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Meine Tante hat letzte Woche versucht, die Grenze zu überqueren. Sie lebt in Deutschland mit einer Tochter, die in Michigan lebt. Sie flog nach Kanada, war zwei Wochen im Haus meiner Eltern unter Quarantäne gestellt und fuhr dann zur Grenze und glaubte, dass sie sich überqueren konnte, da sie sich wieder mit einem Kind vereinigt hatte, das noch unterhaltsam war. Kein solches Glück. Der amerikanische Zollbeamte drehte sie um, ohne ihr zu sagen, warum. Das Problem mit der Grenze ist jedoch, dass die Grenze nicht wirklich an der Grenze liegt. U.S. Customs ist in den Vereinigten Staaten. Canadian Customs ist in Kanada. Die tatsächliche Linie, die ein Land von den anderen unterscheidet, schneidet über die Brücke. Als sie also zur kanadischen Zollkabine hochzog, sagte der Offizier ihr, da sie jetzt in einem fremden Land gewesen sei, müsste sie noch zwei Wochen in Quarantäne stellen. Ganz egal, dass sie seit zwanzig Minuten in den Staaten war und nie aus ihrem Auto ausgestiegen war. Sie hatte einen Zeh über die Grenze gelegt und offensichtlich war sie jetzt eine Bedrohung für die öffentliche Gesundheit des wahren Nordens, stark und frei. Wenn ich mich darüber erzürnt klinge, weil ich es bin.
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Meine Freunde und ich haben heutzutage viel über Grenzen gesprochen. Nicht physische Landgrenzen, sondern die Linien, die das abgrenzen, was man sagen kann und nicht. Was ist und ist sozial nicht akzeptabel. Was klingt wie Verrat an einer Ursache oder Kapitulation an eine andere. Was wir sagen, trägt heutzutage viel Gewicht. Wir tragen die Last, nicht so sehr, das Wahre zu sagen, sondern das Richtige zu sagen. Sicherstellen, dass wir uns richtig identifizieren, uns mit dem Status quo ausrichten, niemandem einen Grund geben, uns rassistisch oder bigot oder, Himmel bewahre, evangelisch zu nennen. Sagen Sie das Falsche, werfen Sie eine Frage auf, legen Sie einen Zeh über die Grenze zwischen akzeptabel und inakzeptabel, und Sie sind wahrscheinlich beschämt, boykottiert, abgebrochen und in Selbstquarantäne gezwungen, damit Sie andere mit Ihren schändlichen Ideen infizieren. Schlagen Sie vor, dass kulturelle Einflüsse oder ideologische Leanings eine Rolle dabei spielen, immer mehr zu Übergangsgeschlechtern zu führen, und klar müssen Sie Transgender Menschen hassen. Sagen Sie von der Kanzel, dass Rassismus systemisch ist, dass Unterdrückung real ist und dass Christen aufgerufen sind, die harte Arbeit der Gerechtigkeit zu tun, und Sie sind wahrscheinlich ein marxistischer Befürworter der Kritischen Theorie.Feiern Sie einen Nationalfeiertag und sehr wahrscheinlich sind Sie ein weißer Vorherrscher ohne Respekt für indigene Völker. Fragen Sie sich, ob es bessere Wege gibt, die Polizei zu strukturieren, und Sie sind fast sicher ein Anarchist. Die Leute legen einen Zeh über die Linie, und wir werfen sie an diesem Zeh direkt in das tiefe Ende, oben gegen die Wand und beschuldigen sie des einen oder anderen Extremes. Wir schreien und schreien, wir beschriften und fühlen uns zufrieden über die gute Arbeit, die wir geleistet haben, die Gesellschaft zu schützen, uns selbst zu schützen, unsere Zukunft vor diesen problematischen Menschen zu schützen. Keine Angst mehr vor dieser Person zu haben, sie scheuern sich hilflos in den Gewässern, in die wir sie geworfen haben. Weil es Angst ist, denke ich, die unsere Polarisierung verschärft, unsere Selbstgerechtigkeit, unsere Entschlossenheit, die Problemmenschen auszusuchen. Angst davor, Macht zu verlieren, vielleicht. Angst davor, töricht auszusehen, vielleicht. Aber auch die Furcht, nicht die vollkommene Utopie unserer postchristlichen Gesellschaft zu erreichen, ist davon überzeugt, dass wir sie erreichen können, eine Furcht, die allzu leicht in die Kirche hineindringt, in der unser Wunsch, die Erneuerung Gottes zu sein, schnell zum Triumphalismus des Stammes werden kann. Unsere Angst führt uns dazu, den anderen zu dämonisieren und zu beschämen. Unsere Angst vor einer Schande hält uns davon ab, uns im Gespräch zu engagieren. Und so bleiben wir in unseren Ecken zusammengekauert, an unseren Seiten der Grenze, die Zehen fest unter uns gehalten.
