This is a subject that I’d like to explore later, when I actually have a moment to breathe.
We constantly hear the lament (usually in an election year) that the American people are “deeply divided” on social issues. We also hear in the same breath how we, the American people, just want someone to come along and “unite” us. Only then will the clouds part, the birds sing, and America regain her rightful place as the unchallenged leader on the world stage, economically, militarily, and morally.
My question is, why is being divided a bad thing, per se?
This is an indication that something is:
1) important enough to be both energizing and polarizing
2) a sign that something is deeply, radically wrong in our culture
3) the outcome depends on just who cares more
Being divided is a kind of societal pain, and pain is the body’s natural mechanism to tell us that SOMETHING IS WRONG. Rather than seek a way to ignore or anesthetize the pain, the important thing is doing something to address the root cause. Pain is not bad by itself, it is a signpost to the real malady.
Mrs. Nod pointed out to me a long time ago, that having the debate is half the point. (Isn’t public spirited debate a quintessential American value?) In India, for example, abortion is no longer a topic of public debate, it is simply accepted as a normal means of (post)contraception, as bland as having a tooth filling. A former co-worker of Mrs. Nod (originally from India) was simply puzzled by our preoccupation with the subject.
So, let’s be divided for now: talk and debate. When the root cause of our society’s pain has been addressed, the division that causes us so much angst may magically disappear.
Cross-posted at: blynken.blogspot.com
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When has our country or the world not been divided? Vigorous debate of substantial issues is healthy. Those on the left call for "unity" as a means of muting those of different opinion. When has anyone of the left called for "unity" and then offered to compromise their position with regard to some important issue? Never will be the day when those on the left say "for unity sake, we will compromise and limit abortion" (or insert any other liberal cause)"Unity" to the left means that those on the right should abandon their cause and move to the left. The unity call is a cynical ploy.
It reminds me of Luke 12: 51-52"Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division." We all choose the side we are on, but the sides are not reconcilable. On some issues (the war, the economy, taxes) there is plenty of room for debate and compromise. What is the right path on these issues is not always clear. On other issues, core issues (life, family, marriage) there is no room for compromise. This is not merely a question of political disagreement, this is a clash of world views on right and wrong. The two views (relativism and natural law) are fundamentally incompatible when it comes to non-negotiable issues (abortion, euthanasia, marriage, etc.).We must not put our value of peace and being nice above our witness and resolve about the truth. We must love our enemy, but love is not the same as being nice.As part of an exchange with a fellow Catholic Dad, I wrote about how the idea of compromise and valuing peace makes us lukewarm.
It’s not what we’re debating about but *how* we’re debating it. Things have become so vitriolic between the two groups the situation is becoming untenable. Each thinks the other is not just wrong but evil. Such is the stuff that civil unrest is made of.
Duffy,
I think you have a valid point here. The how can be just as important as the what.
I would not trivialize the what, but we should be careful to advance our point of view without throwing rocks. It may feel good, but in the end it is just self-serving and does not advance the cause.
At least since the time of Thomas Aquinas, and undoubtedly before, the Church has always upheld the place of reason alongside of faith (with varying degrees of success – Regensburg).
I am especially mindful of that when talking about abortion, since so many of those on “the other side” are really hurting and maybe looking for a way out.
So how can we “speak the Truth in love” (Ephesians 4: 15) without compromising our principles?
When I studied Political Science at university, one of the classic ways to break a status quo was to introduce a “different dimension” that would draw partisans from each of the deadlocked sides.
Perhaps the “new dimension” is to focus more attention on the woman? (not to exclude the intrinsic evil of abortion). There is good precedent over at Project Rachael, and the Feminists For Life slogan: Women Deserve Better. I mean, seriously, is abortion the best that we can offer a woman?