannot claim a monopoly on this heritage by saying that we are "the only voice of the Church." As artists, aesthetes, and cultural researchers, we have a different role to play.

So what should we do?

Let us point out that a lot of potential is wasted in our environments or in our immediate surroundings. Authors create interesting art, but it often ends up at the bottom of a drawer, only to disappear forever. We also have people who run interesting social media pages, but they do not always have a large reach. The goal of society should be to build initiatives that can release this dormant power by creating space for it. Another element is the deepening of research on upbringing and the implementation of this knowledge.

We, as Rylec, want to be a part of this process - we will accept those who want to improve themselves with their art/cultural journalism/building facilities and share it with other people for their good. The candidate must fully accept the morality deriving from the doctrine of the Church, and make every effort to bear witness to this with his own life. In addition, they should be able to respect the multiplicity of views on various issues within the group and be able to define their own identity without falling into relativism. In particular, a person inspired by classical Marxism and its later mutations or the alt-right cannot become a member of the group. These ideologies destroy humanity by depriving people of moral restraints. Hate cannot be tolerated.

The names of our enemies

In many discussions about the dismantling of society, it is very easy to point to the culprits. These are specific names, corporations, platforms, parties, organizations, sometimes even countries. It is impossible to deny some conclusions - it would be arguing with the facts. However, simply focusing on this is not fruitful and can even lead to frustration at not being able to change the situation.

At the same time, it is forgotten that even a revolution by force will not change our position too much. Why? It's just that in culture it's like in the market - we have supply and demand. If the society is susceptible to manipulation because the model of upbringing and education does not provide it with the knowledge needed to assess the effects of their views, only the logotype of the "reigning" will simply change.

The real names of our main enemies have been the same for centuries - they are: pride, greed, impurity, gluttony, jealousy, anger, laziness. If we want to save what is most valuable to us, we must see how these defects manifest themselves today and be able to indicate their impact on the aspect of human development.

And we have a lot of problems today and it's hard to list them in one breath. Among them we can find the debasement of language (even in public debate!). Refusal to work for the nation. Spreading the concept of "hate speech" instead of focusing on respect for other people. Normalizing divorce and promiscuous life through series and literature that deepen the crisis of the family. Lack of respect for parenthood and the spread of anti-natalist attitudes or eugenic thinking. Consent to mobbing and bullying. Misunderstanding of people with mental disorders/diseases and their ideological exploitation. Marginalization of the poor and the disabled. Lack of respect for nature or, on the contrary, exalting it above man. The popularity of stimulants and many, many other burning issues.

"If I spoke with the tongues of men and angels, and had not love, I would become like tinkling brass or a clanging cymbal."[21]

In the first place of this infamous list, one should probably put the objectification of man, which in its "higher" form manifests itself in the prevalence of pornography[22]. Treating the other person as a means - and often an economic means - rather than an end, leads to a lot of hurt. There are phenomena such as the dehumanization of workers in the field of language[23] or derogatory sexualization in marketing images or simply in everyday behavior towards the opposite sex. And perhaps, among others the latter problem has its roots in contemporary feminism and alt-right masculinism. Of course, both sides make different arguments that are worth looking at - but the movements themselves create a senseless atmosphere of war of the sexes. It is impossible not to see an analogy here with the situation in the 19th century, when Leo XIII in the encyclical Rerum Novarum said:

“It is a fundamental error in the matter we are talking about to believe that the two classes are inherently opposed to each other, as if nature itself had armed the rich and the proletariat for the final struggle against each other. This is so contrary to reason and reality that the exact opposite is true; for just as the individual members of the human body, despite their diversity, harmonize with each other, and thus form a harmonious ensemble, so also in human society these two classes are destined by nature to be united in harmony and to correspond to each other in balance . They absolutely need each other, and neither capital without labor nor labor without capital can exist. Concord makes things beautiful and creates order; on the contrary, from uninterrupted struggle always arises a confusion of savage conflicts.”[24]

And just as the proposal of love and mutual respect between social classes in need of each other,  reaches a certain level of abstraction, so transferring this postulate to solving the problem of the struggle of the sexes, acquires - from the human perspective - direct tangibility. This makes it an extremely attractive challenge to frame it in an artistic framework.

