Why our culture is facing “A crisis of respect”

In the wake of Tuesday’s election, members of the Democratic Party have spent a great deal of energy trying to explain why Kamala Harris lost and Donald Trump won. And while most perspectives have covered the gamut from “America is racist and sexist” to “President Biden should have dropped out sooner,” some less beholden to the party line are urging Democratic leaders to take a step back and be a bit more introspective. 

Brett Stephens, for example, perceptively assigns blame to “three larger mistakes of worldview”: 

First, the conviction among many liberals that things were pretty much fine, if not downright great, in Biden’s America — and that anyone who didn’t think that way was either a right-wing misinformer or a dupe. Second, the refusal to see how profoundly distasteful so much of modern liberalism has become to so much of America. Third, the insistence that the only appropriate form of politics when it comes to Trump is the politics of Resistance — capital R.

There is truth to all three, but the first point in particular seems crucial to any objective understanding of Tuesday’s results.

You see, America has always been a divided nation to some extent. While we can, at times, unite around a common goal, even then, the diversity that exists within our society will inevitably lead to some fairly clear lines between the various groups that make up the nation.

And that’s all right. After all, diversity cannot exist without differences, and God made each of us unique. However, he also intended for us to share a common foundation as people made in his image (Genesis 1:27). 

It should not come as a surprise that, as our culture increasingly rejects that foundation, we’re struggling to keep our differences from becoming divisive. 

As a result, we’re facing what David Brooks calls “a crisis of respect.” And while he sees those issues as playing out primarily on the left, I think it’s fair to say that all of us struggle at times to show respect to those who think differently than we do on the issues we find most important. 

Fortunately, we’re not the first group to struggle with that problem.

First-century problems today

In a recent article for Christianity Today, Julien C. H. Smith looked to Paul’s letter to the Romans for guidance on how to deal with division in a way that honors both God and those with whom we disagree. 

He notes that, for the first-century church in Rome, the division between Gentile and Jewish Christians over issues like the dietary laws threatened to tear their community apart. Both sides were convinced that not only were they correct, but that the other side was simply too ignorant and obstinate to see the truth. 

Does that sound familiar? 

In Rome, it led them to see their fellow believers as more of a problem to solve than a person to love. We’re seeing the same approach in our culture today. Smith notes that the problem only gets more acute when the people with whom we disagree are an unavoidable part of our lives:

When our enemies are distant, the question of loving them can be conveniently ignored. But when the enemy is across the table, in the same committee meeting, or in a group project, the countercultural wisdom and necessity of Jesus’ commands—love your enemy, who is your neighbor (Matt. 5:43–44)—becomes apparent.

Perhaps that need for distance is why so many in our culture retreat to echo chambers and cling so tightly to their mischaracterizations of the other side. But God has no intention of allowing us to live that kind of life. Instead, he’s called us to be salt and light, changing our culture from within rather than lobbing Bible verses and judgment from the relative safety of like-minded communities.

And Paul argued that the best place to start is by welcoming others as Christ has welcomed us (Romans 15:7). So how do we do that?

Three ways to be welcoming

One: No one needs to earn kindness

The first step is remembering that our call to be kind and welcoming toward others has nothing to do with whether they have earned such accommodation. Rather, it is meant to be an act of obedience, done in gratitude for the way God has welcomed us. 

That doesn’t mean we should act foolishly or recklessly welcome every passing stranger into our home. But the reminder that we are to treat others with respect and dignity because that’s how Christ has treated us should make it easier to look past our disagreements to see people as God does.

Two: People are more than their politics

The second step—one that is incredibly important in our current climate—is to remember that people are more than their politics. To be sure, there are some crazies out there who have made politics their new religion and worship at the feet of whatever party leader best represents their views at a given moment. But most people have a better grasp on reality than that, and how they voted (or if they voted) should not define the way we see them. 

So if Tuesday’s election comes up in conversation at the office, among friends, or at the Thanksgiving table in a few weeks’ time, don’t let politics become the primary lens through which you view someone. They are no more the sum of their political views than you are, which leads us to the last point we need to keep in mind.

Three: Differences are an opportunity to learn from each other

The third and final step in welcoming others as Christ has welcomed us is to entertain the possibility that those with different views than our own can have something to teach us. 

Of all the ways in which our society has suffered as a result of the “crisis of respect” we’re currently facing, the inability to learn from one another has to be toward the top of the list. Engaging with people who think differently than you is often the best way to evaluate your own beliefs. 

Even if the conversation serves only to reinforce that your thoughts are correct, testing them against their ideological counterparts can help you to better understand why they are true. And more often than we may care to admit, those conversations will reveal blind spots or holes in our argument. When that happens, treating the corrections as an opportunity rather than a threat is key.

As Christians who serve the God who is Truth, we do the gospel and our witness a disservice when we earn the reputation as a people who are closed-minded and unwilling to engage with beliefs that are different from our own. 

So the next time you are given the opportunity to talk with someone whose views differ from yours, recognize it as a chance to grow and potentially help the other person to do the same. 

Will you pray that God will give you just such an opportunity today?

 Friday news to know:

• President-elect Trump names Susie Wiles as his Chief of Staff
• Florida, South Dakota, and Nebraska become the first states to vote not to expand abortion rights since Roe v. Wade was overturned
• California wildfires force thousands to flee their homes
• Ancient Babylonian tablet may reveal the resting place of Noah’s Ark
• On this day in 1895: German scientist accidentally discovers X-rays

*Denison Forum does not necessarily endorse the views expressed in these stories.

Quote of the day:

“You can safely assume you’ve created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do.” —Anne Lamott