POLITICAL PROTESTS IN WISCONSIN (Part 2 of 3) - Transformation

Loving our enemies as a way to transformation is a process. So how might such transformation occur?

Walter Wink* argued that a new archetype, pattern or potential is emerging in humankind. He noted that Jesus identified this pattern in his own life when he referred to his actions as the Son of Man or Human Being.** When early Christians named Jesus, the Son of God, they saw this Human Being pattern only in Jesus. They could not recognize it as something evolving in all of humanity. (In psychological terms, Christians projected this potential onto Jesus and couldn't withdraw the projection.)

If Walter Wink is correct and this potential is an evolving potential within each of us, then we are much more than we think we are. (It should be noted that this potential is probably observable in Buddha, Muhammad and leaders of other spiritual traditions as well.) For this reason it is important to experiment with new ways of engaging our enemies. 

Discovering our deep Humanity is not mainly about belief but about practice. It's not about discovering “the truth” or trying to emulate some superhuman figure. It's about each of us living into our particular humanity with as much authenticity as possible. In a real sense, the exploration of ways we can love our enemies aids us in growing into our deeper humanity.

This process of “loving our enemies” and “praying for those who persecute us” is difficult. The old patterns of fear and domination are deeply embedded in our primitive brain, in the fight or flight response. It is “natural” to want to dominate and destroy our enemies. For this reason, we are tempted to turn nonviolent processes into tactics for domination. This means that our attitudes are very important. If the processes described in Part 1 are used merely as clever tactics to defeat our enemies, they will ultimately prove destructive.

If the women in South Africa had stood naked before the bulldozers with sneers on their faces taunting the men driving the bulldozers, they probably would have been killed.

If those participating in the prayer vigils at the Capitol had sung and prayed while whispering among themselves that Governor Walker and the Republican legislators couldn't possibly be people of faith, the vigils would have been tarnished. Such prayer vigils would have been much like the religious observances that the prophet Amos condemned (Amos 5:21) when he quoted Yahweh as saying, “I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.”

Loving enemies is not an emotional response. Rather, it is an act of volition and trust. We decide to treat our enemies as we treat our friends. We honor their positions even if we don't agree with them. We try to understand their hopes and fears. We trust that such living is more in tune with the Cosmos than is the dynamic of domination and fear.

There is a Native American saying: “Walk a mile in another man's moccasins before you criticize him.” When I was director of Madison-area Urban Ministry, we sponsored a number of dialogue sessions on controversial issues like abortion, the death penalty and homosexuality. We met over a meal. Participants were urged to tell personal stories describing how they arrived at their positions on these issues. But they were not allowed to argue the merits of their position. 

As I listened to the stories of people whose views were different from my own; I thought “If I had had that person's life experience, I might hold their view as well.” Most of us left these dialogues holding the same positions we had when we entered. Yet, we left with a deeper understanding and appreciation for those with different positions. These engagements deepened our humanity.

Buddha also had something to say on this matter. He warned against attachment, either positive or negative, because attachment leads to suffering. He advocated “The Middle Path” which means being neutral, upright, and centered. “It means to investigate and penetrate the core of life and all things with an upright, unbiased attitude.... It is concerned with the relationship between thoughts and behavior, and the relationship between behavior and its consequences.”***

The non-attachment that Buddha advocated was not a disinterested detachment. Buddha was intensely concerned about human suffering. He spent the last 45 years of his life sharing his insights. This intense sensitivity to suffering is true for many Buddhists. Joan Chittister tells the story of a Buddhist man who happened upon two other men fighting. He broke up the fight, not because he sided with either man. He broke up the fight because it was too painful for him to see them fighting.

Non-attachment is a non-biased approach to life. In the case of the protests at the Wisconsin State Capitol, a non-biased approach would free us to look at all the possibilities for ending the stalemate in ways that benefit all people. Like loving our enemies, non-attachment provides a fertile ground for third-way alternatives to the present polarities.

When we follow Jesus' advice to love our enemies or engage Buddha's practice of non-attachment, we are more open to out-of-the-box solutions to the impasse. These practices are transformative. They may not transform the enemy, but they certainly will transform those who engage in them. And we all know that a change in the attitude and position of one party in a conflict unalterably changes the dynamics of the conflict. This shift enables the possibility for a transformation in the attitudes and actions of all involved.

If we, who oppose Governor Walker's tactics and his proposed budget for the State of Wisconsin, base our actions on love for him and those who support him, we may initiate processes of transformation that have powerful implications for our state and nation. 

