Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe recently published a new book of essays. Achebe is internationally known for his classic 1958 novel “Things Fall Apart.”” It is the story of Okonkwo, a wrestler and husband living in a Nigerian village and trying to make sense of his changing world shaped by Igbo culture, British colonialism, and Christian missionaries. The title of his novel comes from a poem by W.B. Yeats, which contains the famous lines: “Things fall apart; the center cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.”
It is a compelling image, this idea that things are changing and risk collapsing upon themselves when the “center cannot hold.” We are living in incredible times, in which change happens dramatically and exponentially. Growth in areas of technology and communication are unfolding around us with dizzying speed. I recently saw a short video by Sony, which pointed out that it took 38 years for radio to reach 50 million listeners and 13 years for television to reach 50 million viewers. But the same threshold of 50 million users was reached by the Internet in only four years, by the iPod in three years, and by Facebook in just two years. It also suggested that the top ten in-demand jobs today did not even exist in 2004, so that students today are actually being trained for work that will use technology not even invented yet. It boggles the mind!
Given both the speed and nature of change today, it is realistic to wonder whether the “center” can hold things together. I would define the “center” as the core values, ethics, and faith perspectives that unite humankind. We believe in God who is Lord of all times, and who commands us to love the Lord and love our neighbor as ourselves. We believe that a commitment to sacrificial love, coupled with the gift of God’s grace, are the two things that give shape to our lives and hope for the future. This wonderful truth was fully embodied in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In our lives as Christians, it is this “center” that holds things together.
Yet, are the changing times weakening our grasp of the “center”? Are we more influenced by the latest technology than guided by a God who never gets outdated? In Achebe’s new book, he makes this astute observation: “Without doubt, the times in which we live influence our behavior, but the best or merely the better among us … are never held hostage by their times.”
That is the sentiment of Lent, the church season we are now celebrating. Lent is a time to re-focus on the “center” of things in a world spinning and changing at ever-increasing speeds. Lent is a time to see all that is around us through the lens of Christ’s story. Lent is a time to remember that the best among us are never held hostage by their times. That last statement is for you and me. For in Christ, we are “the best or merely the better among us,” not by our own efforts, but thanks to the indwelling grace of God. If it seems that anarchy is loosed upon the world, don’t forget that God’s spirit also is loose to make sure that God’s will, will be done. The center holds! Trust that, with God, all things are possible!