What We Share

After an assassination attempt on one of our candidates for U. S. President, this seems like a good time bring core values into sharp focus. These days it seems as though the chasm between political, religious, and social divides is so wide, there cannot possibly be something we all share. But I believe core values do exist. I know there are plenty of others like me who yearn for a world where violence — whether physical, emotional, or rhetorical — has no place in elections.

Or anywhere else, for that matter!

Like the majority of Americans, I long for sane gun safety laws. Like many, I have advocated and worked for gun safety measures. Yes, I am frustrated at the lack of headway. I roll my eyes when the same public figures who serve as roadblocks to passing gun safety laws wring their hands and offer “thoughts and prayers” in the wake of gun violence. I will continue to advocate and work. In the meantime, I need something different right at this moment. I need some exemplars of people who work together in good faith, despite differences. I need some hope to help me push back against the polarization that is consuming America — and many other places, too.

Just one, simple story. That’s what I need today.

For inspiration, I am drawing on a local story — an interfaith project in my community. Recently, the Brunswick Area Interfaith Council (BAIC), comprising religious organizations from several towns, decided to create lawn signs and bumper stickers to promote values shared across all the religious groups. The signs will be ready to distribute over Labor Day weekend, just as the American election heats up. The underlying goal is to diminish the polarization that is shattering our culture and world.

(Note: I participated in the BAIC in the past, even serving on the Board in several capacities, including President. But I have not been part of the group since I retired four years ago. Thus, I take no credit for the signs. I simply offer a deep bow of gratitude for BAIC’s work.)

Here is what I want to emphasize: A group of faith communities who share and express differing theologies and beliefs agreed on verbiage for a sign to display on lawns and bumper stickers in our community. Despite their differences, these people — remarkable in their own ways, but just regular people like you and me — dug deep to find values that unified all of them:

Lawn sign and bumper magnet created by the Brunswick Area Interfaith Council.

Wouldn’t it have been interesting to be a fly on the wall when the BAIC was brainstorming the sign’s verbiage? “Love, Peace, Justice” — the slogan — rolls easily off the tongue. The slogan depicts an obvious goal, at least for me. But my guess is that finding and agreeing on those words took some effort. Those kinds of “what can we all agree on” conversations are usually challenging.

Now, will everyone who posts the BAIC sign on their lawn or car agree, exactly, on what would be most loving, most peaceful, most just? Of course not. Human beings always hold a variety of views. Plus, we are all fallible. Our sight is limited. Even so, holding “love, peace, and justice” as lamps to light the pathway to our highest aspirations can only lead in the right direction. And maybe, just maybe, asking one simple question about each of those words could open up conversations that would benefit all:

• If the goal is love, what do we most need to do right now?

• If the goal is peace, what do we most need to do right now?

• If the goal is justice, what do we most need to do right now?

Then there is the sign’s final word, “together.” That word is the clincher for me. Instead of operating within their respective silos, the BAIC’s diverse faith communities joined hands with one another. What a wonderful model for all of us! Our children, who will inherit the world we leave them, depend on us to find our way to one another despite obstacles. Our children count on us to discover our shared values despite differences. So, I love that word, “together.” I hold it up as a beacon of possibility and hope.

That word, “together,” elicits a vivid memory for me. In the wake of the horrific Newtown, Connecticut, massacre in December 2012, someone in our town — I no longer remember who — called a hastily planned silent candlelight vigil downtown. Around 65 people gathered in the dark on a particularly cold and windy night. We stamped our feet against the chill and cupped our hands around our candles for some tiny bit of warmth. When bursts of wind inevitably extinguished candles, we turned to one another to share our small remaining flames.

In those moments of shared silence, I was struck by how much light even one candle offers. Sixty-five candles glowing together is yet another thing, a circle of soft light, pressing against the cold and dark. And a group of people committed to rekindling each other’s flames when they flicker and die provides a powerful vision and inspiration.

In today’s tumultuous world, it’s easy to click the bait, to adopt the views, to spout the words that magnify polarizing differences. Far braver and far harder is to join together for the bigger dream and wider view. Yet that kind of unity is what that circle of candles represented for me back in 2012. And that kind of unity is exactly what my community’s BAIC is promoting right now, together.

So, here’s the good news: We don’t need to wait for some magnetic, famous figure to ignite our passion for shared values. Just as the BAIC did, we can begin to cross the chasms right where we are, in our respective communities. Yes, we can offer the world the unique light our individual souls carry. But light increases in the company of other light. Cupping our hands around the soft flame of our own individual lights, let’s remember to shift our gaze outward so that the lights of others meet our eyes. We can find each other, illuminating the path we need to travel. We can help each other to rekindle our light when flames flicker and die out. Together, we magnify the light we carry. Together, we move our world forward.

Love, Justice, Peace. Together

Sylvia

(If you are interested in displaying a BAIC sign on your lawn or car, order before August 1. FMI: brunswickareainterfaith@gmail.com)