Truth arrives from the oddest places at unexpected times

FIFA President Gianni Infantino gave an impassioned 100 minute speech the day before the World Cup 2022 began in Qatar. Yes, for sure, he had to do it, given the intense criticism of both FIFA and Qatar. And yes, he did go to law school and understands debate. And of course it promotes the brand of FIFA and the success of the event.

BUT I’m here to say, it also came from the heart. His point that as human beings, when we meet with those different from us, we need to engage, not judge; to unite, not divide, is a deep truth, but his argument for this, in order for people to enjoy some football, is more compelling than the 100’s of sermons I’ve heard that we humans should love one another, or the endless TED talks promoting world peace through understanding. Truth comes from the heart, not from the head, and not from organized religion, it comes from each human heart and is verified in experience.

His defense of the treatment of migrant workers who built the Qatar stadiums is not from a legal perspective, nor a dogma, but rather from his own personal experience of being a child of an immigrant family from Italy who settled in Switzerland in order to find work. And from my own experience, my heart responds to what his heart expresses, and I know it is true.

His note to the western world, and Europe in particular, that criticism divides and engaging unites, is again a deep truth. Yet his heart can speak this truth because he is from the west, and he is a European. And my heart responds from my own experience and knows it is true.

His request that Europe, instead of criticizing Qatar, looks in the mirror of its own deeds first, before judging another, is again true. It reminds me of the story of Christ when confronted with the woman who had sinned, said to the others around, let whomever is without sin be the first to throw a stone, and eventually, they all left without throwing a stone. He then said to the women, neither do I judge you, go and sin no more.

When he says to the west, stop criticizing Qatar and instead criticize me and FIFA, he is saying, criticize yourself, the institutions you have created first before criticizing other cultures and institutions you have not created. How easy it is to criticize others who are different from us, and how difficult it is to criticize the structures and institutions we have built from own culture! From my experience, my heart knows this is true.

When he notes that changing things takes time, and notes that labor laws protecting immigrants have changed for the better in Qatar, prompted by the necessity of building stadiums for the World Cup, and asks Europe first before criticizing Qatar to examine its own labor laws for immigrants, my heart knows he is right.?When he asks Europe to remember how long it took to give women the right to vote, and remember change like this takes time, and to be more supportive of the changes Qatar is making versus judging and criticizing what isn’t yet accomplished, my heart knows from experience this is true, change is difficult and takes time.

And in the end, when he says all of this, in order for people to be able to enjoy some football and be united in peace for a while, versus the divided world we are all living in, my heart responds, yes, good, let’s be together for a while, united in peace and enjoying some football, versus dividing ourselves and going to war. His plea reminds me of Rodney King’s question, after the riots in Los Angeles, having been beaten by the police, “Can’t we all just get along?”?When words come from the heart, spoken by the heart, are heard by other hearts, truth is known.

Truth can arrive from the oddest places at the most unexpected times. Yet if our hearts are open to hear it, and another heart speaks it, then a shared truth is present for us, and a small step is taken to heal our currently so broken world.