Elements of Reform

First published in the print column, Strictly Haresay

Recently a kindly gentleman reader from the North Platte region contacted me regarding a column I’d written.  Having lived and ranched in the Sandhills for many years, he spoke fondly of the region—both its geography, and its people.
We had a wonderful conversation that encompassed politics, and even touched on more spiritual themes; and though I suspect we don’t see eye-to-eye on everything, the exchange was pleasant and polite. Refreshing by current standards of those looking for opportunities to be offended or triggered by anyone that dares to have a different point of view.
After my call with this man, and then later, in a separate conversation with my son, I’ve been giving more thought to the imperative of separation of church and state, and how that fits into the context of our dire need for political reform.
The principle that our government must maintain an attitude of neutrality toward religion is protected by the First Amendment which not only allows citizens the freedom to practice any religion of their choice, but also prevents the government from officially recognizing or favoring any religion.
The backbone of our country’s government is a law-forming system built by democracy, not Christianity or Judaism or Buddhism, or Atheism.
America’s creation story is one of great social achievement. From the Abolitionists who fought to outlaw slavery, to the Suffragettes who championed women’s right to vote, to the Civil Rights proponents who battled segregation and institutionalized white supremacy, to the proponents of the women’s movement and gay rights seeking equality for all, citizens for generations have risen up to fulfill the promise of our nation. Over the course of America’s history, activists have embodied and enacted our nation’s deepest values, and our constitution has protected their right to do so.
But today, our own inner turmoil threatens to undo the progress we have achieved. Discord and hatred are dissolving our community bonds and undermining the spirit of social responsibility—our duties toward one another. In the wake of the current political dysphoria, America is facing a time of immense division. Political parties that completely polarize friends and family, and a lack of confidence in our governmental leaders show that the country is in desperate need of restoration. We need a new paradigm of political functioning, a moral commitment to define it, and a new kind of activism to bring it forth.
What is happening is not just a political crisis, but a moral and spiritual malady. Our political challenges are mere symptoms of a deeper societal malaise. While any reform that might align itself with a specific religion goes against our commitment for separation of church and state, our correction, if we are to heal at the causal level, needs to be made from a humanitarian approach—a spiritual perspective. We must do more than respond to external political issues. Like any home suffering turmoil from within, we need to address the deeper, internal causes that have led to our current dysfunction—mainly, that our world view has become transactional rather than relational. This, the most destructive type of idolatry, where money is God, and people are in forfeit for its acquisition. 
A healthy political order does not leave humanity out of the equation; it values the fundamentals of human interest a well as the workings of the economy.
Government exists to serve its people, and the people are not just job numbers or cogs in a corporate machine. We are living, breathing beings—the ones who first established this government of democracy that now has no sense of itself as one nation, indivisible.
We need humanity-conscious leadership acting not just from intellectual understanding, but from a moral compass that puts genuine concern for the people—all people, across the globe, and for future generations to come—back on the map.
But in the meantime, we don’t have to wait until the “right” leader is elected. We can act, like the activists down through history that have helped shaped this great nation; we all have the power to elicit change.
By committing to the Golden Rule to “love thy neighbor” we can individually embody what needs to happen at the national level, and on a global scale. Each one of us in this way can make a meaningful contribution to the joyful, fierce and disruptive energies that are rising at this critical point in time, challenging the destructive states quo.
In the words of Abraham Lincoln, “we must think anew, and act anew . . . and then we shall save our country.”