LESSONS FROM THE OSCARS, 2022

Everyone looks forward to the Oscars!
From the red carpet fashion fiesta to the thrilling award nominations, right until the final results everything has a special aura about it.
However, this year the showstopper was the unexpected faceoff between Chris Rock and Will Smith.
Those present at the ceremony were caught by surprise and many around the world were taken aback by Will’s reaction to a rather dull-witted joke made by Chris.
Everyone is now debating whether Will was right or wrong, what should have happened and what shouldn’t have.
Some are justifying Will’s actions, while several are opposing them. Many others are taking a rather neutral stand.
But think about the entire incident for a while and ask yourself, what lessons can we draw from the fiasco at the Oscars,2022?

Here are a few to get you started…

  1. CHECK YOUR TONGUE

    Chris had a choice when he was speaking about Jada.
    For something as big as the Oscars, anyone would have planned and penned down and even memorized their scripts, so Chris probably planned this out as a part of his set, of course the outcome didn’t sum up to what was expected. Chris was loose with his tongue and he faced a very awkward situation as a result of it. We always have a choice when it comes to our words. Words are powerful. Words can build or tear down people. Proverbs 18:21 says
    “The tongue has the power of life and death”, which is why we must always calculate the impact of our words before we set our tongue loose,  in fact, we must always check our thoughts and our speech and never choose to let our tongue loose.

     

  2. CHECK YOUR HUMOUR

    What is the purpose of humour? To lighten a moment, to bring a smile on someone’s face? Sadly, the humour we have grown used to has many devious connotations today. Stand up comedy and humour in popular circles thrive on mockery and ridicule. Today, Some of the best stand up artists are those who prefer duality with their words, strip people apart with their monologues and are regular users of profanity. Since when did we become okay with belittling someone else? Since when did someone’s health condition become a point of leverage to garner cheers and laughter? Surprisingly, Chris made an insensitive joke about Jada and then he had the audacity to justify his joke in the name of entertainment. It’s never okay to walk all over the lives of people without knowing their stories. Philippians 4:8,9 says Finally,… whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me–put it into practice. Can we choose to enjoy humour that isn’t based on ridicule and mockery?  We must choose humour that builds up someone. Chris’ humour at the Oscars represents a low level of insensitivity that we have towards each other. There are so many memes today, about the reaction of Hollywood superstars when Will smacked Chris, If only there would have been a similar reaction when Chris cracked the unsolicited joke on Jada. We must rethink and reset our humour!

  3. CHECK YOUR ACTIONS

    In the apology that Will Smith issued after his outbreak at the Oscars he wrote “I deeply regret that my behavior has stained what has been an otherwise gorgeous journey for all of us,” he wrote. “I am a work in progress.”. Our actions are very important indicators of who we are on the inside. Which is why we need to check our actions regularly. It was Anthony of Padua who said “Actions speak louder than words; let your words teach and your actions speak.”
    We all are a work in progress and you must consistently ask yourself the question ‘Are my actions contradicting my words?’. Let’s notch that up a level higher ‘Do people remember me for what I did or for who I am?.

Regardless of who is right or wrong and what disciplinary actions will be taken by the academy, we are responsible for both our words and our actions. When we are emotionally perturbed we can say and do things that we do not mean. The best thing to do is to process our thoughts, words and actions lest we become irresponsible with them.  It is best to remind ourselves that we are God’s masterpieces created for good works (Ephesians 2:10). May we always strive to be the best, in order to bring out the best in others.

THE STING OF WAR

Did you know that in a single sting, a King Cobra can deliver enough venom to kill twenty people. In one bite the King Cobra can bring down a gigantic elephant. The snake’s venom is said to affect the respiratory centers in the brain, causing respiratory arrest and cardiac failure. The King Cobra’s venom can severely damage the nervous system of one’s body. 