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Am Sonntag besuchte ich Freunde, die nördlich von Detroit leben. Wir fuhren zur Mündung des Detroit River, wo er sich in den Lake St. Claire öffnet. Ich lehnte mich auf die Schiene und schaute über das aqua blue Wasser in Kanada, meinem Zuhause. Ich bin seit Oktober letzten Jahres nicht mehr in Kanada getreten, und wenn die Grenze geschlossen ist, ist es unklar, wann ich das als Nächstes tun kann. Das war so nah wie ich konnte, eine Welle in Richtung Windsor. Wir beobachteten die Boote für eine Weile und ich fragte mich, wo die Grenze tatsächlich inmitten der Wellen war. Schnellboote kümmerten sich um, Kajakfahrer umarmten die Ränder, ein Schiff ruckte in der Mitte. Ich bin sicher, dass es Bojen gibt, wo ein Land stoppt und das andere beginnt, aber der Fluss war wie ein Niemandsland, ein Mittelweg, wo man den Zeh ins Wasser tauchen konnte und wissen, dass es das gleiche Wasser war, das gegen die gegenüberliegende Küste gelappt ist. Ich wünschte, wir verbringen mehr Zeit zusammen in der Mitte zu schwimmen, anstatt Menschen ins tiefe Ende zu werfen. Ich wünschte, wir wären in Ordnung, einen Raum zu bewohnen, in dem viele Dinge gleichzeitig wahr sein können — man kann ein Patriot sein, ohne ein Nationalist zu sein, man kann die Polizei respektieren, während man noch Reformen fordert, man kann LGBT-Rechte fördern, während man immer noch mit der Schrift ringt, man kann die Umwelt schützen, während man die Panik in Frage stellen, können Sie sich um die Wirtschaft kümmern und die Gesundheit der Menschen schützen wollen, können Sie sogar einen Blog schreiben, der nach einem differenzierteren Dialog fragt, während Sie anerkennen, dass Menschen, die nicht atmen können, nicht den Luxus haben, nach der Zeit und Energie zu fragen, um Dinge zu klären. Manchmal ist es notwendig, eine gute harte Haltung einzunehmen. Wir sollten bei der Forderung nach Gerechtigkeit keine Kompromisse eingehen. Proteste und Bewegungen und Aufstände sind notwendige Bestandteile des Wandels. Aber auch die harte Arbeit, Gespräche zu führen, Kompromisse zu durcheinander zu bringen, Formulierungen in der Politik zu optimieren und zuzuhören. Fast die ganze Zeit ist alles komplizierter, als wir es wünschen, und das beste Gespräch, die beste Möglichkeit für Verständnis und Transformation, passiert nicht, wenn wir auf unserer Seite der Grenze stehen, Schleudern Beleidigungen und Beschuldigungen und Scham, sondern zusammen schwimmen in der Mitte des Fluss, unsere Fragen zu stellen, bietet unsere Weisheit, schlug unsere Antworten, und dies in Demut und Liebe, keine Angst zu tun.Heute liegt zwischen Canada Day und 4. Juli. Das dazwischen ist ein Ort, an dem ich seit fast elf Jahren existiere, wo ich an diesem Ort lebe, der zu Hause ist, aber nicht mein Zuhause, mit meinem Herzen an zwei Orten gleichzeitig. Es könnte leichter sein, fest in das eine oder andere Land zu verschließen. Aber wenn dein Herz an zwei Orten ist, gibt es noch viel mehr zu lieben. Die Welt ist viel größer. Also schwimmen Sie im Fluss, Freunde. Wer weiß, was man im Wasser entdecken wird.
