SimonMary Aihiokhai, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Systemic Theology, University of Portland

EMBRACING UBUNTU: A PATHWAY OF SELF-CARE THROUGH CARE FOR OTHERS

Growing up in Benin City, Nigeria, it was customary to be taught by my parents and all the elders in my community that the good life is a life lived for others. This moral teaching is at the heart of African social concept of Ubuntu, which refers to the fact that the sense of self is deeply rooted in communal consciousness. In other words, to be human is to embrace connectedness. This concept has a radical positionality to it. One’s life has to manifest in ways that are oriented towards the wellbeing of others because it is only through this orientation that one’s own wellbeing is assured.

Living in a context like the United States, that tends to stress individuality, one can easily forget this African sense of self that is oriented towards otherness. The current global pandemic has caused an existential pause that ought to allow all persons to reflect on the relevance of connectedness in shaping our collective and individual wellbeing. Since the pandemic began, I have struggled to find my bearing as have my students. The focus on the killings of Black and Brown people in America by police officers; the increase in racial hatred directed towards Asian Americans; and the loss of loved ones to Covid have been stressful to experience. Yet, these have become the pathways for experiencing the graced-gift of Ubuntu. Noticing the smiles on students as they interact with each other; their desire to want to connect with me, their instructor; and their willingness to be vulnerable have led me to embrace fully the transformative power of living one’s life as Ubuntu, especially during this current pandemic.

As an educator, my relationship with students transcends that of simply teaching the content of a course. Learning and teaching are relational at their core. Because of this, my role in the classroom as a facilitator of knowledge production can only be successful if I take seriously the praxis of making connections as a pedagogical tool. A simple gesture of wanting to know how students are doing in a caring and trusting manner can go a long way to help students find their bearings again. During this academic year, I have been intentional at paying close attention to the levels of stress students are experiencing. Spending a few minutes during class meetings to know what is going on with them; asking them how they are embracing self-care; and sharing my humble insights on our sense of solidarity have been very productive.

Finally, as I write these lines, the following words come to mind: the light that heals comes always to us through the existential fog of crises. Our job is to read the signs of the times closely and be open to how God leads us to God’s light through the unfamiliar encounters that play out in our lives. My students and myself are God’s light to each other as we walk together in solidarity during this pandemic.