Ethical Responsibility: Fidelity

Summary of the Texts 

In his publication “Fidelity,” Berry (2018) depicts the ongoing saga in Port William. The plot of the story revolves around a rural farming society in Kentucky across the Second World War which forms the basis of the author’s imagination vis-a-vis a perfect utopian society living in accordance to the Christian way of life. Through short stories, Berry captures the mind of the reader with well-articulated straightforward manner approach regarding the social dynamics taking place within the small Kentucky rural farming society. The first story begins with a historical murder of 1992, a murder that in spite of the pain it caused to the affected family, has through the abandonment of retribution and pardon interlaced two families in marriage. In the second account, the author describes the adjustment mechanisms adopted by a youthful farming couple as part of their initiation into a supportive society capable of understanding them sufficiently in the interest of their unarticulated needs. Berry equally depicts compassion in his illustration of a young farmer’s rash decision to transfer his ailing father from the hospital to his rural home to allow him to die in dignity. The utopian culture imagined by Berry is also present in the story of a soldier who makes attempt at adjusting into civilian life on his long journey to his rural home. A deeper look into how Berry manages characterization, imagery, symbolism and other literary elements showcases a utopian traditional culture where farming as a key area of production blends well with freedom and the family unit as a durable wholeness. 

Communicating for Life 

As the name suggests, communication forms the backbone of the book. However, the book particularly takes a holistic perspective with regard to communication. Contextually, Schulze demonstrates the underlying implications of utilizing communication in efforts designed to work towards harmony and justice. In managing this, the author employs a resourceful and intriguing study of the primary theory relating to communication. The book also covers how the theory of communication correlates to spirituality and the potential outcomes of the intricate relationship between the two. With Christian views as its main reference, the text explores both the power of communication regarding society and its implications in relation to human beings interaction and socialization. 

Schultze (2000), answers a poignant question by imploring the reader to ponder over the implications of thinking like a Christian in regard to human communication. Biblical concepts such as understanding good and evil, the power associated with human forgiveness, compelling force peacemaking, the role of grace in human interactions, the transformative reality surrounding God’s love, and the nature of human wisdom are well articulated in the text. The book connects stewardship with how human beings communicate in the manner of listening and speaking, their relation with word and gesture, and what they say and hear through mass communication or one-on-one within the human society. The author uses these biblical concepts in answering what it actually means to think like a Christian in relation to human communication since issues surrounding the concepts are seldom treated across communication literature. 

Interacting with the Texts 

I feel obliged to confess that Schultze (2000) and Berry (2018) texts are both educative and interesting. As such, apart from invigorating my spirit regarding our human beings ought to interact in accordance with Christian teachings; the texts also engaged my mind. To this end, the theory of symbolic action articulated in Schultze’s text attempts to inform Christians the best way to share God’s message in a contemporary society where achieving this goal has proved to be an uphill task. Moreover, the ideas presented by Schultze are specifically exemplified and each effort well analyzed; thus making them comparatively more practical and a compelling read for any Christian. 

Of even more importance is that Schultze explores media literacy extensively. By reading the book, I have realized that media literacy goes beyond technology; and includes how human beings apply God’s gift of communication. What makes the ideas presented by Schultze is the fact that they are well coordinated with the heartbeat of the community we live in. This is beside the awareness they show towards the place of Christianity within modern society. I must also admit that Schultze’s ideas such as those in the theme of living human communication peacefully are motivating and refreshing. These ideas have helped me understand the responsibility of communication that advocates for communicating within the context of the Christian community as a facet being an affirm believer in God’s word. 

Berry’s publication was equally insightful in ways that I must admit were both refreshing and interesting. In this regard, the themes in the text such as land, community, marriage, and fidelity are of specific interest given their binding role in human relationships. At a micro level, these themes are integral in cementing human relationships, and by extension marriage and society in the long run. From an education angle, the text has been awakening as I now know that marriage forms the backbone of human society and plays an integral part in human lives. However, the stability of marriage is often threatened by infidelity. These thoughts have significantly altered my understanding of trust and being faithful to my words within the marriage context following my realization that marriage survives best where there are trust and fidelity. The narrowing of being truthful to one’s community has also widened my understanding that our community is the only place where we can know and love each other. 

I also find Berry’s idea on cooperation as educative since it involves working together as community members to towards generally agreed upon and accepted goals. Considering that Christianity faces constant threats from other religious ideologies, it is important that we constantly work together. Yet, this kind of desire is difficult to attain if cooperation is nonexistent. In the grand scheme of things, this state of affairs has the potential to disintegrate the Christian community. Nonetheless, however chilling this reality may appear to be, a total paradigm shift can be realized if cooperation is prioritized. 

References 

Berry, Wendell.  Fidelity: Five Stories . California: Counterpoint Press, 2018. 

Schultze, Q. (2000).  Communicating for Life: Christian Stewardship in Community and Media . Grand Rapids: Baker Pub. Group.