Metacrisis
What is Metacrisis?
Futurists, philosophers, historians, and scientists are exploring and describing the current global condition as in a state of polycrisis. The term polycrisis describes our world as existing in many simultaneous, interconnected crises that present severe risk to the survival and well-being of both the planet and human civilization. French complexity theorist Edgar Morin first used the term back in the 1970s, and the concept became more popular among European leaders in the decade following the 2008 global financial crisis.[i] Before the Industrial Revolution and modern globalization, the average person could not imagine that humanity could destroy itself in such horrible ways as with atomic bombs and mass pollution. While disease has always been a threat, the ease and rapidity of global air travel have made the spread of pandemics and accompanying crises even faster than in previous eras. Such rapidity of travel for both humans and their pathogens presents the possibility of polycrisis. Some thinkers prefer the term metacrisis (or meta-crisis), which literally means, “beyond crisis,” hinting that we must seek some positive state of existence beyond the presence of many interrelated crises. Used in the singular, metacrisis also implies that there is a common thread running through all of these severe risks.
Researchers in the metacrisis discussion explore the interconnectedness of various crises and possible solutions— economic, political, medical, environmental, educational, and more. What kind of world can we make that survives and flourishes beyond the crises of our age? Some thinkers like Zak Stein are calling for a total re-education of people to reorient their worldview.[ii] Metacrisis research focuses on creating a new global vision that requires mass collaboration, new societal values and structures, and global governance. They claim that they seek to avoid the extremes of chaos and a tyrannical dystopia.[iii]
In the West we have reached a severe legitimation crisis on federal, regional, and local governmental levels. Can an added level of international governance mandating a radically new worldview be possible without severe violent conflict and loss of fundamental human rights? As Zygmunt Bauman explored in his numerous writings about living in liquid modernity, we wonder how we can balance the pursuit of both security and emancipation, a solid safety and a fluid, individual freedom. Will a worldview shifting toward solving the metacrisis generate a spate of wars across the planet because some regions will feel ignored by a global governing class? Will these proposals for a new world order create a quasi-religion that demands everyone’s allegiance? Critics will be quick to point out that metacrisis research may be overstating and excessively interconnecting the dots of crises that have been around for many millennia. Racism, economic hardship, famine, pandemics, and other risks have been in simultaneous existence since the dawn of civilization. On the other hand, the threat of global nuclear destruction and micro-plastic pollution are indeed unique crises in human history. This relatively new field of metacrisis will no doubt generate much discussion and anxiety in the near future.
After reading about all these crises you may rightfully sense a feeling of hopelessness and gloom. What plagues us most is not necessarily the presence of so many crises, but the volume of conflicting information to help us define and solve the issues. In the not-so-distant past, societies and communities would enthusiastically rally around a cause if there was a unified understanding of what needs to be done. Our contemporary problem is that we don’t know who to trust since we’re living in a crisis of being and knowing. In a world where everything is possible and nothing is certain, how do we really know what to believe and who to trust? Do we just stick our head in the sand or proceed on our merry nihilistic way to fulfill only what suits our immediate needs and desires? Perhaps we skeptically assume that all this depressing crisis-talk is just an excuse to promote a personal agenda.
A Metanarrative for Our Metacrisis
Christianity and the Bible assume that we need a metanarrative or grand story to resolve our inner turmoil and know how to navigate our present personal crisis as well as any global metacrisis. In its very first book the Bible presents crisis as the state of humanity. Not that we should avoid or neglect using our heads and hands to resolve the crises that afflict us, but we must first come to terms with the reality that the root cause to the crises we face are beyond mere human solutions and far above our expertise. We need a transcendent message and divine assistance from a source beyond our limited and uncertain human capacities. The Bible, both the Old and New Testaments, is a composite narrative written across a span of about 1,600 years by as many as 40 authors from various socio-cultural backgrounds across the Middle East, Europe, and Africa. Millions of its readers and believers throughout history have been strengthened by its life-giving message. It is no surprise that we modern people often struggle with understanding the Bible, but that should not deter us from reading and exploring its timeless wisdom. Most of us drive cars, fly in airplanes, use computers, and partake of the benefits of modern medicine with very minimal knowledge of how all these machines work. Experts in flight technology, digital applications, and medicine will spend a lifetime studying and exploring their fields. Investing time into learning how to live in our crisis-filled world will surely require a lifelong journey. As mentioned above, metacrisis researchers are looking for a common thread among our crises that will help us resolve threats to our planet. That common thread is mentioned in the Holy Scriptures! The Bible is much like a tapestry of dark and light threads interwoven to present a big picture of reality.
ENDNOTES
[i] Kate Whiting, interview of Adam Tooze for the World Economic Forum, “This is why 'polycrisis' is a useful way of looking at the world right now,” March 7, 2023, https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/03/polycrisis-adam-tooze-historian-explains/, accessed Oct. 3, 2024.
[ii] Kyle Kowalski, “A Crisis of Crises: What is the Meta-Crisis? (+ Infographics),”
https://www.sloww.co/meta-crisis-101/#meta-crisis-definition, accessed Oct. 3, 2024.
[iii] For explanations of this global vision see David J. Temple, First Principles and First Values: Forty-two Propositions on CosmoErotic Humanism, the Meta-Crisis, and the World to Come (Austin, TX: World Philosophy and Religion Press, 2024), 32-34, 54-55.