The revolution is already here

If the pandemic has shown us anything, it is that we are not just living in a time of change, but actually in a change of times or eras. This was already going on for a while, look at waves of protests in the US and the Yellow Vests in France. The “old” structures of society and government no longer fit, no matter what some say about going “back to normal.” While we have no idea yet what will come our way, we do know that some kind of revolution will take place. If I am not mistaken, the revolution is already here. This is my personal take:

I have no idea what the revolution will mean for the UN, EU, NATO, IMF, the Dutch government and all the others. I can’t deal with the superstructures, though we should watch them crumble as they will (be careful what you wish for, though.) However, it will be messy and we should invest heavily in building alternative life-forms, communities of hope, networks for “renewal and resistance.” We cannot do any of this alone.

Needed: 1 a clear alternative story: An evocative manifesto that shows a clearly different story both about the root of the problem and regarding the solution(s). (a) What is the crisis? what does it have to do with (post)-modernity, etc? (b) And what is the alternative? A Christian platonism of sorts, but what does that look like? (c) Also: what can I do? read books together, talk and pray, build things, help people, etc. The Dark Mountain manifesto is a good example.

Needed: 2 platforms for dissemination and connection. We have plenty of ways to get the word out and to connect people with others. But social media can be monitored and blocked, so we need to build alternatives. Publish books, journals and manuals. Ideally everything should be available under a Creative Commons Attribution Share-alike license. Anyone should be able to find or download the Manifesto and start a group.

Needed 3: local groups. We need to find a way for people in the same area to connect, meet, exchange ideas, help each other, pray together, read and study together, learn Latin, lua or scything. Some will want to start a commune or monastery, others participate only in some events.

Needed 4: larger Gatherings. We need an international in-person event to go wide and deep. A festival to celebrate our freedom (in Christ), a summer school for study and training local facilitators, etc. Things will happen, experiments will fail, we will hurt, and we begin again.

The revolution is already here. I am not so sure about the future of powerful institutions, but I do know that there will be no resistance without renewal. We have to learn how to live well and teach others how to find the way.

Are you ready? I’m not ready either. Let’s connect.

(Photo by RODNAE Productions on https://www.pexels.com/photo/wood-art-street-dark-6257849/)