* The Human Being: Jesus and the Enigma of the Son of the Man, by Walter Wink 

** Many scholars note that Jesus never referred to himself as the Son of God but as the Son of Man, more accurately “the Son of the Man” or “Human Being”. These references can be divided into two groups. The references in the first group clearly equate the Son of the Man with the Christ of Christianity. (e.g. John 1:51 “...you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”) Many scholars believe that these passages accrued as the early church developed. The other group of nine passages are more likely close to Jesus' own words. [(Mk 2:10, Mtt 9:6, Lk 5:24) S of M has authority to forgive sins; (Mk 2:28, Mt 12:8, Lk 6:5) S of M is Lord of the Sabbath; (Mtt 11:19, Lk 7:34) S of M came eating and drinking. They said a glutton, drunkard, friend of tax collectors and sinners; (Mtt 12:32, Lk 12:10) Those speaking a word against the S of M will be forgiven; but one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven; (Mtt 8:20, Lk 9:58) S of M has no place to lay his head; (Mk 8:31, Lk 9:22) S of M must suffer many things; (Mk 9:31) S of M will be delivered into the hands of men; (Mk 10:45, Mtt 20:28) S of M came not to be served but to serve; (Lk 19:10) S of M came to seek and save the lost.] These are the passages that Walter Wink argues are referring not only to the Human Being in Jesus but also to that Human Being potential in all of humanity.

*** “Buddhism, the Middle Path” - (http://www.buddhanet.net/cbp2_f4.htm)

POLITICAL PROTESTS IN WISCONSIN (Part 1 of 3)-Loving Our Enemies

Several weeks ago Jean and I participated in a rally at the Wisconsin State Capitol to protest Governor Scott Walker's budget. This budget would eviscerate unions, damage public schools, and further burden the poor and elderly. Police estimated the crowd at more than 100,000.

Jean and I walked nearly a mile from the first available parking space to the Capitol. Cars were parked everywhere. It reminded me of the atmosphere at a Wisconsin Badger football game. People thronged downtown Madison. They packed the grassy slopes of the Capitol grounds. They filled the streets of the Capitol Square. They walked up and down State Street.

High school and college age youth mixed with senior citizens. Parents with children in tow marched beside union member - police in blue uniforms, fire fighters in raincoats and helmets, union locals sporting colored tee-shirts. Farmers drove their tractors around the square, one pulling a manure spreader sporting a sign that indicated displeasure with the bill.

People in costume added color to the throng. A large panda bear wore a shirt proclaiming “Pandas for Badgers.” A man carried a toaster with a figure of Governor Walker protruding from the bread slot. His sign read, “Walker, you're toast.” A group of older women, The Raging Grannies, wore crazy hats and dresses while singing protest songs. Uncle Sam, his mouth sealed with duck tape, paraded with a skull on his hat. A woman carried a picture of Gov. Walker as a string puppet with the label “Koch Industries Inc.”

Protest signs were everywhere:

“Care about education.”

“Arrest Scott Walker; he's peddling Koch.”

“We are Management, and we vote Labor.”

“Kill the Bill.” “When Injustice becomes law, rebellion becomes duty.”

“I'm a public employee, and I haven't felt this unwanted since I returned from Viet Nam.”

Guvner Scott Woker sayved Whisconsun Tacks paerrs munee, but I mis meye teechr.”

“A tyrant will always find a pretense for his tyranny.”

“Gov. Walker the whole world is watching.”

“This is what democracy looks like.”

“Love is the change. Be the change.”

“Recall Walker.” “

This rally, like the daily protests before and since, was serious and well organized. Yet it was not mean-spirited. Venders sold popcorn, cotton candy, hot dogs and other goodies. There was an air of celebration and politeness. Demonstrators, when prohibited from entering the Capitol, shouted, “Let us in. Please. Let us in. Please.” When police assisted demonstrators they yelled, “Thank you. Thank you.”

Yet all was not sweetness and light. Many view politics as warfare. Commentators on the left and on the right exchange acrimonious charges and countercharges. Wealthy men, motivated by greed, manipulate the political process for their own gain. I confess, I'm tempted to demonize those whom I oppose – Scott Walker, David Koch, Dick Cheney and others.

How is one to live with soul in these difficult and complex times? Jesus said, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you because your heavenly parent gives sunlight to the evil and the good and sends rain on the just and unjust too. Be perfect (inclusive) as your heavenly parent is perfect (inclusive).” (Matt. 5:44,48 RSV)

Is this teaching just a spiritualized platitude, or does it have relevance today? Is it possible to live lives so focussed on God's inclusiveness that it affects our attitude toward the whole creation including our enemies?

Put in more contemporary terms, is it possible to be so enamored with the beauty and complexity of the Cosmos that we are able to affirm the statement by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.:

Forces that threaten to negate life must be challenged by courage, which is the power of life to affirm itself in spite of life’s ambiguities. This requires the exercise of a creative will that enables us to hew out a stone of hope from a mountain of despair? (from On Living Life)

Will the state of Wisconsin and our nation fare better if we who resist injustice love our enemies? It is difficult to believe that love will overcome fear and hatred when the powerful, whom we oppose, wish to destroy us. When I was the director of MUM (Madison-area Urban Ministry), our strategy was to block the efforts of those who would dominate us while searching for win-win options that benefited all parties. This is difficult when one is dealing with powerful opponents. Many times the best we could do was to expose their attempts to manipulate us.

