by Rabbi Josh Knobel
As emergency responders and volunteers still struggle to provide immediate relief to stranded, separated, and grieving families in Houston, an impatient nation has already started to piece together the story of Hurricane Harvey and its devastation.
Unfortunately, as is often the case, even before news of those trapped or killed by the hurricane appeared, the on-air pundits of every political persuasion once again began to pound their platforms and transformed a humanitarian crisis into a partisan sideshow by lending their efforts toward finding fault rather than mobilizing an effective response.
To be fair, the story of Harvey contains plenty of fault, from the short-sightedness of our environmental policies, our civic planning systems, and our emergency response protocols to an economy that often places the impoverished at the epicenter of natural disasters.
However, as families hang in the balance, we would better serve those in need by looking towards our religious, rather than our political leadership, for inspiration. From churches to synagogues to mosques, American religions have responded to Harvey by convincing us to ignore political and social boundaries to save lives and alleviate suffering. Perhaps, in this era of political bifurcation, religion can help us create a culture that prizes human dignity above provincial and political concerns, leading us toward a future where we need not find blame with our response to the challenges that await us.
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