Journal of Sacred Work

   A person with ubuntu is open and available to others, affirming of
others, does not feel threatened that others are able and good, for he
or she has a proper self-assurance that comes from knowing that he or
she belongs in a greater whole and is diminished when others are
humiliated or diminished, when others are tortured or oppressed.  – Bishop Desmond Tutu (left)

   So often when we hear a story from some part of Africa, it is a story laced with sadness. Images of the beautiful country of Kenya are now sometimes edged with reports of starvation in the north. The suffering and food riots in Somalia are beyond our comprehension. Warring tribes scar the country east to west and in its interior. Amid this strife, a word that represents a hopeful philosophy for caregivers rises into our consciousness…

   The word Ubuntu arose from the Bantu language in southern Africa. But it is the philosophy that can be so meaningful to all of us. 
   The first maxim of this beautiful belief system says: To be human is to affirm one’s humanity by recognizing the humanity of
others and, on that basis, establish respectful human relations with
them.

   South African President Nelson Mandela (left) is an eloquent spokesperson for this philosophy of Love. As you may know, his long imprisonment under the prior regime of apartheid in South Africa laid the foundation for his ability to be a leader who is both tough-minded and tender-hearted. When he rose to power, he negotiated peacefully and respectfully with the very same regime that has imprisoned and tortured both him and so many of his fellow South Africans.
   The center of this teaching for caregivers is clear and powerful. When we honor people in patient gowns, we are affirming our humanity. When we demean others, we are demeaning ourselves.
   The hierarchy of hospitals and charities can cause some caregivers to condescend to each other as well as to the poor and vulnerable. I have heard countless leaders refer to first line staff members as "the lower level employees." They may intend to refer to pay levels, but it is clear that many of these people are also thinking that first line employees are somehow "less than" those who lead them.
   The concept and the language of Ubuntu are gradually working their way into our notoriously Euro-centric American culture. An example of this is the Boston Celtics professional basketball team. Whenever they break their huddles, they chant the word Ubuntu.
   In the middle of our caregiving work, the wisdom of Ubuntu is a light that shines from a continent that used to be referred to as "darkest Africa." Love brings light wherever life affirms her.

-Erie Chapman