Well said, Laura. I think you make a very good point that has broad reaching implications. So much of life and living is not inclusive of other views and perspectives. For instance, religion and religions (especially including Christianity) are mutually exclusive. Christians and Christianity say there is only one way to find acceptance with God and that is through Christ. “There is no other name…” So Christians exclude all other religions as to a person fitting into God’s good graces. But other religions do the same. They all are mutually exclusive. So we prefer to stay within our own borders and find fault with those on the other side. We even do that within our own Christian circles, finding fault with other denominations who are treading on slippery ground. And the problem you describe, Laura, is so profound that we have hundreds, if not thousands, of Christian denominations. And our Reformed denominations are getting close to making more denominations (or groups) over the LGBT issues, more borders, as to acceptable or unacceptable, inclusive or exclusive. Somehow, I imagine God is very confused over all the borders we have established for ourselves.
Thank you for saying this so well.
Amen.
Thanking you for great thoughts, this morning!
“… and you’re probably a Marxist proponent of Critical Theory … you’re a white supremacist with no respect for indigenous people … you’re almost certainly an anarchist …”
Reductionism! The fallacy occurs when an explanation of an event is assumed to be a single, simple cause when it may have had multiple causes. The cause is oversimplified, preventing a more in-depth analysis, often in order to deceive the listener as to the real causes.
“Almost all the time everything is more complicated than we would like it to be…”
Life requires effort – physically and, mentally.
Loved it.
Hard times require hard decisions. We cannot swim long in the boundary waters; sooner or later, we have to go for the shore, one way or the other. And if we tire before reaching safety, the river simply sweeps us away and our voice is lost.
“Choose this day whom you will serve” reflects the writer’s frustration with a people who want it both ways, who cannot wade through he complexities to some form of settlement, but want more time for reflection, thought, research, and prayer.
For the writer of Joshua, the people cannot have their gods of culture and history (think Confederate monuments and flags) and still worship Yahweh. The framers of the Declaration of Independence had to cross the boundary finally, realizing that compromise with Britain wasn’t going to work, because King George believed he held all the cards (as those in power always do), and thus, in his own mind, would have the final say so.
You touch upon so many issues, but all of them revolve around justice for the oppressed, the marginalized and the “different” (even that word begs the question: who in the world decides who’s different?)
Many years ago, while I was still hoping my denomination (the PCUSA) would work its way through the questions of ordination, etc, for LGBTQ persons, I said to my associate pastor: “We need more time.” She replied: “My brother [a gay man] doesn’t have any more time.” Then and there, I realized that those who “want more time” to discuss things, to consider the materials, to take another look at this and that, are really failing people who need us, on their behalf, to “choose this day whom we will serve,” with the unsettling realization that those calling for “more time, more discussion” are really only delaying the time when they might have to change their mind, enlarge their boundaries, include those whom they’re previously pushed away, pay more taxes and embrace the neighbor, think globally rather than locally.
In other words, take down the monuments, redesign the flag, welcome the LGBTQ person with fulness of heart and mind, repent of the nation’s sins against Indigenous Peoples and Africans and Asians.
I appreciate your call to conversation, but as I read your essay, I became increasingly uneasy. Having been a minister all of my adult life, I know what it’s like to serve congregations with a hodgepodge of views, many of which are at loggerheads when closely examined. I’ve danced around many an issue over the years, hoping that people might really be able to talk it through, build some compromises, learn and grow, but the present mess in society and church speak to my own failure to “choose this day.” The dreams of compromise and further learning never really came to pass. Whether I should have spoken out more firmly, remains to be seen, I guess. But I can’t escape the feeling that I should have.
All the best in these boundary-crossing times.
Tom, I appreciate this comment. While I was reading Laura’s blog, I had this uneasy feeling that the ways I was agreeing with her made me more comfortable. I have the privilege of wading through the river, because it never seems to sweep me away. I’m not oppressed. I’ve never had an interaction with police in which I was afraid for my life (maybe afraid of getting a ticket, but I generally deserved it). It feels easy to stay in the middle and not choose. But then I thought a bit more about Laura’s blog, and what I think I took away from it is even when we choose, maybe we should keep our hearts and minds open to the other side of the border. Maybe the border should be more porous than it is currently. Maybe while we’ve planted our flag, we can keep up conversations, relationships, covenants if you will with others and not throw them away, and do so in a non-judgmental way. There is a theory in non-violent approaches to life that argues making space for others allows change. Maybe choosing a side of the border creates that space rather than all swimming together in the middle trying to figure it out, but it also feels that the space created needs to hold us together rather than split us apart. This theory feels like hospitality, space made for respite and refreshment, where we can come together to disagree but not be disagreeable, to be together through porous borders. It doesn’t make the issues simple. It acknowledges their complexities, and we still need to “choose this day,” but maybe with a huge serving of humility.
