America’s Crisis of Contempt


Last Friday (February 7th), Arthur C. Brooks, a social scientist and a member of the faculty at Harvard’s Kennedy Business School, offered a thought-provoking speech to attendees of the National Prayer Breakfast.  I encourage you to read his remarks in their entirety here. 

Mr. Brooks is not a member of the clergy but a devote Roman Catholic layman.  I find it interesting that he was selected as the speaker at the prayer breakfast as sometimes those of us in the clergy can be very full of ourselves and forget that God works through all of God’s children, whether or not we claimed to be “ordained.”  His message was poignant and timely, and unfortunately may go unheard.

Mr. Brooks as raised by “liberal” parents even though he identifies as “conservative.” When he hears “liberals” being called “stupid” and “evil,” it is understandable that he takes that very personally. He loves his parents regardless of their politics or ideology.  I am sure many of us have loved ones who have very different opinions about such things than we do, and it can become a point of division IF WE LET IT.

In his speech, Mr. Brooks makes the point that contempt, as defined by 19th century philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer, is “the unsullied conviction of the worthlessness of another.”  This breaks my heart. Jesus came to tell us that ALL of us are worthy of God’s love just because we are. We have inherent value because we are God’s creation.  The fact that we humans believe we can eradicate that worth with our words is unconscionable, and yet we do it every day. And I am guilty of it too.

I am ashamed to admit that I have fallen under the seductive lure of contempt to make myself feel better, to justify my point of view when I vehemently disagree with someone.  I admit that it “feels good” to put down another person’s ideas as being beneath my own righteous ones, and yet in the very act of doing that, I have committed a grievous sin against my neighbor.  I have denied their God-given worth and made myself feel superior for my own ego’s sake. 

Unfortunately, such behavior is being rewarded in the media and as such is perpetuated.  There is no civil discourse because when we deny the other’s point of view as having any sense of value, it is simple to disregard it and them.  Sadly, we don’t realize the spiritual damage that we have done to ourselves in the midst of such acts, and to me, this is the devil’s playground.

I do believe that we are in the midst of spiritual warfare in our secular society.  We have allowed evil to seep into our hearts and minds so that we feel righteousness for hating our neighbor because of we disagree with their politics. Yes, people can do acts that are evil, but to call someone evil for a position or belief is the epitome of contempt.  And yes, there are positions on certain topics that I cannot support, but I have to remember that the person who believes in that position is still a child of God.

Jesus said it is easy to love our family, but he also asked us to love our enemies.  It is not a sign of weakness but a place of power, although it may not be power that this world appreciates. Yet we are called, as faithful Christians, to love even when it is inconvenient or hard. We are called to not be contemptuous, no matter what.

Let us offer a fast from contempt.  Let us rededicate ourselves to love especially when it is hard. Let us celebrate our worthiness through the sacrifice of Jesus and remember that he died for all, not just those we agree with.

In Christ,
Rev. Valerie+ 

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