Fear At The Basis Of Prejudice By Vanier Summary

Vanier tells a story, which is about the distant relationship between Lazarus and the rich man, who are separated by an “abyss” on earth and in the afterlife
This story is a comparison to how there is a division between the “norm” and the marginalized(poor, needy, hungry, etc.)
Fear is the main cause of exclusion and prejudice.

Fear at the Basis of Prejudice and Exclusion
There is fear of dissidents, fear of difference, fear of failure, and fear of loss and change.
Fear of Dissidents:
Those who fear of dissidents want to maintain their money, their power, or the need to control and feel superior to others.
In our society, those who oppose to the political leaders were seen as evil.
Leaders see themselves as in the right and would exclude those

Fear of Difference:
It is in human nature to have the desire to belong to a group of others with the same values and beliefs
We are disturbed by those who are different.
We are afraid to open up our hearts to those people, so we often exclude them.
“When we have constructed our lives around particular values of knowledge, power, and social esteem, it is difficult for us to accept those who cannot live by the same set of values” (Vanier 77).
“... through our love we can help others to discover their own intrinsic value; we can reveal to them their beauty and their uniqueness” (Vanier 77).
The reason why our society is full of crisis, violence, fear, and abuse is that us humans don’t exactly know what it means to be human
In our society, being human means gaining knowledge, power, and social status.
However, Vanier says, “we have disregarded the heart, seeing it only as a symbol of weakness, the centre of sentimentality and emotion, instead of as a powerhouse of love that can reorient us from our self-centredness, revealing to us and to others the basic beauty of humanity, empowering us to grow” (Vanier