Joshua’s words about choice are wrongly interpreted to be a choice between God and gods. The command is to love God and serve Him. the choice in Joshua’s words is that of choosing among all t he other gods. Think of a long road with many sidetracks. We are commanded to stay on that long road. If I decide to leave the road I have choices about which sidetrack to take. All of these sidetracks lead to destruction. Read Joshua’s words. Serve t he Lord, but if you are going to worship other gods you are going to have t o choose from among many gods.
Yes, Tom, agreed. As I started reading this, I was struck by the thought, “How could her aunt not realize that the border is closed right now?” There are borders that have been drawn for a reason, well-publicized, and yet, there still is an ignorance about whether or not it is o.k. to cross them. I’ll hear a Christian tell a racist joke, and wonder, “How did they not realize that this is horrible line that shouldn’t be crossed?” You very accurately point out that many of the author’s “borders” are social justice issues. The problem is not the borders, but the bizarre choices of many Christians to fight about where the line is rather than to fight for the oppressed. The no-man’s-land is a playground for the privileged and hell for the oppressed, and I won’t play there. Funny thing about getting into the Detroit River, the border guards watch that river like hawks, and you cross the line without the proper permission, you’ll end up in jail. You don’t put your boat on that river unless you understand the rules and consequences. The same goes for social justice, you stand on the wrong side of that line, and there will be consequences.
Alina,
I agree that there are times to choose, times to take a stand, things we can’t compromise on. But I do think there are helpful conversations to be had about where the line is – or perhaps put better, how to approach the line. Two very pertinent examples I referenced: transgenderism and Critical Theory. On the one hand, people who advocate for the rights of transgender people, who march with them, who support them, are also acknowledging that we’re now seeing stories coming out of especially high school girls who decide to come out together, start binding their chests, change their name, and even begin taking hormone therapy, only to regret that decision in later years. The very real experience of transgender people has become muddied in conversations of gender, depression, and peer pressure. To say so isn’t to diminish the experience of transgender people or lessen their rights, but to simply expand the conversation and acknowledge there are other factors at play that may be harmful to people who get caught up in it.
On the other hand, many within the Church are condemning much of the Black Lives Matter movement as the misguided efforts of Critical Theory Marxists. They accuse Christians who attend protests and march and put up signs as having watered-down theology, of giving in to the Left’s agenda, of being trendy Social Justice Warriors and only speaking out in an effort to virtue signal. They’re therefore able to dismiss the whole movement, and the very real and Biblical cause of ending racism and Black oppression, missing the reality that it’s possible to agree with tenets of Critical Theory without agreeing with the whole thing, that there could be times when Marx agrees with Jesus amidst all the times the two stand in contrast. But many aren’t willing to go there.
And for the record, while the basic fact that the border is closed is true, there are also exemptions to that rule, and the official wording of most government documents regarding essential travel is convoluted at best. My aunt had one such exemption printed out and in hand when she tried to cross. You assume complete ignorance in this situation, but the reality is that this, like everything else I’ve talked about, is ultimately more complicated than we would like it to be.
Thank you … one of your phrases grabbed my mind: “The no-man’s-land is a playground for the privileged and hell for the oppressed, and I won’t play there.”
Thanks, Tom, for this comment. And thanks, Rodney, for your reply. You spoke to what I was trying to put in words as a response. I very much acknowledge the place of privilege from which I can utter this call to dialogue. And acknowledge that many, many people are so tired of waiting, as Scott wrote about a few days ago. I very much agree we need to move forward, need to call people to change, need to take down the monuments and change the flags and be more hospitable. I don’t think I’m saying “don’t choose,” but rather acknowledge the that even in the choices, there are variants. The challenge, as I see it, is how we do help people choose and how to have conversations about choosing. It seems we’re increasingly becoming a culture of shame, and I’m not sure real change is ever effected by shame. To further the river metaphor, if you’re going to coax people across to “your shore,” you could either stand on your side and holler at them to do so, or go into the river yourself and show that you’ll be with them as they cross, that it’s safe for them to do so. Which requires some willingness to meet people where they are and stay awhile. Doing so assumes people are willing to change and grow, rather than assumes the worst about people. And right now, it seems we’re all just really good at assuming the worst about people.
