The infectious disease experts around the world are currently racing to be the first to find a vaccine for COVID-19. When I was growing up in the sixties, the primary players in the Eastern and Western blocs of the Cold War were racing to be the first to land a man on the moon. Every two years athletes from around the globe compete in the Olympic Games to bring home a coveted gold medal. We seem to be a planet populated by people with an innate drive to be numero uno.
From the earliest age, we even urge our children to approach education as a competition. To be at the top of the class in order to get into the best university, in order to be offered the best job, in order to make the most money, in order to have the best possessions, in order to achieve the highest social status.
One can’t help but notice that there’s very little traffic headed in the opposite direction in any walk of life – a race for last place. Yet that is precisely the thrust of the teachings and actions of Jesus of Nazareth.