Author: Szymon Kozieja

Translator: Sebastian Waldemar Wierzbicki

https://rylec.pl/szymon-kozieja-kierunki-pracy-ku-kulturze/

[1] Matthew 13:1-9.

[2] Matthew 13:18-23.

[3] Nowadays, these issues are dealt with by such fields as psychology, pedagogy, neurosciences and cognitive science, as well as related research directions. Of course, you need to be able to sift the author's worldview from his findings on reality - knowledge of the scientific method is useful for this.

[4] Among others the popular model of Roman Osipowicz Jacobson.

[5] Mieczysław Krąpiec, Człowiek i kultura, Lublin 2008, p. 9. The formatting of the quote has been changed to make it consistent with the rest of the text without damaging the content

[6] In Poland, especially promoted by Dariusz Zalewski.

[7] It is also worth taking care of this – by some – pop culture, which is despised. Leaving her alone is the greatest folly. Of course, the core should be demanding high culture, but it will not reach every recipient to whom valuable content can be conveyed.                

[8] “It is rightly said, therefore, that a man becomes just by acting justly, and temperate by acting moderately; [...] People, however, generally do not act in this way, but resorting to verbal considerations, they think that they are doing philosophy, and thus they will reach a high ethical level; they behave like sick people who listen carefully to what the doctor says, but do not follow any of his prescriptions” after: Aristotle, Etyka nikomachejska, crowd. and ed. Daniela Gromska, p. 53.

[9] Henryk Kiereś, Mieczysław Krąpiec, O sztuce: Z Ojcem prof. Mieczysławem A. Krąpcem rozmawia Henryk Kiereś, Lublin 2012, pp. 38-39.

[10] Ibid., p. 40.      

[11] Thomas Merton, Posiew kontemplacji, Kraków 1982, p. 74.

[12] Ibid., p. 40.

[13] Gilbert Keith Chesterton, All Things Considered , New York 1958, p. 8.

[14] Andrzej Trzebiński, Stosunek artysty do rzeczywistości, "Życie i Myśl", vol. 7-8 (1969),  p. 69, https://cbmn.pl/andrzej-trzebinski/sztuka-i-narod.html[access: 19.12. 2020].

[15] More on this topic can be found in: Krzysztof Karoń, Historia Antykultury 1.0: Podstawy Podstawy wiedzy społecznej, Warszawa 2019, pp. 51-56.

[16] Others are gifts, inheritances, etc

[17] Mt 25:40.

[18] Christianity allows you to break down the dividing lines between communities - if someone is from a "foreign tribe", it does not mean that he is an enemy.

[19] Some scientific papers have already been published on this topic - for those interested, it is worth reaching for: Tomasz Szyszka, Zarys historii ewangelizacji Meksyku od XVI do XVII wieku, "Annales Missiologici Posnanienses", vol. 24 (2019), pp. 7-30 and Adam Wielomski , Państwo suwerenne w teorii prawa międzynarodowego Francisco de Vitorii, " Polski Przegląd Stosunków Międzynarodowych", vol. 7 (2017),  pp. 5-41.

[20] Paul III, Sublimis Deus, https://pl.soc.religia.narkive.com/RdQLw8Yv/pawe-iii-encyklika-sublimus-dei-1537-o-indianach [accessed December 19, 2020].

[21] 1 Corinthians 13:1.

[22] In order to broaden the knowledge about this underestimated threat, it is worth reaching for the publication available online: Podsumowanie literatury i badań naukowych wskazujących na negatywne konsekwencje korzystania z pornografii w kontekście ochrony dzieci i młodzieży, Warsaw 2019.

[23] For example, in corporate newspeak, terms such as "human capital", "human resources" are used.

[24] Leo XIII, Rerum Novarum, 15.