I think that leads to further questions of who should be responsible to go into the middle of the river. Certainly I don’t want to imply that people who are bone-weary of oppression must bear the burden of dealing patiently with their oppressors. But I wonder if one of the things we who are privileged might be called to is to bear with people, to have the hard, gentle, patient, aggravating conversations, refusing to give up on people with whom we disagree. Can we stay with people, when that isn’t an option for others? But I have to think that through a bit more…
I’m guessing this might be too late as the day has passed and I could not come back. Thank you. Laura. I’m hopeful that my sense of hospitality, making room, was an effort to speak to your questions of staying with people (maybe the very definition of hospitality). I agree you cannot assume the worst of people and invite them into your “home,” at least I can’t. Could I invite someone in if I thought them dangerous, violent, and a threat to my family? Probably not. I think I agree with most of what you said. My only point was that honest hospitality and making room, honest conversation begins with acknowledging when and how you have come to one side of the river. That shouldn’t mean we don’t wade into it as often as possible. Again, your article made me think. I don’t always comment, only when a comment or the article really pushes me. Not sure you’ll read this, but thank you.
Well written and what you propose requires work. Fear plays a role in our divisions but I think the bigger question is whether we are we willing to work toward what you have recommended. It is easier to have our lines or borders than to swim in each other’s waters, as it were. Keep up the good work and pray that we don’t get weary (Gal. 6:9-10).
This is only slightly off the main point of your essay, but where does your aunt live? We live in Hannover, Germany and always keen to meet more of our Reformed family abroad!
Your insightful and clever analysis of the cancel culture plague has gotten the attention of your readers, including this one. I look forward to mulling over your words while mulching the garden, percolating your thoughts while pruning the roses.
Well said. This makes me think and that is a blessing.
Be well,
Mark
What an excellent article, as well as exchange in the comments. I’m probably of a different mind as to many current political issues compared to most commenters here (maybe the author as well), but I feel as if I’m of one mind with the author in terms of what she has written in this article and in her responses to comments.
For example, I am concerned, very concerned, about Critical Theory, and perhaps having heard that, many would dismiss me as being opposed to the idea that “black lives matter” (which would be dramatically incorrect). I’m also very concerned about Black Lives Matter (that which is the organization and the cultural and especially political movement (almost party) that it is (not the meaning of the phrase). Again, that might again be cause for being dismissed by some (of being on the wrong side of “making hard decisions”), but I’d suggest — as does the author here — that there is so, so, so much nuance to all of this, and that if we ignore the nuances (which many BLM protesters and many, say, Proud Boy protesters do) and refuse honest, good faith exchange, we’ll get no where except to a state of loss on pretty much all fronts, for pretty much everyone.
Until a month or so ago, I would have said that the chances of civil war in the US in the foreseeable future is zero (the thought of it would have seemed ridiculous). Right now I’m saying the chances are one to two percent. Not much, statistically speaking, but the fact that I (and I’m not alone) am thinking it speaks loudly about how these disagreements are being “processed” (intentionally put in quotes) by so many — on all sides (I say “all sides,” not “both sides,” quite consciously).
On my way to the office this morning, I saw two paper signs taped to my building, purportedly by “BLM people,” warning that at their Salem (Oregon) protest march on July 4 (two days from now), the Proud Boys were intending to show up interrupt the BLM protest march. The warnings were that the Proud Boys would be irrational and violent, which is of course what the Proud Boys would say about the BLM marchers.
There are far, far too many people, including Christians, who have polarized their own minds on these issues in irrational (dare I say “religious”?) ways. Which makes thankful that Laura has written and posted this article and engaged further with responding comments.
You made my day with your article and comments, Laura, even if I suspect you and I might see things differently as to some (many?) of today’s political issues. Thanks for that. 🙂