Vitally interconnected
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If the state of the world wasn’t so disheartening, it would be laughable how nearly every country asserts their independence. However, by divine design, all members of the world, like the human body, are necessary for it to properly function. Consider that all continents originated from one land mass and, over millions of years, are found in the positions they occupy, comprising the global geography.
Scripture describes in Genesis, on the third day “God gathers the waters to create dry land, calling them Earth and Seas…” Separation of the initial, singular landmass (Pangaea) into seven continents was primarily caused by plate tectonics, where internal Earth forces, intense volcanic activity, and mantle convection caused the crust to break and move. This movement initiated about 200 million years ago, fracturing the supercontinent into smaller pieces that drifted apart to form the modern continents.
In much the same manner, God formed man and designed “one body” consisting of many members, each having specific functions. Likewise, the earth was formed as one body, which identifies why no one continent or country has an abundance of resources to sustain the livelihood of its inhabitants. Though many governments aren’t politically aligned, they have structured agreements allowing acquisition of the necessary resources to enable their daily functionalities. Such arrangements consist of Middle Eastern countries like Iraq, Iran, and others who export oil to nations around the world as well as Ukraine, from where many nations purchase grains.
If these nations represent the “organs” of our global body, then the shipping lanes and pipelines are the arteries and veins. No single organ can survive in isolation; the heart cannot claim superiority over the lungs, for one provides the pump and the other the breath. When a crisis occurs in one regio the entire body feels the tremors. We see this manifested in the rising costs of living and the scarcity of goods thousands of miles away. It is a physical reminder that the “independence” we tout is often an illusion. In reality, we are bound by a complex, invisible circulatory system of mutual need.
Beyond the physical resources of oil and grain, there is a “nervous system” composed of our shared human experience. The suffering of people in one corner of the earth resonates across the digital and emotional landscape of the others. We are no longer isolated islands. When we witness the displacement of families or the ravages of natural disasters, the “body” experiences a collective pang of empathy.
However, we often behave like a body suffering from an autoimmune disorder, where one limb attacks another, failing to realize the injury inflicted on the “other” is ultimately an injury to oneself. We compete for dominance; build walls to separate our “members,” and ignore the systemic infections of poverty and environmental decay while forgetting a fever in the hand will eventually weaken the heart.
We must recognize the drifting of the continents was never intended to be a severing of the soul. The fracturing of Pangaea created diverse climates and specialized ecosystems, much like the “specific functions” God assigned to different parts of the human form. This diversity was not designed for division, but a mandate for cooperation. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor can the tech-heavy West say to the resource-rich Global South, “I am self-sufficient.”
To achieve true “global health,” we must shift our perspective from the pursuit of isolated sovereignty to the practice of intentional stewardship and acknowledge our borders are the seams where we meet, not walls where we end. The “laughable” irony of asserting absolute independence in an interconnected world must be replaced by a sobering commitment to the whole.
The challenge for our generation is to stop acting as disparate fragments and start functioning as the single, complex, and beautiful entity as we were designed. If we continue to ignore the health of the “other” members, the body will eventually fail. But embracing our roles, acknowledging the grain from one land and the oil from another are the lifeblood of us all; we might finally realize the peace that comes when a body is in harmony with itself. I could be wrong but it’s just something to consider.
To pose a question, comment, or share your opinion about this opinion, you can reach B. G. Howard at bg@authorbghoward.com or P. O. Box 8103, Jacksonville, FL 32239.
