At lunch today I decided to enter in to the dangerous arena of politics with some awesome sixth graders. I posed the question to them: If you could vote... who would you vote for? And why? I got a variety of answers and I was quite surprised at how perceptive and informed they were. They talk and think deeply about politics even in sixth grade!
If you are like me you are probably ready to move past this election season. But I see a great opportunity to teach something quite profound to youth. It isn't a certain political view or stance but instead it is something much deeper. Regardless of our political views we all teach our youth a way of communicating by our tone, our actions, our rhetoric especially when we talk about those on the other side of our political belief system.
I have discovered that there are three distinct ways we communicate with each other especially in the area of politics.
1. Opposing views are seen as obstacles. By far the most popular...others views are seen as illegitimate. It is usually a posture of belittling and putting one down. This puts the opposing person in a position of defensiveness. Maybe you have been on one side or the other of this scenario. I find in these conversations that nothing of substance ever takes place.
Whenever I have this experience I feel many times like I am talking to a wall. We say the same things yet never truly listening to each other.
2. Shut down. For some people politics makes their blood boil so much so a conversation can't even begin to take place because it is to stressful. The other side is seen as an enemy and one can't even begin to understand where another person comes from or that they are even worth their time.
3. The way of compassion and empathy. Rarely do I meet folks that embrace this way. Some might call this the weak way. A dangerous place no doubt. It doesn't mean to "agree to disagree." Or to merely coexist. It is much deeper than that... two words that literally mean walking in another person's shoes. To feel what they feel.
This means that we have to take the uncomfortable posture of listening to words that we might think are illegitimate. The craziest part of living a life like this is that we have to be open to the reality that walking in other people's shoes could possibly change us. We might actually learn something about each other when our defenses aren't up.
So some pastor's out there want to tell their congregation which presidential candidate, political party or political views Jesus' endorses. I could never play in that arena. But what I can say is that Jesus endorses without a doubt the third way. All sorts of people were attracted to Jesus because they knew his compassion was real and true.
We have an incredible opportunity in this election season to teach not a narrative of divisiveness but of hope that we can live together in harmony. We can actually live together with a variety of belief systems without breaking each other down. We can live together in a community that embraces each other and learns from each other.
Not only can we engage in a conversation with youth about what they think about politics but we can also teach them deep character on how we treat others that see the world differently. How we are better people when we choose to walk in the way of compassion and empathy.
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