The famous anthropologist Margaret Mead (1901-1978) was once asked this question: What was the earliest sign of civilization in any given culture?
The reporter expected the answer to be a clay pot or perhaps a fish hook or a grinding stone.
Her answer was “a healed femur.” The femur, of course, is the leg bone above the knee. Mead explained that no healed femurs are found where the law of the jungle or survival of the fittest reigns.
A healed femur shows that someone cared. Someone had to do that injured person’s hunting and gathering until the leg healed.
The evidence of compassion, she said, is the first sign of civilization. I would contend that it is also the first sign of the work of Jesus in the life of a Christian.
My Commentary:
I reflect and I meditate often on what Margaret Mead said about a “healed femur” as being the earliest sign of civilization 12,000 years ago. This has such personal relevance to me.
Six years ago during Covid-19, I went for a walk, took a misstep, fell and broke my left femur. The surgeon put a plate and screws in my leg. Two months ago, my left knee and leg became swollen. Blood tests, MRI’s and X-rays showed that there was an infection and the plate and screws had to come out.
But the MRI’s and X-rays also showed that my bone was infected to the point that it was probably infected mush. If so, the rest of my life would become a most painful burden. I was so blessed that the femur was not infected. All the surgeon had to do was remove the plate and the screws.
Now, 12,000 years later, a “healed femur” is not only a sign of civilization, but a sign of God’s grace and wonderful love for me.
A “healed femur” 12,000 years ago revealed what being “civilized” meant. We often measure progress by tools, technology, or achievement. But Margaret Mead points us to something far more profound: compassion.
A healed femur tells a story. It speaks of time, patience, and sacrifice. It means someone stopped their own work to care for another. It means the strong did not abandon the weak. In a world ruled only by survival, the injured would be left behind. But here, someone stayed.
Six years ago and a month ago with my broken and then infected femur, I had the best of care from the doctors, the nurses and friends. What happened 12,000 years ago, has now happened again TO ME. People showed me COMPASSION!!
That is civilization. The talk of destroying a civilization disturbs me to no end. Where is the compassion?
The work of Jesus is seen not in grand gestures or boastful talk, but in simple acts of care. Feeding the hungry. Sitting with the sick. Carrying one another’s burdens. When we choose compassion over victory or financial gains, we reflect something of God Himself.
A healed bone is more than medical recovery. It is evidence of love lived out.
And perhaps that is still the truest measure of our humanity — not what we possess, but how we care for each other.
Where do YOU look to find compassion in our world today, but do not find it?
STRESS MAKES YOU BELIEVE THAT EVERYTHING HAS TO HAPPEN RIGHT NOW. PRAYER REASSURES YOU THAT EVERYTING WILL HAPPEN IN GOD’S TIME!
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