Compassion

Our pastor shared this story in a sermon and I thought it was worth passing on. 

The great anthropologist, Margaret Mead, was once asked by a student, “What is the earliest sign of civilization in any given culture?” The student expected her to say a clay pot, a grinding stone, maybe a weapon. But that’s not how Mead answered. To the question what is the earliest sign of civilization in any given culture, Mead said, “A healed femur.”

Mead went on to explain that no healed femurs are found where the law of the jungle—the survival of the fittest—reigns. A healed femur shows that someone cared for the injured, did that person’s hunting and gathering, stayed with that person, offered protection and companionship, until the injury could mend. It is this evidence of compassion, says Mead, which is the first sign of civilization.

By way of a parallel, the same thing is true within the church. The first sign of Christian civilization is not preaching or music or budding theology or organization. Rather, the first sign of Christian civilization is compassion,

how well we care for those who are wounded or injured, in body or soul;

how well we rally around that person in their time of need,

offering healing and comfort and protection and companionship until they are able to rise up and walk again.

Learning to live with compassion is an important part of becoming a sage.