From time to time we can all be surprised by our own humanity. While evil has been described as “banal” (see: Hannah Arendt) there are fewer descriptions of destruction, natural disaster, or catastrophe.

Evil is active where natural destruction seems, in comparison, to be passive. It occurs but it does not require an agent to encourage it along. We can fight evil, but we can only respond to natural destruction. It is our response to it that makes us part of the human race.

Global media are consumed with the earthquake in Haiti; this is a valid and understandable response to such magnificent tragedy. The poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere—already suffering from decades of neglect, abusive regimes and greedy oligarchs—brought even lower by natural disaster.

What strikes me as significant, however, is how in this time of instant video reporting, camera crews on the ground and teams of reporters arriving by special flights (media stars were dispatched in record time to report from the scene) it is the still photograph that can cause us to stop, stare, wonder and respond.

Reputable newspapers (in Canada, The Globe and Mail, National Post and Ottawa Citizen) are all filled with images from the disaster. The all-too colourful images of Port au Prince call to mind the stark black and white photographs of war torn European capitals from previous wars.

The speed and efficiency of video transmission renders the images powerful, but somehow fleeting. A still photograph invites the viewer to linger and note things that would be lost with a moving image.

The look of despair, resignation and even defeat on the faces of the victims is something terrible to behold, but only visible if you can absorb the entire image and allow it to sink in. It is our ability to be moved—and subsequently to reach out and, somehow, respond—that reminds us of our shared humanity.

Want to help? Reputable relief agencies are soliciting money to help Haiti. Three smart questions:

1. What will you do with my money?
2. When will you use my money?
3. How much of my money will go to administration expenses?