Humanity

We have become so consumed with our anger over differing opinions that we have forgotten what it means to be human.

Media has twisted truth and has purposefully targeted us to convince us of these “sides” and that the other one is the enemy. We have become split into parties and always on the alert to be prepared to fight back.

I think anyone who is unwilling to engage in conversation about politics and see the flaws on both sides is foolish. Politics are made by people. People are corrupt. People are broken. If you are waiting for politics to fix the world you will be greatly disappointed.

Charlie Kirk is dead. A husband. A father. Dead.

You do not have to like him.

You do not have to agree with him.

But you should recognize that there is something wrong when a man is murdered in front of his family and people are celebrating.

Death is not trivial. You do not need to be impacted by it to still feel some empathy for the ones that are. Any time I learn of death it brings me grief - not necessarily for myself, but for the people who are experiencing pain now over the loss of a relationship that mattered to them.

We cannot become callous to the loss of human life.

I think that Charlie Kirk’s death has begun to highlight some of what is going on in our world. We are taking life for granted, and it is no coincidence that we are within a society that normalizes violence so regularly.

One of the most important things I feel like we need to keep in perspective is that neither party is the enemy. I know how polarizing the content that we hear on social media is. Please remember that social media thrives with rage inducing content. What you are seeing is not a proportional reflection of the people you are interacting with in daily life.

Conservatives are not the enemy.

Liberals are not the enemy.

We need to learn how to converse on difficult and often emotional topics without assigning someone into a category of “good” or “bad” just because they disagree with us.

Truth does not change. I believe we all have a God-given responsibility to pursue truth and protect it. I also believe that an unwillingness to listen to someone who disagrees with you revels stupidity and a frailty to what you believe. The greatest testament to the strength of what you believe is your ability to hear a differing perspective without reacting out of defensiveness.

Lies require shielding so that truth cannot reveal how empty they are.

Truth is firm enough to open the door.

In a world that is craving compassion, don’t be an example to others of what “those people” are like. Be gracious. Be respectful. Be kind.

We are all just human.