The stage is set for what could be the most important national election since 1860. Not since that momentous election have we been so divided as a people. Or at least is seems so to me. Our divisions touch deep into our culture and expose not just a divide or politics and policy, but an even deeper divide over core values. That, I believe, is at the heart of the choice we must make.

To understand the choice, we need to first understand at least a little bit about culture. When I use that word here, I mean to focus on the shared ideas and values that together form our common understanding of how things “should” be. In particular, I’m thinking of the values we hold as people that we believe are important enough to argue, debate, and even fight over. Those values that are important enough to organize our lives around. In other words, what matters enough for you to fight about and how far are you willing to go in that fight to translate your values into practice and policy for your community, your state, your nation.¹

At every level there can be and often are competing value systems that inform culture. In a nation as large and diverse as the United States there are always competing values. We see them at every level. My values don’t always match those of my family members. My neighbors and I may disagree on a variety of issues. People in my community, my state, my region, and my nation all have values that we share and some on which we disagree. In most times and most circumstances those differences make for interesting and often spirited debate.

Culture is not simply ideas, and debate over culture is not the same as debate or discussion about ideas. Culture is made evident in living and its values are translated into policies, practices, actions and relationships. Culture is not just what we think or believe, it is how we choose to live because of what we think or believe. And because culture truly matters we extend our choices about the right way to live to others around us. We say, in effect, what I think or believe is right, and I think others should agree with me and so live as I choose to live.

When these choices are localized and personal and when they are considered part of our individual liberty, they have little power to divide. For example, I believe going to Church on Sunday morning is important and valuable and I choose to make that a priority for my family. If my neighbor disagrees and chooses instead to spend Sunday morning resting at home that may make for an interesting discussion between us, but its not likely to cause us to fight. What would happen, though, if I came to believe that going to Church is so important that every American should be mandated appear in church on Sunday morning and I attempted to pass that value into law? Would you fight me?

Of course you would. And you would fight using every intellectual, social and political tool available to you to make sure that my values were not forced on you. Forcing someone to go to church violates the 1st Amendment, you would argue. You can’t force someone to believe, you might say. That idea violates my personal rights! If you and I cannot reach some form of comprise, and if we each hold to our value strongly enough that we are willing to fight for it, we are divided. At this point in the debate one of us must win and the other must lose.

This happens all the time in society and politics. The clash of values plays itself out in elections, in legislative activity, in courts of law, and in a thousand other regular interactions among people everywhere. It hurts to be on the losing side in an election and we don’t like to follow policies we don’t agree with, but we do because we hold a greater set of values more dear. For a majority of Americans, the core values expressed in the Pledge of Allegiance, “one nation, under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all,” have prevailed. Those “higher” values along with a common commitment to civil discourse, freedom of expression and good will toward others has meant we can agree to disagree and accept both our wins and our losses with grace.

So what happens when some one or some group of people cannot accept these differences in culture with grace? What happens when you lose the battle over and election, or a policy, or a law and you can’t or won’t accept the outcome? Historically this can be the impetus that creates a new social or political movement. It has been the seed bed for the birth of new political parties and new social alliances of many forms. Often, the result is civil unrest in some form. Peaceful protest and non violent civil disobedience are not uncommon. Violent civil disruptions may also seem like the right action for some. Only in very rare circumstances does the dispute reach the level of open division and conflict between two clearly identified value systems that cannot seem to coexist. The highest and most devastating form of culture conflict is civil war. That is what happened in 1860.²

Could it be happening again? I can’t say it is certainly so, but something is happening in America today that I believe threatens the unity of our nation and I think its root cause is a widening divide in cultural values. Its not just the difference between Democrats and Republicans. It goes much deeper. Every element of culture seems to be in conflict to a greater or lesser degree. The differences are substantial and it is increasingly difficult to envision policy outcomes that will satisfy all sides of the growing divide. voices on the left have already taken to the streets in both peaceful and violent protest. Voices on the right are calling for open and armed resistance should the left win out and enact policies that violate their core values. Voices of compromise and restraint seem to be dwindling in both numbers and volume. It is a scary and challenging time for Americans.

Is there anything we can do about? I think there is. I think the first thing to do is to get involved and stay involved in the conversation about values. It will be uncomfortable. (I was going to say it might be uncomfortable but I think it is more certain than that) I intend to stay involved myself and to forward my contributions through this blog and the other forms of modern communication available to me. I welcome anyone who wants to explore the values of culture today and influence their adoption in America to join me in the discussion.

¹Defining Culture is complex. Understanding the elements of culture even more so. There is a vast literature on culture, its definition, its meaning, its expression and its impact. A good starting point for someone who just wants to join the conversation might be the wikipedia article on culture. Find it here. https://bit.ly/3g29pCd If you want to dig deeper into the topic you might want to start with this list of books here https://bit.ly/2DVinnQ.

²A good starting point for understanding how the division of culture produced the Civil War in America is “Cultures in Conflict: The American Civil War” by Steven E. Woodworth. Greenwood Press, 2000.