Now multiply the damage caused by a cobra’s bite into a thousand times and you have the destruction that war brings. ‘The Sting of War’ is a reality that we cannot run away from. History is proof of how dangerous wars can be 

Today, as two nations in our world are at war, the damage that is already caused is just the beginning. Bertrand Russel rightly pointed out “War does not determine who is right – only who is left”. As nations stand by and watch and the World Councils advise and aid peace conversations and peace operations we need to remember that the Sting of War must be quickly acted upon because:

1.The Sting of war aids Death and Destruction 

Nations can converse, and policies can be formed but we cannot go back and recover the lives that were lost and we cannot restore property and national heritage that war has taken away from countries. Wars are clothed in drapes of doom and chaos. Lives are reduced to numbers and realities erased. Families are torn apart and fatalities are inevitable. If Syria and Iran have not taught us a lesson yet, we have either turned blind or we have become cold in our hearts to the point of insensitivity. When we hear about the number of lives lost and injured does our heart still skip a beat? Or do we treat news today like fodder for our social media?

John Steinbeck says “All war is a symptom of man’s failure as a thinking animal”.

In the words of Jesus in John 10:10 – Jesus says “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Are we going to allow the enemy to kill, steal and destroy in the guise of war?
No…we cannot be okay with the death and destruction caused by war, we cannot be okay with the Sting of War.

 

2.The Sting of War normalizes Violence 

Men and women take up weapons and put themselves on the frontlines of the war. Shoot at sight? Fight in defense? Fight in offense? The war may last for a certain time, but dependence on that weapon will last for a lifetime. I think that is what Jesus meant when he said in  Matthew 26:52  “for all who draw the sword will die by the sword. 

War normalizes violence.  The thought-pattern “A tooth for a tooth and an eye for an eye’ is justified by war. Nations will form alliances and some will support and some will condemn and millions of dollars will be poured into defense mechanisms either for or against one of the warring nations. 

These same millions of dollars can be used to eradicate the epidemic of  poverty and hunger, but they would rather be used to fuel war and normalize violence. 

Sin in its worst form manifests in the form of violence in a war!

Violence begets a lifestyle and a lifestyle lasts beyond a generation. That is how dangerous violence is. Violence consumes!

And we must take the words of Jesus in Matthew 26:52 very seriously when he says “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him, “For all who draw the sword will die by the sword.”

Our hearts were created for love, not for war!

Are we going to allow the enemy to kill, steal and destroy in the guise of war?
No…we cannot be okay with the normalizing of violence caused by war, we cannot be okay with the Sting of War.

3.The Sting of War scars Generations 

 A mother loses her son, a husband loses his family, a child becomes an orphan and generations are left reeling in the aftermath of wars. When nuclear weapons are used in war, radiation will be emitted and the two warring nations along with the surrounding nations and the entire world will bear the consequences of irresponsible power struggle. The sad reality is that – 

“As people with ammunitions increase, people with amputations will also increase.”

A son or a daughter will hate their neighboring country, because their father was robbed from them. A innocent young life will be consumed with hatred and revenge because their mother was raped Infront of them. The scars of war will seed future rivalry. 

 Mahmoud Darwish in talking about war commented “The war will end, and leaders will shake hands. That old woman will keep waiting for her martyred son. And those children will keep waiting for their hero father. I don’t know who sold our homeland, but I saw who paid the price…”

“One generation will be lost in war but many generations will be scarred by war.”

War will generate refugees and it will displace families in thousands. A generation scarred with war is mentally and emotionally traumatized. 

H.G. Wells says, “If we don’t end war, War will end us”.

Psalm 145:4 says “One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts.”

Our generations should have the privilege of entrusting the next generation with good stories, good stories of God’s goodness. 

It is a shame on us if our stories and the works of our generation are painted alongside the canvas of a cruel war. 

Our hearts were created to dream and hope and not for generational scars.

Are we going to allow the enemy to kill, steal and destroy in the guise of war?
No…we cannot be okay with generations carrying scars caused by war, we cannot be okay with the Sting of War.

The only cure to a venomous bite of a King Cobra is an antivenom.

The antivenom for war is ‘Peace’.

Peace should be the anthem for us in a war-torn world. Peace is powerful, we need peace over war. We need peace outside in the world and we need peace upon the war in our hearts. 

Jesus says in John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid”. That is why Isaiah 9:6 says Jesus is the ‘Prince of Peace’. 

Our sincerest desire is for the  war to end, we pray that no more  lives will not be lost and we hope for nations and world leaders to  find the peace that Jesus promises. 

May we never become comfortable with The Sting of War.

Our world needs peace!