Bread and circuses
"They’re eating the cats"
Wikipedia says, “This phrase originates from Rome in Satire X of the Roman satirical poet Juvenal (c. 100 AD). In context, the Latin panem et circenses (bread and circuses) identifies the only remaining interest of a Roman populace that no longer cares for its historical birthright of political involvement.”
People turn to bread and circuses when they are either utterly superficial beings or have simply given up hope for a better city. For some it’s a lack of social and emotional intelligence; in Christian terms a lack of virtue and character. For others it’s a form of depression that may be locked into place by cynicism and bathing in grievance over their real or imagined victimization.
We give ourselves to the offered diversion. We know it’s not real. We are in on the con. And this seems important — it is an alternative to political involvement.
In today’s Free Press Eli Lake explores one aspect of our current political culture. He goes after Donald Trump saying that he “is the greatest bullshitter of the modern age.” It’s an interesting take on things. I’d add that there is a certain amount of the same substance comes from the left in our nation, though they are frequently so humorless, so aggressively deadly serious, that they aren’t as effective at it. Here’s some of what Lake wrote -
“I used to think the proper response to Donald Trump’s bullshit was through the sober, fact-based lens of journalism. But, over the past decade, I’ve changed my mind. I now think that asking journalists to pour the best years of their lives into fact-checking him is as daunting and pointless as asking Siskel & Ebert to review the entire Pornhub back catalog. Most Trump supporters know it’s fake, and they don’t care. In fact, Trump’s propensity for bullshit is not a political liability, it’s a superpower.” He continues on comparing Mr. Trump to Reagan and Clinton (he shows little mercy for either), noting the influence of Norman Vincent Peale, and suggesting that lying and bullshitting are related but different. In the last he quotes Penn Jillette, the magician, “A lie is very respectful of the truth, in that it is denying it. And bullshit is saying anything that pops into your head.”
Lake picks up on the phrase attributed to P.T. Barnum, “a sucker’s born every minute’ … “but I suspect that much of his audience were not suckers. Maybe they knew that they were not actually seeing real mermaids, midget kings from faraway lands, or Washington’s ancient nanny. They just wanted to see what all the hype was about. They wanted a spectacle. It’s like people who attend magic shows. They know it’s not real. They’re in on the con.”
I found it all entertaining. That’s my bread and circus for today. In my political head I get torn. There is a fear that one candidate is a threat to liberal democracy and that both may not be up to dealing with the challenges the nation faces. Then I remind myself that the US has faced great challenges before, survived, and even expanded justice and liberty. And as always, there is this from Daniel Berrigan’s 1969 in “Quotations from Chairman Jesus’s”
I can only tell you what I believe. I believe.
I cannot be saved by foreign policies
I cannot be saved by sexual revolutions
I cannot be saved by the gross national product
I cannot be saved by nuclear deterrence
I cannot be saved by Alterman, priests, artists, plumbers, city, planners, social engineers,
nor by the Vatican, nor by the world, Buddhist association,
nor by Hitler, nor by Joan of arc,
nor by Angels and archangels
nor by Powers and dominions
I can be saved only by Jesus Christ
The true bread from heaven
The bread and circuses expression rises out of a pagan Roman way of thinking in which the alternative to a superficial life is political or civic engagement. The Christian stance is wider. We certainly include politics and other forms of civic participation. We also include all our thoughts and feelings, our character and virtue, and our reflection. And then we embrace our time with friends and family.
Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. (John 6:35)
We begin each session of Shaping the Parish with this prayer.
O God, you call us to freedom and responsibility within communities of love; May our parishes increase in adoration and awe, guide us to real life, and nurture us as instruments of your love to the world, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
It’s a mix of John Macquarrie, Evelyn Underhill and St. Augustine. It’s about shaping parish communities that renew people in their baptismal identity and purpose so we might engage our daily life in adult faithfulness. So, in both our inner life and in our apostolic action in families, with friends, and in civic life, we might better navigate the call to freedom and responsibility.
So we will follow our informed conscience as we vote, and as we respond to what comes in the days, weeks and years after. And as always, we will live the Eucharist. Real life comes through this,
You are to be taken, consecrated, broken, and made a means of grace; vehicles of the Eternal Charity. Evelyn Underhill
This abides,
Brother Robert, OA
I remember the powerful critiques that William Stringfellow wrote discussing football as America's bread-and-circus anti-Christ distraction. He was so right. BTW -- did y'all see how many points Ole Miss scored last Sunday in their overwhelming victory over Arkansas? Hotty Toddy! Addicted.
I’m sitting at the bar of a Thai restaurant eating dinner by myself. Several hostile political ads have come on the TV. I had to look away. I felt agitated, annoyed, anxious. And then I read this and felt both deep sadness and the hope that comes when we know and accept our true savior.