It was a foregone conclusion that former president Trump would be acquitted. Of course, we do well to remember this is not the same thing as being found innocent. It is rather obvious that his Kool-Aid drinking minions were looking for any excuse to let him off the hook, and hopefully save their own skins in the process. How that will play out in the years to come remains to be seen.
This leaves many people with is a sense of frustration and powerlessness. It’s easy to feel like pawns in a hopelessly corrupt political game. Falling prey to the temptation of frustration and powerlessness is the single greatest guarantee that none of the problems we are facing will ever be solved.
A brief history lesson is instructive.
When the Civil War came to an end there were a lot of casualties and a tremendous amount of property and economic damage. Enter Reconstruction. This was the time when the victories of the Union would be implemented in new laws, amendments to the Constitution (13, 14 and 15) and a commitment to assisting newly freed African Americans establish their lives.
What no one counted on was that changes in people’s hearts and minds cannot be legislated. The racism, resentment and unwillingness to forgo reliance on free/cheap labor to support the economy remained. In short, all the problems that started the Civil War remained when the war was over.
Regardless of what laws were passed, those who were entrenched in their positions found ways to maintain the status quo. Sharecropping emerged as a “viable alternative” to land ownership for Freedmen. Voter suppression began in earnest. Segregation in schools emerged as elite white academies were built to take children out of public schools that were now open to African Americans. Less than five years after the end of the Civil War, the roots of Jim Crow laws were germinating. Lynching was on the rise, reaching its zenith in the 1890’s but continuing well into the 20th century.
No one counted on the intransigence of people’s hearts and minds. This is something we share with our forbearers. The things that divide us cannot be legislated away. There is nothing to be gained from the constant power struggles that simple change the winners and losers without solving the problems.
What resolves issues are conversations that find common ground. The ills of our time are not easily divided into liberal and conservative or Democrat and Republican, just as the issues of the post-Civil War era were not easily divided into the Union and the Confederacy.
Regardless of political party, most people would agree that our government is broken. On Sunday’s Meet the Press Governor Larry Hogan (R-Maryland) stated it is hard to do what is right for the American people and go against your base. That sums up a lot of what is broken in Washington. Politicians are more concerned with upsetting their base than serving their country.
Quaker theologian Parker Palmer wrote that our current political divide crosses three lines. I am paraphrasing. First, there is the divide between people who believe in the power of ideas, values, commitments and visions and those who believe that power comes only from external sources. Second, there is the divide between people who believe in the power of one and those who do not, even when individuals come together around common goals. Third, there is the divide between those who believe in the power of slow, small invisible underground processes and those who believe that only visible large scale results are truly powerful. (Introduction xxv-xxvi, Healing the Heart of Democracy)
Discovering where we are in these uncommon yet revealing lines of division says a great deal about how hopeful we can be about the future of our democracy. If we are stuck in our powerlessness and count on forces outside of ourselves to fix what is broken in our country, I dare say we leave the fox guarding the hen house. If we see ourselves as having some agency and a willingness to reach across traditional lines of difference for the sake of shared goals and common values, we have reason to be hopeful.
In the days after President Biden’s Inauguration, there was a ten-day online People’s Inauguration. Organized by Valerie Kaur, author of “See No Stranger, A Memoir and Manifesto of Revolutionary Love” each day explored a different theme. All the themes related to change, love and justice in our world with a focus on individual action. The event is over, but the daily sessions are available for purchase. They are worth the time and money to invest in a better world and a better way of being in the world.
We are powerful. We have the capacity and the responsibility to change ourselves and change the world around us. We may never make the headlines; we may not see the fruits of our labors; we may not get any recognition—and none of this matters. What we will get is a better world for others and for ourselves.
The Irreverent Reverend 