The Fissioning of Community 2-2-10

Anderson, South Carolina

In the 20th century a source of inconceivable power was discovered. Earnest Rutherford, a New Zealander, successfully split an atom in 1917 at Manchester, England. Building on this work, Enrico Fermi and his colleagues in 1934 explored the consequences of bombarding uranium with neutrons. In 1944 Otto Hahn received the Nobel Prize for Chemistry with his discovery of nuclear fission. Meantime, Frédéric Joliot-Curie in Paris figured out that secondary neutrons are released during uranium fission, thus making a nuclear chain-reaction feasible. Underneath the stadium seats at the University of Chicago in 1942 ominous scientific advances allowed the development of a ‘successful’ nuclear chain reaction.

It was not long before we were seeing haunting images of mushroom clouds roiling up into themselves, sucking the known world into Cold War, spawned by the advent of the Atomic Age. Run-away nuclear chain reactions in the skies over Nagasaki and Hiroshima convinced the world weapons of mass destruction were not the stuff of hyperbole or science fiction. The world became paralyzed with fear after opening Pandora’s Box. Atomic bomb drop drills in elementary schools became de rigueur.

One can be certain that the chemists and physicists doing the early explorations of the often surreal nuclear world had not set out to find ways to vaporize Japanese cities. Sadly, the Law of Unintended Consequences often takes over. A cascade of events and behaviors can produce radically different outcomes than originally intended. The Law of Unintended Consequences is the outgrowth of many theories, but best defined by sociologist Robert K. Merton in 1936. In his landmark article, The Unanticipated Consequences of Purposive Social Action, he described five ways that actions, particularly those taken on a large scale by governments, may have unexpected consequences. These may be positive, negative or merely neutral, but they veer off, sometimes radically, from the intent of the initial action.

The Law of Unintended Consequences is foundational to economic theory. Adam Smith’s “invisible hand,” the most famous metaphor in social science, is an example of a positive unintended consequence. Smith maintained that each individual, seeking only his own gain, “is led by an invisible hand to promote an end which was no part of his intention,” that end being the public interest.”

Most often, however, the law of unintended consequences illuminates the adverse unanticipated effects of legislation and regulation. In the case of physics and chemistry research, it led to the run-away reactions over Hiroshima. Much of foreign policy for seventy years has centered on attempts to gain control of unintended consequences that threaten our very existence.

In the early part of the 20th century divorce was a rarity in the United States. In many countries divorce was not even permitted by law. A number of countries still prohibit divorce. The Law of Unintended Consequences has been clearly seen in the case of legislation and regulation affecting divorce. The Divorce Reform Act of 1969 in the United Kingdom is credited with a doubling of divorces from 1961 to 1969. The number doubled again from 1969 to 1972. The number increased further in the years following. In the United States in 2008 46% of all marriages involved a remarriage for one or both spouses.

In the United States, 49 states permit no-fault divorce. Neither partner has to give a reason for wanting out. In some foreign jurisdictions, electronic divorce is permitted. Summary judgment in uncontested cases is granted in as little as one hour after filing, less time than it takes to get a book shipped overnight from Amazon. In the United States one can go online and file for uncontested divorce for $90, but one will get the Amazon book before summary judgment is granted.

Good observational science requires a lot of field work. Observational work in physics is inconceivably expensive. Yet, it doe not take billion-dollar colliders to assess the consequences of what has become a run-away reaction in the relational lives of married people. In sociology it often takes little more than the ability to ask the right questions and keep track of the answers. High energy neutrons tend to bust up certain kinds of atoms with some decidedly unhappy consequences. The consequences of high-energy easy divorce have shredded the fabric of American society.

Judith Wallerstein wrote a landmark book, Second Chances, describing the devastating impact of divorce on children, consequence that last a lifetime. As the son of a mother married four times, it was not necessary for me to read an academic book to validate Wallerstein’s conclusions. There are no winners in this kind of fission and I have been paying the price for a run-away reaction my entire life.

At present, I am watching the run-away reaction of easy divorce running through many of my social circles. A long-time friend of twenty years has just walked from her marriage of three decades into the arms of another friend who has walked from his faithful wife of three decades. They have given up a third of a century of relational history, challenge, and financial security for that ill-defined chemistry that does not produce anything sustainable. Instead they have set off a chain reaction that will only further contribute to the shredding of our social fabric, to the collapse of community as we know it. Already this chain reaction has severely disrupted a social circle that until recently was a great source of joy for many of us. I have lost at least two, perhaps several, very good friends as a consequence. The neutrons of divorce continue to split the building blocks of community. Another in this circle has filed for divorce and the disruption and consequences of this failure are only now beginning to be felt. The secondary disturbances to relationships with those around her are substantial. It is easy to surmise that this social group will dissipate within days.

Perhaps most disquieting is the reality that these relational perturbations are being felt in what would have once been safe harbors - churches. A number of relational failures in my church have seriously disrupted parts of the social fabric that once had much more substance to it. In my immediate experience, these perturbations are affecting my place in the church, enough so that I wonder how viable my long-term tenancy in the church might actually be.

People I know only at great distance are experiencing devastating consequences when the neutrons of violence, lust, infidelity, pornography, materialism, and financial recklessness split their marriages and dreams into sub-atomic fragments. There seems to be no containment for the carnage. Every day I hear the vast pain.

One of the most critical considerations in nuclear physics is the ability to stop a run-away chain reaction. Unintended failure to stop a reaction will cause the catastrophic melt-down of a nuclear power plant, as we saw at Chernobyl. Willful failure to stop a run-away reaction resulted in the immolation of two Japanese cities. The only way to stop run-away fission reactions is to sop up excess neutrons careening through fissile material. Curiously, plain old graphite was found to be an effective sponge for too many neutrons. Control rods of graphite are a safe and effective means of keeping fission reactions in nuclear power plant warming my house, rather than producing China Syndromes. Alas, no one has ever thought to put any kind of control rods in nuclear bombs. Once launched, the intent is for the run-away reaction to consume the dreams of thousands.

Divorce in America is a run-away reaction splitting asunder millions of lives. One wonders if there are any control rods of reconciliation that can be inserted into the frayed fabric of our society, stopping this wanton waste of dreams, possibilities, and hopes once wrapped in the white satin of nuptial bliss. At one time there appeared to be control rods of moral and relational expectation in place that contained the errant neutrons. Even the larger secular culture sopped up errant neutrons with its expectations of right conduct. The compelling and urgent challenge before us is finding effective ways to re-install the rods that will stop the run-away carnage.

I know the thoughts I have for you, thoughts for good, not for evil. Plans that will give you hope and a future … Call unto me and I will show you great and mighty things which you knowest not.