We are Americans!  When we encounter other Americans who appear quite different from ourselves, either in their character or their views, do we shun them?  Or, are we curious?  Do we test our assumptions honestly?  How will we discover the potential for dependable neighbors if we walk away with our first impressions?

This is an important question: Do we investigate the positive contributions people might have to offer—despite our differences with them?  How many good people are we willing to toss into the trash barrel of willful blindness?  What are we afraid of?

If we have no need of trustworthy neighbors today, the time is fast approaching when we surely will.

Practical needs are not the only thing that require good neighbors.  There will be no trust and no possibility of a secure future without real dialog.

Yes, starting conversations with strangers can cause a little discomfort.  But only at the start.  When we discover who our neighbors really are, and how their experience makes them who they are, we sometimes discover unexpected dependability.

Strangers rarely turn out to be what we imagined. 

Some people will reject our good will.  This is inevitable.  When people are governed by their fear and unable to respond with civility, leave them to themselves.  We must keep moving on. 

However, it is essential that we identify every potential friend and neighbor, every diamond in the rough, as society deteriorates around us.

When it comes to local necessities, nothing can be done without unity on some level.  Safety is found in trustworthiness, not partisan politics. It will only be with dialog and cooperation that Americans can navigate effectively through the narrow place in which we now find ourselves.

This wisdom is rooted in American history and heritage.  Let’s think about what we already know.  Recognizing and rethinking cherished assumptions is always difficult.  There is nothing new about this.  It is normal to feel uncomfortable with people who appear different from ourselves.

Emerson famously said: “People only see what they are prepared to see.” Stephen Covey put it similarly: “We see the world, not as it is, but as we are—or, as we are conditioned to see it.” 

While this conditioning is natural, it interferes with constructive problem-solving.  And, in today’s world our ability to solve problems is the essential problem. We may need to help others push past this, but let’s not be responsible for it ourselves. Building the future will best be pursued with uncluttered emotions, clear vision and a pure heart. 

Albert Einstein once said, ironically: “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” The reasonable person shudders at the immensity of the task.  But we do have the means to respond constructively. Americans are resourceful!

The path to a future we can respect and believe in actually exists.   It must be secured.  And, we do not need to change our values or views to contribute our skills and positive energy.

Trustworthiness develops with interactive engagement.  Working relationships that accept the mystery of differences and diversity need not be threatening.

In my view, the key to this riddle is best described by the Christian philosopher Henri J.M. Nouwen: “You don’t think your way into a new kind of living,” he wrote. “You live your way into a new kind of thinking.”

The kind of creative action Pastor Nouwen is talking about would be impossible in isolation.  Living our way into a new way of thinking can only take place in dialog and authentic community.

I have used the word “authentic” often.  What does it mean?  Certainly, something that is authentic is the “genuine article”.  Or I could say I am my “authentic self” when I am being consistently genuine in my words and actions.

So, let me be clear:  Authentic community is far more than one structured in a particular way.  Rather, it is one in which we share “a new kind of thinking”.  It can only be built on the foundation of trustworthy relationships.  And trust can only develop with experience—with genuine interest, practical engagement, and productive consultation. 

Tom

You may watch for the next post on or about August 1.

From the forthcoming book:  An annotated Table of Contents, a revised Introduction, and several sample chapters are posted at the top of the homepage.