Why divisiveness threatens our democracy and the gospel is our hope
A federal disaster relief official reportedly ordered workers to bypass the homes of Donald Trump’s supporters as they surveyed damage from Hurricane Milton in Florida. As a result, when FEMA workers identified residents who could qualify for federal aid, at least twenty homes with Trump yard signs or flags were not given the opportunity to qualify for assistance. The official was later fired.
Donald Trump and Joe Biden will meet in the White House today, but the rancor between their parties will endure long past last week’s election.
And like Trump supporters passed over for help in Florida, there will be victims all around.
The enemy is the other party
American elections are typically won by candidates who convince voters that (1) they are facing an enemy they cannot defeat and (2) the candidate will defeat their enemy if they vote for him or her. At various times, this “enemy” has been a foreign belligerent, such as Germany, Japan, or the Soviet Union, or a domestic challenge such as economic downturns.
Today, the “enemy” is the other party.
One side sees itself as the defender of preborn babies and traditional morality. The other side sees itself as the defender of women’s reproductive freedom, civil rights, and equality for all. These are crucial causes that far transcend electoral politics.
Many on each side are convinced that for them to win, the other side must lose. Not only because the other side’s causes are wrong, but because those who hold them are dangerous to America.
This is a different form of prejudice than I have seen in my lifetime. Discrimination against Jews and other racial minorities is a tragic fact of life across the world, an issue I discuss at some depth in my new website article, “A visit that marked me for the rest of my life: Four roots of antisemitism and three urgent calls to action.” As I note, people typically discriminate against those they envy, consider to be succeeding unfairly, or see as inferior to themselves.
But to disparage and even despise another American because of their political affiliation and the assumption that they are therefore hazardous to our nation—that is something else.
And an ominous threat to the future of our democracy.
If this divisiveness persists
If you and I were living in a monarchy, we would need to get along with the monarch more than with each other. If we were living under communism, we would need to get along with communist officials more than with our neighbors.
But we live in a democratic republic where we elect each other to office, hold each other accountable through elections, jury trials, and the media, support the state with our taxes, trade with each other in commerce, and live with each other in community.
As a result, the more polarized we become, the less functional our society becomes.
If our divisiveness persists, the day will come when we won’t trust the validity of our elections or the character of those we elect. We won’t trust the justice of our courts or the veracity of our media. We won’t trust the integrity of our financial systems or the goodwill of our neighbors.
We will therefore see increasing attempts to restrict the freedom of speech of those we consider dangerous (here’s one post-election example). Crime will escalate as criminals see others not as victims but as means to their ends. People will congregate in communities, schools, businesses, and churches that share their political ideology and listen only to media with which they agree, further fragmenting the social fabric of our nation. And our consensual democracy will become more endangered with each passing year.
But the good news is that the gospel is the good news we need most.
Roman soldiers and Jewish priests
Jesus’ first followers were anything but a homogeneous lot.
Matthew collected taxes for the Roman Empire, while Simon the Zealot was aligned with a guerrilla movement seeking its overthrow. In a day when Jews and Gentiles despised each other, Jesus’ movement included both. In a society where women were devalued, women were among his most visible followers. Demoniacs were healed, adulterers were forgiven, and both were welcomed into his family of faith.
His movement soon encompassed people from fifteen different language groups (Acts 2:9–11). It came to include Roman soldiers and jailers along with Jewish priests and Pharisees.
Was this because people in the first century were more gracious, forgiving, and charitable than we are? Or was it because there’s something transformative and unifying about the message they embraced? And something attractive about their lives once they embraced it?
“With Christ joy is constantly born anew”
Tim Keller encapsulated the message of Jesus:
The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.
If I truly believe that I am “loved and accepted in Jesus Christ,” I am free to love and accept you as I am loved and accepted by my Lord. But if I do not embrace this fact, I am as susceptible to the divisiveness of our day as anyone.
I feel deeply the weight of our moral issues and see those with whom I disagree as deeply and tragically wrong. It is only when I embrace the transforming truth of the gospel that I can see others as God sees them. It is only then that I can be a cultural missionary who speaks the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15) rather than a cultural warrior who must defeat his enemies.
Only Jesus can turn hearts inflamed by animosity into hearts empowered by grace. Only he can inspire us to choose forgiveness over vengeance. Only he can replace the cycle of retribution with the joy of community. Pope Francis was right:
The joy of the gospel fills the hearts and lives of all who encounter Jesus. Those who accept his offer of salvation are set free from sin, sorrow, inner emptiness, and loneliness. With Christ joy is constantly born anew.
For the sake of our democracy and the health of your soul, will you take time to “encounter Jesus” again today?
Wednesday news to know:
*Denison Forum does not necessarily endorse the views expressed in these stories.
Quote for the day:
“You could join a church. You can go through a religious ceremony. You can say a prayer and not be changed. But if you really encounter Jesus, you will be changed. No one encounters Jesus and remains the same.” —Derek Prince
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