Beyond Hope and Reimagining Faith
By: Tayoung Chung
When traditional paths to combat right-wing populism become insufficient, faith should carry more importance in current political actions. Young generations can contribute to social justice in a more faithful manner by actively participating in civic movements and advocating for policy changes that address inequality and injustice. Many non-governmental organizations or grassroots movements have volunteer or other positions open to young people to either learn more about contemporary social issues or to voice their opinions. Young people should actively get involved in these opportunities around us. Also, young people may observe and detect systematic inequality from various perspectives, and encouraging them to voice their opinions on student-run newspapers or other platforms, educating peers, and raising awareness about social justice issues will all be helpful methods to contribute to social justice.
Additionally, redefining religion in a political context may involve elements such as empathy, collective efforts, and faith in possibilities. With such a definition of religion, addressing complicated societal problems hopefully becomes the collective responsibility of all individuals and communities, who can collaborate together to seek support to advocate for social justice in meaningful ways and maintain an optimistic attitude toward changing the political world. Redefining faith will also help promote an open, respectful, and safe environment for young generations to discuss the current social justice issues. When concerning the whole society becomes the collective aim across communities, people can have constructive discussions and debates to seek out diverse perspectives and challenge propaganda or misinformation.
Intellectual courage always plays a critical role in encountering political and social changes. Examples of intellectual courage may include the willingness to challenge the authority to voice against the prevailing beliefs based on rational reasoning and advocate for marginalized groups who are not well represented in society. Whistleblowers, activists, investigative reporters, and student organization leaders can all be examples of intellectual courage as they believe in truth and speak out against discrimination or injustice. Intellectual courage is essential to foster an equitable and just society.
Ruowei Yu (C’25) is a junior in the College of Arts & Sciences at Georgetown University.
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