Yet nonviolent resistance is a powerful tool in challenging injustice. Theologian, Walter Wink, argues that Jesus preached nonviolent resistance when he said, “If someone takes your coat, offer them your cloak as well.”(Matthew 5:40) This teaching referred to a first century legal practice relating to the poor. If a poor person with no belongings was sued, the person bringing the suit could take their outer garment during the day. It was to be returned at night so the poor person would have a cover. Jesus counseled the poor, when humiliated in this way, to give over their undergarment as well and to leave the court room nude. Since looking on someone's nakedness was a cultural taboo, the oppressed person put the oppressor in the awkward position of violating this taboo.

Wink then gave a specific example of this kind of resistance that occurred during the South African fight against apartheid. When Africaaner forces approached a squatter camp with bull dozers ready to destroy the camp, the women of the camp stood in front of the bull dozers and stripped naked. This so unnerved the men driving the heavy equipment that they fled without destroying the camp. Vulnerability was turned into an advantage.

In Wisconsin, a statewide interfaith coalition of religious groups took Jesus' teaching literally. They held nightly vigils at the capitol, praying for a just resolution to the crisis. Clergy from different faith traditions led these vigils. The prayers put themselves on the line while opening themselves to third way alternatives, alternatives that are less obvious when people are locked in combat using dominating images of power.

Jim Wallis of Sojourners Community called for fasting and prayer to address the injustices being proposed in our national budget. At this writing more than 38,000 people have committed to fast and pray each Monday at noon for a just national budget.

Wouldn't it be amazing if we and our enemies experienced transformation in this process?

A CONVERSATION

The coffee shop was crowded, every table occupied. I clutched my book as I looked around. I just want to sit and read. I ordered my coffee from the woman behind the counter. “Sure is crowded today,” I said. “Yes, we're usually busy in the morning.” I wandered the room, hoping someone would leave; but no one did.

I spotted two guys sitting at a table for six. “Mind if I join you?” I asked. “Sure,” they replied. “I'm Chuck,” I said introducing myself. “I'm Jerry,” one replied.* “I'm Frank,” said the other. They had open Bibles in front of them. I began reading, trying to ignore their conversation. I didn't want to “be saved” this morning.

“What are your reading,” asked Frank. “Just a mystery,” I replied. “Do you attend a church?” Oh no, here it comes. “Yes, I attend a UCC church.” “Do they believe in eternal damnation?” “Well, our congregation focusses more on how we can live following Christ,” I replied, trying to speak in terms that would not cause a confrontation. “We believe that God will bring everyone to himself at the end of the ages and that all sins will be forgiven,” said Jerry.

This is an interesting turn. They're using traditional 'born again' language. But they are including everyone. I've never heard this kind of inclusiveness before. “Then do you believe that even your enemies will go to heaven?” “Yes, Christ is about love; and God loves us all. So we will all go to heaven at the end of the ages.”

“Your talk about love very hopeful,” I said. “Most people seem to be driven by hatred and fear.” “Yes, that's the problem,” said Jerry. “Jesus didn't talk like that.” “It wasn't until Augustine and Constantine that we started talking about unbelievers going to hell. If people really believed that God is a God of love, why would such a God want to punish people?” I was fascinated by our conversation.

Then Jerry dropped a bombshell. “You may not believe it, but I was one bad dude.” “I couldn't even remember how many times I'd been shot at. It was like, 'If you weren't wounded, it didn't count.' I was put in prison for killing a guy. They put me in solitary confinement. I remember sitting in this pitch black cell, cursing God for the way my life had gone.”

“Their were rats and mice in the cell. I even made a pet of one of them. Then one day, I saw an ugly bug. It was a couple of inches long. I reached out to smack it when I heard a voice in my mind saying, 'You're going to kill that bug because it's freer than you are.' This stunned me. That night I dreamed that I was in bed cuddling with my wife. I woke up with the realization that I had put myself into this situation, not God. That's when my life turned around.”

Frank and Jerry had met in a prison chaplaincy program. Frank said, “Although my background is very different from Jerry's, we have become good friends. We are so convinced that God's love makes the difference, that we are sharing this understanding with people wherever we can.”

I couldn't help thinking that Jerry, a white guy, was a biker version of Malcom X. He was incredibly bright and self educated in prison. He knew scriptures as well as church history. He had an amazing memory. Jerry ended our conversation by announcing that he had an appointment to keep.

Frank and I talked a few minutes more. It turned out we had similar backgrounds – college educated, white, middle-class. I told him that he and Jerry had much to contribute. He nodded in agreement as we parted. I thought to myself, These folks are living with soul.

This Easter season many Christians talk about death and resurrection, new birth out of dying. For many, resurrection is a promise of heaven after we die. I think resurrection is more than this. It is occurring right now, moment by moment, as the Jerry and Frank's of the world manifest new life in situations of fear and death.

* I have changed the names in this reflection to preserve anonymity.