Not very long ago, certainly within our lifetimes, we could disagree and disagree civilly. After all, argumentation based on conflicting ideals is necessary for a society’s intellectual growth.
But now things are just ugly. It seems that everything, including what to have for lunch falls into two camps, us vs. them, red vs. blue, conservative vs. liberal. Politicians are divided, that’s nothing new, but now families are divided over differing political viewpoints.
So, what’s to be done? How can any of us continue when division permeates every aspect of our lives? Isn’t life hard enough without the constant vitriol? And what about the cost to our inner lives as we become consumed by hate, anger and exhaustion?
Author Kirsten Powers tackles these questions in her book, “Saving Grace: Speak Your Truth, Stay Centered and Learn to Coexist with People who Drive You Nuts.” Powers is no stranger to division. As a USA Today columnist and CNN commentator, she often butts heads with political rivals, and she writes how such engagements have left her feeling drained and depressed.
For guidance, she looks to a tried-and-true concept that is older than ancient – grace.
Powers explores this subject thoroughly with intelligence and sensitivity while remaining down to earth and constantly in our collective political dilemma. She plainly writes, “Grace is amazing.”
However, grace is by no means simple. Powers could have simply made such a Pollyanna-ish statement and then filled the rest of her book with fluff and filler. But she’s much braver. Grace takes work. Grace is not a get out of jail free card.
“Grace helps you see that other people’s beliefs and actions belong to them, and that marinating in judgement, rage, hatred, frustration, and resentment toward them helps nobody,” says Powers in her book.
Grace towards others is a gift we give ourselves. But again, it’s not easy. We can still disagree and probably should disagree about any given number of topics.
But we must become aware of our inner lives before our souls burn with anger and we become embers, petrified on different sides of the political aisle.
Americans, it would seem, have little appetite for grace at this moment. And it’s unlikely that Powers’ book will bring us all together in collective harmony. But Powers does offer a sort of handbook on how to navigate these times in such a way that preserves ourselves, which is an important first step.