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Gordon Street is a clinical psychologist who lives and practices in Lincoln where he also sings in the choir of the local Catholic church, serves as a member of the Lincoln Town Council, and chairs the Lincoln Lakes Regional Democratic Committee.
In a recent homily, our priest asked us what we would do if we arrived at the pearly gates only to find an enemy waiting to greet us, reminding us that Jesus wants to save all humanity, not just the people we agree with. Would we hug them? Would we reject them? Would we refuse to enter if that meant sharing heaven with them?
He also reminded us of Christ’s commandment to love one another as he loves us. Not in heaven — not in the future, but now.
In a Marist poll published about a year ago, almost half (47 percent) of Americans said it is likely that our nation will experience another Civil War within their lifetimes. A 2020 Brown University study found political polarization in the United States growing faster than in three other democracies (Canada, New Zealand, and Switzerland) in contrast with five other democracies in which polarization has actually decreased (U.K., Australia, Germany, Norway, and Sweden).
Political polarization is not a foregone conclusion, civil war is not inevitable, and we all need to follow Christ’s commandment to find love for our neighbors whether we agree with them or not — not just Catholics and other Christians but non-Christians and even agnostics and atheists.
I recommend we learn to do this by listening — curiously and non-judgmentally — to those with opposing viewpoints. Seek to understand each others’ perspectives and to find the commonalities in our values.
A 2023 study found considerable similarity between Democrats and Republicans when it comes to moral and political attitudes with more than 75 percent of responses overlapping. Both groups expressed that finding bipartisan solutions and upholding democracy are important. And the study found that when participants were presented with evidence emphasizing similarities, they experienced warmer feelings toward their opponents and greater belief that common ground can be reached.
Earlier this month, a study in Nature Human Behavior reported on an online game developed by researchers that reduced negative partisanship and increased warmth and even financial generosity with just an hour of gameplay. To play the game, players from opposing political parties — Republicans and Democrats — have to interact, to collaborate and cooperate (anonymously) to solve quizzes. Researchers report benefits persisted four months later.
The point is that we are not going to heal America’s political animosity problem by avoiding interacting with each other but instead by reaching out and engaging each other one-on-one. For fellow Democrats that means engaging in conversations with Republicans — at least with reachable Republicans, such as the 29 percent who believe Joe Biden legitimately won the 2020 presidential election, perhaps even the 39 percent who admit they merely suspect Biden did not win legitimately, admitting they have not seen solid evidence the election was stolen. That comes to a majority (68 percent) of Republicans who should be open to discussion.
Finding commonality with and perhaps even love for our opposition could spell the difference between peace on Earth or another Civil War — not to mention living up to Christ’s commandments.
