Embracing Each Other...Again

The Pope is not perfect. And, yes, there are issues with the Catholic Church (like all religious movements).

But there's something captivating, transformative, even earth-rocking, about the current Catholic pontiff, Pope Francis. 

Why, he has done all kinds of unexpected, reconciling, redemptive things.  For example, rather than moving into the regal, renaissance papal apartments when becoming Pope, Francis moved into the much more modest abode, in St. Martha’s House, a hospitality abode for Vatican visitors.  And when he engaged in the traditional papal act of feet-washing during Holy Week in 2016, Francis choose to wash the feet of Muslim immigrants.  

But a recent 'surprise move' by Francis' is a stunner.  During a papal audience last October for the Special Olympics Team, Gemma Pompili, a member of the team, approached Francis to give him a symbolic trainer. But rather than just receiving the gift, Francis then invited Gemma to stay with him, holding her hand during his address to the athletics. 

It was as if Francis wanted to proclaim the necessity, of all of us, wherever possible, to hold hands with, to embrace, what we do not normally embrace, in unexpected ways, in unexpected circumstances.

For there is considerable distance between us these days.  Why, in many instances, we are terribly fractured, even divided.

• Democrats despise Republicans, and Republicans despise Democrats.  
• White folks demean Black folk, and Black folk demean White folk.  
• Americans bad-mouth the global community, and the global community bad-mouths Americans.  
• Progressive Christians 'knife' Evangelical Christians, and Evangelical Christians 'knife' Progressive Christians.  

  

Well, you get the point.  

But in recent years, it has gotten even worst, with a rise of 'out and out' name-calling, insults, and the abandonment of any standard of mutual respect, especially if different.

The current President is a master of the 'art' of character assassination.  Why according to Jasmine C. Lee and Kevin Quealy, Donald Trump has insulted, on Twitter alone, 425 people, places or things since declaring his presidential candidacy.  And that's a conservative figure, as of only January 3, 2018 -- with the list still growing, weekly. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/01/28/upshot/donald-trump-twitter-insults.html

But Donald Trump is far from alone. At a 2008 fundraiser, Barack Obama observed, that conservatives are bitter folk since they "...cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.” And at a 2016 campaign event, Hillary Clinton declared: “...you can put half of Trump supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables...” later stating that some of these folk were 'irredeemable.'  http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/commentary/ct-hillary-clinton-deplorables-20160913-story.html

All this is indicative of a rock-slide of character, as once bed-rock virtue and behavior have eroded and fallen away, threatening all of us, as we risk being destroyed by its negative impact.

I'm encouraged, by the growing frequency of social commentators elevating the issue of character. For example, on Sunday, on Meet the Press, Eddie Glaude, Jr., of Princeton University reflected on recent White House personnel departures from the perspective not just of professional competency but human morality.

"...[this is just not a] question of talent, it's also the question of character...Why are these people, these particular kind of people in the White House? People who beat women, people who seem to have questionable financial dealings, folks who seem to have really noxious views about people who are different than they are? Folks who seem to be insensitive to other people who are suffering? It just brings up the question of character..."   https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/meet-press-february-11-2018-n846876

It does.

There are numerous ways to address character.  Glaude itemizes quite a few, but I want to return to the issue of division. For at character's core is a commitment not to fuel division/s, but to bridge division/s, in spite of differences.

In fact, persons of character believe, that maturity happens best as we engage differences, and actually, learn from them.

In 2008, J.K. Rowling of Harry Potter fame gave the commencement address at Harvard University.  She had two main points:  the benefits of failure -- and -- the importance of imagination. Now, persons assumed that Rowling would speak of imagination from the perspective of her creative writing.  Not so.  Rowling advanced the necessity of imagination from the perspective of stretching and identifying, with persons different and divided from us.

"...Imagination is not only the uniquely human capacity to envision that which is not, and therefore the fount of all invention and innovation. In its arguably most transformative and revelatory capacity, it is the power that enables us to empathize with humans whose experiences we have never shared...". https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2008/06/text-of-j-k-rowling-speech/

In her address, Rowling detailed entering into the world of the victims of injustice, as she worked with Amnesty International. But opportunities for empathetic imagination are plentiful, for we are distant from countless 'foreign' places and people.  For as Rowling goes on to clarify...

"...Unlike any other creature on this planet, humans can learn and understand, without having experienced. They can think themselves into other people’s places...[This is wise, for as] the Greek author Plutarch [has written]: 'What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality'".... https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2008/06/text-of-j-k-rowling-speech/

I agree; inward 'stuff,' character 'stuff' is the crying need.  And so let's think ourselves into other people's places.  For inner achievement will change outer reality. 

For as Rowling suggests, our core failure, is a failure of imagination.  Rather than thinking, believing, seeing new options and new possibilities for joining together, we keep name-calling and slandering each other into the same-old, same-old categories.

But like Pope Francis, we're called to imagine new categories, new configurations for standing with each other -- even embracing each other -- in spite of our differences.  For Christ has...

"...tore down the wall we used to keep each other at a distance...Christ brought us together through his death on the cross. The Cross got us to embrace, and that was the end of the hostility. Christ came and preached peace to you outsiders and peace to us insiders. He treated us as equals, and so made us equals. Through him we both share the same Spirit and have equal access to the Father...." (Ephesians 2:15-18, The Message).

Now, in all candor, some will never enter into a reconciling relationship with Christ, or us; they have hardness of heart, and will never soften.  In addition, there are others, who appear open to reunion, but in reality, are con artists, seeking to trick, manipulate and out-maneuver, all for their own self-interest; they are foolish/evil folk who cannot be trusted.  http://wwwpaulmundey.blogspot.com/2017/12/the-best-counsel-ive-ever-been-given.html

But wherever the Spirit does open and confirm a breach in a dividing wall, we are summoned to move ahead.  For in those instances, Christ is going before us, calling us -- and all involved -- into a new day.  Thus, we follow Christ, even amid hostility, trusting His wall-breaking ability to deal with division.  For as Dietrich Bonhoeffer reminds us:

“...[Jesus] stands between us and God, and...between us and all other men and things. He is the Mediator...[Thus]we learn that in the most intimate relationships of life...direct relationships are impossible...Between father and son, husband and wife, the individual and the nation, stands Christ the Mediator..." https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/423952-jesus-stands-between-us-and-god-and-for-that-veryhttps:/

And so, we are to view all persons -- friend or foe -- through Christ the Mediator.  For there are no direct relationships.  We must see all through Jesus.

And when we do, we discover: there are no Democrats or Republicans -- there are no Black folks and White folks -- there are no Americans and non-Americans -- there are no Evangelical Christians and Progressive Christians -- there are only children of God, who are all worthy of our consideration -- and if possible, our embrace. 

Not that we agree with all.  Or become chummy with all.  But we value all -- willing to imagine new prospects, for life-changing regard and respect.