By David Hegg
Anyone playing with open eyes and an open mind can see Americans are becoming much too comfortable with a culture of conflict. From the halls of government to the studios of media and even families’ living rooms, we have seriously eroded the idea that we are “one nation under God.” One wonders if the American experiment to form “a more perfect union” is facing an unstoppable storm of prideful dogmatism and the devastating animus that inevitably accompanies it.
It isn’t just that our perspectives divide us. In recent years, we have seen a severe erosion in civility. It is not uncommon to hear leaders and followers calling their opponents names that are not only rude but also relatively crude. What was once disallowed in kindergarten has now become a commonly reported issue in the media. It seems vulgar language, once punished with a soap washing of the mouth, has been granted a societal stamp of approval.
In response, occasionally, someone with standing tries to plaster over the cracks of competitive disunity and derision, with an emotional plea to put aside our differences, join hands, and sing some version of “Kumbaya.” But that has never worked, and I’ll tell you why. Unity is only possible when all parties share a common set of values and a mutually agreed-upon purpose.
Maybe an illustration will help: You can’t make an automobile go in two directions at the same time. If I want to turn right and you, in the passenger seat, want to go left, one of us will be gravely disappointed. And if, at the next intersection, I turn to the right despite your exasperated show of disapproval, the friction between us will make traveling together in the future almost impossible. Unity demands agreement on the most critical elements of the situation.
So, if unity is grounded on agreement, how can a pluralistic society ever be unified enough to collaborate in search of solutions to immense challenges? How are we, as disparate as America has ever been, to prosper in a changing world if we are expending much of our energy arguing and denigrating our opponents?
The answer, of course, is to understand there is another virtue that can ameliorate disunity: respect. What is lacking in our culture is the respect every human owes to every other human. I mean it! And Dr. Martin Luther King put it very well when he said, “We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.”
The truth is brothers often disagree and even do so violently. But brotherhood demands that we recognize what we have in common to such an extent that we look past our differences to see we are all human. And, as those created in the image of God himself, every human is worthy of a basic, undeniable, and undiminished level of respect. If we forget this and refuse to recognize that a fellow human is worthy of our respect, we have reduced our understanding of all humanity, even our own.
What does this mean? It means my opponent, as wrong as I believe he or she may be, shares my humanity. We are of the same substance, living in the same country, and worthy of a level of respect that must curb our anger and our outbursts.
It is this kind of respectful, relational interface that does at least two things. First, it is simply an ethical positive. By that I mean, it is right, and wholesome, and genteel, and righteous. Secondly, it reminds the world that Evelyn Beatrice Hall spoke the truth in 1906 when she stated, “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”
Why is this important? Simply because respect is the foundation of collaboration. It is essential if we are to work together, even as those with opposing views, to find solutions to the great obstacles life throws in the path of our mutual “pursuit of happiness.”
It may be that ideological unity constitutes a bridge too far at this point in the American experiment. But we can’t give up! The road to improvement for all begins with a resolute commitment to respect all those who are traveling the path with us, despite their views. Perhaps mutual respect can shave the edges off of our rhetoric and allow us to speak and listen honorably in the days ahead.
Given the divisive atmosphere our current practices have created, what do we have to lose?
Local resident David Hegg is senior pastor of Grace Baptist Church. “Ethically Speaking” appears Sundays.
