Say to a conservative, "Hey, what do you think of Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.?" Generally, you don't get anything but praise. Conservatives, in fact, find nothing but virtue in both of these persons. They see in both of them discipline, focus, and an emphasis on reconciliation and the integrity of the person. They see the best nature of human beings, and as that is a part of who we have been that we do not wish to abandon, conservatives want us to hold on to that nature.
Conservatism is, after all, the desire to hold on to what is good.
Say to a liberal, "Hey, what do you think of Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr?" Generally, you get the same thing. Liberals see in them a radical call to justice coupled with a deep spirit of tolerance and grace. They see the best nature of human beings, and as that is a part of who we wish to be that we don't want to abandon, liberals want us to hold on to that nature.
Liberalism is, after all, the openness to encountering the good yet unknown.
Liberalism is, after all, the openness to encountering the good yet unknown.
In my ongoing reading of Howard Thurman's meditations on the ethos that creates nonviolence, I feel more deeply aware of the impacts of violent thinking on our culture. Because all is violence, an endless churn of vitriol and outrage, of mockery and shaming, of demonization and invective.
And yes, sure, it's not physical. But the crass, shallow brutalism of our discourse is violent. It rises from a heart of violence.
For those who claim to be disciples of Jesus, this is a problem. Because Jesus doth not give us permission to indulge in the sweet taste of hatred. It's only words, Jesus, we might say. I'm allowed to hate them and mock them, to let the fires of focused hatred govern me, so long as I don't actually beat the crap out of them, right?
No.
Jesus is pretty clear on that subject. When our conservatism rots into the fever-swamp fantasies of the Reichsministerium für Volksaufklärung und Propaganda? When our liberalism devolves into the fulminations of Robespierre on the floor of the National Convention? It doesn't matter that those are "just words."
If we assert that Jesus has authority over our lives, we are not permitted to foster a heart of violence. That does not mean we are to be passive. But when we yield to rage and the reflexive diminishment of the other, we fail.
Because nonviolence is first and foremost an attitude of the heart.
And yes, sure, it's not physical. But the crass, shallow brutalism of our discourse is violent. It rises from a heart of violence.
For those who claim to be disciples of Jesus, this is a problem. Because Jesus doth not give us permission to indulge in the sweet taste of hatred. It's only words, Jesus, we might say. I'm allowed to hate them and mock them, to let the fires of focused hatred govern me, so long as I don't actually beat the crap out of them, right?
No.
Jesus is pretty clear on that subject. When our conservatism rots into the fever-swamp fantasies of the Reichsministerium für Volksaufklärung und Propaganda? When our liberalism devolves into the fulminations of Robespierre on the floor of the National Convention? It doesn't matter that those are "just words."
If we assert that Jesus has authority over our lives, we are not permitted to foster a heart of violence. That does not mean we are to be passive. But when we yield to rage and the reflexive diminishment of the other, we fail.
Because nonviolence is first and foremost an attitude of the heart.
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