Forget the infrastructure in the Western world. That is not really what makes them great people. I won’t strictly use skyscrapers and fancy mansions to evaluate the greatness of a nation.
Forget the good roads. Forget the constant electricity and the beautiful landscapes and cars. For me, it is just the basics of a normal society. I won’t consider that as a mark of greatness.
What makes the West great, in my evaluation, is its high sense of civility. Generally, people treat each other with mutual respect. There is courtesy, and people respect you for who you are and not based on what you have.
There could be one or two exceptions, but it does not override the basics.
More so, there is this sense of order and orderliness. There is this sense of cleanliness and people taking responsibility for their surroundings. People cut their lawns regularly.
I attended a gathering filled with so many Whites. People did not litter the venue. None I could remember. There are waste bins at strategic places and people make sure they dump their waste properly. And if you visit their public toilet, it is always sparkling clean and smelling nice.
When it is queuing time, everyone is in the queue regardless of who you are. Even while driving, when the traffic light is not working, once you get to the junction, you must stop and wait for any vehicle that was there before you to go first. When I visited Indiana, I was in a small city that is generally not busy. But everyone driving followed the traffic light even when they happened to be the only vehicle on the road.
Then on noise and disturbance, I never for once heard Muslims calling for prayers with microphones outside the mosque. I never heard Christians shouting during prayers. I am not exaggerating. Even in the popular Lakewood church in Houston, you need to enter inside to hear what is going on.
I celebrated masses in many states in the US and once you enter the church, the doors are locked. Anyone outside will not hear any sound coming out from the church.
One Sunday, I preached in Allentown, Pennsylvania; I was as gentle and calm as I thought I could be, even though I knew I had a loud voice. After mass, a five-year-old boy whose parents came to greet me asked me why I was shouting. He said I could have still made my point without shouting. That feedback from such a small boy stayed with me for the rest of the masses I celebrated in the US.
There is this gentleness to life and respect for time. Masses are one hour. Homilies are 10 minutes. The shorter the better. People don’t act on presumption. They ask your permission even to shake hands with you.
In our case, we are different. We have our good part too, but we are generally harsh to ourselves, and we struggle and fight for literally everything. It does not make us live long. We intimidate each other and oppress one another. We do not respect the space and mental well-being of the next person. Nothing is regulated; people do whatever they feel like, and it is normal. People can build bars, churches, or mosques, in your neighbourhood and use loudspeakers to disturb everyone. If you complain, they look at you as though you are possessed.
Even our government don’t respect us. It is actually the respect the Govt of the Western world has for their citizens that pushes them to build good roads and make sure no one is without electricity.
By Rev. Fr. Kelvin Ugwu
