Sancta Indifferentia

 This book is so timely, I don't know why it's not more popular.  Reading the Times: A Literary and Theological Inquiry into the News by Jeffrey Bilbro is a guide to keeping your sanity while being bombarded by TV, radio, video clips, podcasts, newspapers, magazines, blogs, tweets, Facebook, etc. vying to get your attention.  Bilbro describes how all this attention-getting information affects us.  It's too much, too loud. and all-together too mis-leading, making us judge--too fast.

Bilbro recommends that we approach everything with "sancta indifferentia."  IOW, "holy indifference."  In thinking about this, I think "sancta indifferentia," is how I approach my favorite mysteries.  I love reading Louise Penny mysteries.  I am interested, very interested in the crime.  But I'm not intensely upset by the crime because, well, I know it's fiction, besides Inspector Armand Gamache will solve the mystery.  The same with Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot.  That's how to approach the news.  Distance yourself; you can't do anything about it; it's part of God's plan; it's karma; it's kismet, it's cosmic justice, ca sera sera.

Another recommendation is to balance what you read with the opposite view.    Watch liberal and conservative news.  M er Iran, I wondered how come they're still shooting at our planes and ships. So, I turned the channel to Al Jazeera.  Al Jazeera was claiming victory over America.  Finally, I turned to BBC and got the "bare-boned" news.  The conflict was still on-going.  The USA was bombing all the military targets it could, and Iran had mined and closed the Strait of Hormuz.  So, who's winning? Well, let's call it a draw.  It's stalemated.  

Back to "sancta indifferentia."  Does it matter to you?  What can you do about it?   This too shall pass.  Ca sera sera. Don't get your knickers into a knot!

There are some people who are just incapable, unwilling, to read opposing views.  Bilbro said they are too entrenched in their identifying "tribe," "group," "party," "people."  They are incredulous that anybody could possibly disagree with their interpretation of "whatever."  If you showed them facts proving the opposite, they would not believe it.  They think the facts are falsehoods to trick you into thinking the opposite of what they believe. 

God bless them.

Speaking of God, Jeffrey Bilbro is a Senior Elder in his Luteran Church.  So, he recommends aligning oneself with reasonable, good, God-centered people.  They will help you keep your sanity.  Read what they read, listen to, and watch what your "tribe" does.  Start discussion groups.  You don't have to be a church goer.  Join a book club of like-minded, open people.  Read different books to discuss.  Have a Discussion group, like the Franklin Senior Center has. They conduct polite conversations on contemporary issues.  Have each member subscribe to different periodicals and talk about their readings.  Make sure to pass around and leave these magazines on the table, in the Senior Center.  As the author concludes, "...reading the news isn't good in and of itself, but ...it can be an instrumental good to journeying well with our Christian and non-Christian neighbors."