From the conversations I’ve had with other students and readings I’ve done on Byzantine history, this monastic complex has a very important place in history. As east and west Byzantium split (orthodox vs. catholic) this community was developed as a strong stance against the reunification of the two polarized sides. If you look at the itinerary for the rest of my trip, themes like this from throughout history are present in every place I go. In my sketchbook I wrote down the following clashes that I will encounter on my trip either historically or as a current event:
Catholicism vs. Orthodoxy
Byzantine vs. Ottoman
Christianity vs. Islam
East vs. West (thought, religion, culture)
Judaism vs. Islam (Israeli vs. Palestinian)
Greek vs. Turk
Communism vs. Democracy
Classical vs. Modern
… Many of these issues are rooted deeply in history, but today survive as rifts that continue to separate themselves as they pass down from generation to generation.
The documentary “Promises” focused on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict from a child’s point of view. Many of the children the film focused on were interested in meeting their counterparts (all of which lived within 20 minutes of each other by car). It gave me hope that coexistence of many different types of people in the same space is possible. The US itself was once a segregated place, and now is considered a melting pot of the world… There are still many issues that need to be solved as the world population continues to increase and our borders are flooded, but as long as we maintain our post as a world superpower we need to relinquish stereotypes and look at people as individual human beings rather than a general race. I’m not advocating opening our borders freely because this would lead to the downfall of “American” society as we know it. What I am hopeful of, is for everyone to have a more compassionate view of individuals they see and meet before judging them prematurely.
The nuns were telling us a story about the first trip a community of monks from Mt. Athos, Greece (a monastic Mecca) took to the US. It was three months after… and obviously tensions were high. Because of their dress they were searched twice as much as or more than the next person in line. After making it through and into a town in Florida, they went to a park and sat out to people watch and enjoy fresh air. Immediately they got looks, and eventually a few people came over to them saying, “You aren’t welcome here…” The only thing they knew to do with little English speaking-ability, was to pull out a cross. The people who approached them apologized immediately, but this is exactly the generalizations (and even ignorance) I’m talking about. Luckily, they anticipated the issues but couldn’t cancel their trip.
I don’t believe that all people are, or should be considered the same. We are all human beings, but there are definitely differences between us. Diversity encourages the sheer existence of culture and furthers thinking; to generalize people would be taking what I’m saying too literally. However, condemning a person with different beliefs without ever meeting them is absurd. I hope my trip will be as enlightening as it has already been and I expect it to be.
The sensitivity I have towards these issues of intercultural understanding is something I hope to continue in my career, not to mention in my general interaction with others. I have always tried to view things in a humanitarian way, but since my travel and immersion in cultures around the world I find myself more conscious of how I analyze at others. As a designer, I feel I have an important role in bringing this to the community and regional scale because I have a hand in forming the landscape in which we interact. The celebration of culture and history give space life, and I feel that a preservative approach can be successful anywhere. Most importantly, I believe it has the ability to cross cultural boundaries and increase interest on any side of a political, religious, or social issue. As idealistic as this may sound, working closely in policy-making and urban planning would give me the opportunity to make this a reality!
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