by Marianne Williamson: In a free society we do not all have to agree with each other…
That’s pretty much the point of freedom. And no one has a monopoly on truth.
Our challenge today, it seems to me, is to find a way beyond the propaganda and stereotypes to reclaim the high minded core of both conservative and liberal principles. Both deserve respect, and have had and continue to have an important role to play in our nation’s history. At best, they form a kind of yin and yang of our collective conversation. It is not either one of them, but rather the radical perversions of both that form too much of our public dialogue today, that threaten the fabric of our democracy.
This is not a time for knee-jerk attacks on people who don’t agree with us, although it’s absolutely a time to stand passionately for the things we believe in. That’s a challenging juxtaposition at times but we owe it to ourselves, and to our country, to find the sweet spot where we can bless even those with whom we politically disagree.
To those who might say you can’t bless someone and politically oppose them at the same time, I say, “Oh yes you can!” In a way, it’s no different than in sports. The competition is on another level. The fact that I understand and respect you does not mean that I have to agree with you.
What is going on in our country now is profoundly dramatic yet deeply significant, and nothing is more important than that we view the happenings not as Democrats or Republicans, liberals or conservatives, but as Americans. This is way too important a moment to diminish with personal disrespect or shoddy thinking. All of us need to rise to the occasion, think deeply and love wisely. For only from that place will we forge a better future.
We will emerge from this time a somewhat different country than we used to be. We will either be worse or we will be better, and each of us with our own thinking and behavior are basically voting for one direction or the other every day. First, let us love each other. Only that way will we choose correctly. God bless us all, and the country, the planet, and the world that we all share.
