What does ‘loving our enemies’ appear to be in our bitterly divided society? Although they do not all the time make the headlines, many individuals are working hard to beat hatred for individuals who vote otherwise.
“I do not understand how we got so toxic and just so divided and so bitter,” said former US president Barack Obama at a rally for democratic candidate Kamala Harris two weeks before the 2024 presidential election.
There is little question that hostile political divisions have worsened within the US and the UK. Many surveys show a widening of opinion and a deepening intolerance of the opposite ‘side’. In the UK the split has shifted from party politics to opinions on membership of the European Union: “People on either side of the Brexit vote dislike the opposing side intensely,” summarised a recent report from the Policy Institute at King’s College London.
In the US, Obama himself is commonly blamed (by the opposite ‘side’) for making the division worse. Yet in his own party, the blame will likely be put firmly on the shoulders of his successor, Donald Trump.
But as each their presidencies coincided with the rise of social media – one other factor commonly blamed for the worsening polarisation of society – it’s difficult to find out crucial cause.
Whatever the explanations, there are people who find themselves attempting to offer solutions and develop into peacemakers. The need is urgent. The actual and potential effects of accelerating division are very real. The recent movie “Civil War” was fairly clear in its message: the US could soon develop into a dystopian nightmare of violent conflict unless we discover a way through this problem. In the UK, around a 3rd of the population think we are going to see civil war on this country in the subsequent 10 years, based on a recent YouGov poll.
Bridge builders
When people do reach across the divide, interesting things can occur. Arthur C Brooks begins his book Love your enemies: how decent people can save America from the culture of contempt with the story of Hawk Newsome, a Black Lives Matter activist. He had arrived with like-minded friends at a Trump rally in 2017 to confront their opponents. Predictably, either side traded insults at first. But then the organiser of the rally, Tommy Hodges, invited Newsome to the front to talk to the group. After saying a brief prayer, the words he selected managed to unite the group moderately than divide them, and he left the platform to cheers. For each activists, it modified their attitudes and led them towards harmony moderately than division. The story hit the headlines.
Religious harmony?
Faith inspired this positive interaction, but many individuals incorrectly perceive religion to be a big reason behind division, based on recent research from More in Common, a consultancy operating within the UK and US that seeks to construct bridges across the divides. It found: “Americans often overestimate the importance Evangelicals and Catholics place on their political identity and partisan affiliation … Democrats and Independents who overestimate the share of Evangelicals who’re Republican are inclined to have more negative views towards all Evangelicals.”
The group argued that faith communities is usually a source of unity and peacemaking moderately than division. “Many Americans seek spiritual solace, moral guidance, and a way of belonging from their faith communities, moderately than political alignment,” concluded the report.
“By specializing in these commonalities, moderately than partisan differences, faith communities can foster dialogue, reduce fear, and construct stronger social cohesion.
“Local places of worship can function vital spaces for connection and understanding, helping to counter the toxic polarisation that threatens to fracture the nation. Ultimately, faith communities share an exciting potential to develop into powerful agents of unity in a divided America.”
University challenges
A specific political hotspot of toxic disagreement has been higher education. But here too, there are individuals who construct bridges. Brooks cites the instance of Cornel West, a socialist professor who has held quite a few senior roles in academia and who Wikipedia describes as “outspoken voice in left-wing politics,” who can be running as an independent candidate within the 2024 presidential election. Yet he has a friendship with Robert P George, similarly distinguished in his profession, but conservative in his politics. Both continuously appear together to debate the right way to disagree well and the importance of listening to different points of view.
Dr George said “we must always value dissent, even once we are confident that the dissenter is incorrect, because that dissent will enable us, by means of having to defend the reality, to deepen our understanding and appreciation of it,” at a 2016 event organised by the American Enterprise Institute.
In the USA the university campus organisation Bridge USA seeks to dialogue with politically partisan groups. “We are developing a generation of leaders that value empathy and constructive engagement because our generation will bear the price of polarisation and tribalism for years to return,” says the organisation’s website.
Family turmoil
The costs of political division can indeed be high. In a 2019 survey by BMG Research for the Independent newspaper, a couple of in 20 Britons said that they had “fallen out with or stopped talking to a member of the family,” and almost one in 12 with a friend, due to arguments over the Brexit referendum. It was worse in younger generations. Around 1 / 4 said that they had had heated arguments about Brexit with family and friends.
Living Room Conversations has tools to assist people have higher discussions across divides – especially in families. “Each 12 months we hear from those who they wish to use [our] skills to assist heal family relationships,” says an internet ‘tip sheet‘ for conversation with family and friends. “People have experienced the lack of, or harm, to treasured relationships due to politics…. Does love supersede politics? For most individuals it does. But there remains to be confusion and hurt to administer. How can we do that? How can we hearken to one another and hold the stress of our differences?”
Perhaps we are able to practise these vital skills through constructive discussions about politics inside our church communities. Can we practise disagreeing well, even when we expect the topic is crucial and the opposite person could be very incorrect? We can get your hands on those that are constructing bridges and dealing against the increasingly toxic descent of hatred in our world, to be able to learn the right way to develop into a peacemaker moderately than an instrument of hostility.
Heather Tomlinson is a contract Christian author. Find more of her work at https://heathertomlinson.substack.com/Â or via X (twitter) @heathertomli
