We continue our exploration of the connection between individual and collective faith and our politics. I’ll present some recent examples as a way to get beyond the sound bites on our “culture wars.” 

The attempted shooting of Donald Trump was another wake-up call for us individually and collectively. It was different from 9/11 or other tragic shootings that ended in the target’s death (JFK, RK, Sr, MLK). Still, this dramatic picture is deeply embedded –  a former president with blood dripping from his ear, obviously in shock,  shaking his fist to encourage his supporters as the panicked Secret Service whisked him to his limousine.

There was no shortage of coverage and lots of interviewing. One got my attention and caused me to rethink my ideas about how white people of faith might engage in this election season.

A young TV reporter was positioned in the parking lot and talked with Trump rally participants as they exited. A couple stopped; the woman did the talking. After expressing her shock and well wishes for former President Trump, she stated emphatically: “This has to stop. We need to return to love and decency in how we treat one another.”  She went on to describe herself as a woman of faith and to say how proud she was that her son was in seminary learning to be a minister. Faith was obviously very important to her. Her faith told her that love and decency were the way out of the violence and heated rhetoric.

Listening to her was shocking to me. It turned upside down my assumptions about the people who attend a Trump rally. I had to face the reality that she was saying the same thing I was thinking. Love and kindness are the path out of this downward spiral of hate and mutual contempt across our cultural and ideological divides.

There have been other people interviewed who saw the shooting as a reaction to President Biden’s nefarious plot against Donald Trump. Still, others thought the answer was to shoot back and attack Democratic candidates.

But the woman advocating love and kindness got my attention. How many more Trump supporters are there like her? Is there a bridge with some Trump followers that looks for ways to let love lead? In the meantime, I am considering learning more about White Supremacist Christians and looking for faith-based groups who may be already engaged in bringing the values of love-based faith into the national election process.

As is usually the case in complex situations, a binary, either/or choice is too limiting.  What if we sought out Trump supporters and entered into dialogue about values of love and kindness which could be our way forward? What might we learn?

What if I ceased denying there is an organized White Supremacist Christian movement, and it is squarely behind Donald Trump? How might I learn to distinguish these Supremacists from the concerned, angry white working people who feel left out and ignored?

Republican Vice President nominee JD Vance articulated this anger and sense of being left behind in his acceptance speech. Introduced by his wife, Usha Vance, it’s hard to make sense of the words and actions. Supposedly, for both Vance’s, faith is a major part of their life and commitment to work for others.

In the same hall where Mr. Vance was nominated, the unity poster hand-out for the evening was Deportation Now. Among the many actions I find unloving and unkind is the Trump proposal to initiate a huge deportation program.

Our politics and lives as citizens are messy, very messy. President Biden’s withdrawal Sunday reinforces the messiness. Simple answers are often misdirects. Yet love and kindness lead by necessity to compassion. Compassion leads to less judging and more acknowledging and accepting differences. My faith gives me comfort that there is a way forward. It may take a long time, and change will also be messy. The more I and others look for ways to believe in the power of loving kindness, the more compassion will appear.  We may then find ways to understand and communicate beyond our current 50-50 stalemate.