All my life I have been trying to understand behaviour.
“We can see a persons behaviour
but we can’t see their journey” I often say.
As a Youth Worker and spending many hours with Young Offenders
I have always been challenged to understand their behaviour.
At the same time I had to try to understand my own behaviour.
Still at it.
I wonder what the leaders of ISIS feel and think about the Manchester murders of children & their parents?
I am trying to understand their behaviour.
Do they feel happy? satisfied? success? when they hear/see the death & injury toll?
Or do they feel & think that their leadership is working?
Do they see that everyone, who is not like them, as infidels & therefore deserve to die?
Does age not matter in terms of their acts of murder against innocent children?
How do they read and interpret the Koran alongside their actions - behaviour?
Do they see their mission as taking over the world - controlling the world with their ideology?
I know of the extremes of people who read the Bible differently.
There is a spectrum of interpretation depending on their life circumstances & experiences.
I know that years ago I was challenged to read the Bible from underneath.
From a position of poverty & oppression - not from power & superior knowledge.
No matter what our financial circumstances we can choose to be ‘underside’ and identify with the poorest
and work/live to help make the world more equal & loving.
On my Facebook & Twitter feed, and in real life, I have a whole spectrum of people with a range of experience and beliefs.
Political, racial, oppressive, liberation, violent, passive positions on life.
It is good for me to read, hear, see a spectrum of views which cultivate forward thinking or nausea within me.
I say to all - 'you are beautiful’.
In Youth work I have developed a practice of working with people with obnoxious language & behaviour.
That is to see beyond behaviour to their core.
See behaviour - feel it - but also see beyond.
I search for the positives in a person and encourage them in that.
It may be only 1% - but I will encourage that element in all persons.
NOT ignoring the violence or abuse but striving to see the heart of the person.
Building a relationship in which I trust will encourage disclosure & therefore feeding my understanding of the person.
I cannot do that with the ISIS leaders as I have little chance of building a relationship.
But I still want to understand them.
Why have they journeyed to this place?
What is their story - their journey.
Who influences them?
Is it other humans?
Who has taught them?
Is it a purpose of their God to live as they do?
Will they be willing to enter into dialogue with other leaders in the world?
Or are they wall-builders around their culture beliefs and community?
If they won’t meet and dialogue with others - what can the rest of the world do?
Are there other options other than fight and destroy - which cultivates even more separations?
Often when it is not appropriate for me to be in a helping relationship with someone,
I will ask is their another person who is closer than I am.
Can this person be an intermediary?
Are we doing enough to find another way to start some sort of dialogue?
I am trying to understand behaviour.
To love not hate because LOVE does a better job.
ISIS you were individually created innocent beautiful humans
but your behaviour now is not beautiful but UGLY extreme.
Try LOVE rather than destroying - it is a beautiful life - not easy but BEAUTIFUL.
BHP