“As Adolf Hitler and the Nazis seduced a nation, bullied a continent and attempted to exterminate the Jews of Europe, a small number of dissidents and saboteurs worked to dismantle the Third Reich from the inside. One of these was Dietrich Bonhoeffer—a pastor and author.  Eric Metaxas implores us to remember, “A man determined to do the will of God radically, courageously and joyfully – even to the point of death.”

             Metaxas is the author of two New York Times bestselling biographies, Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy and Amazing Grace:  William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery. This book became a movie.   Bonhoeffer has been named as the best Christian book of the year by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association. Metaxas received the Canterbury Medal, the Becket Fund’s highest honor in recognition of courage in defense of religious liberty.  

            The lectures celebrate the life and work of the late Dr. John A. Hamrick long time pastor of First Baptist Church and the founding president of what is now Charleston Southern University. Special music will be presented by David Templeton, minister of music and worship and Beverly Bradley, organist.

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            “There’s a real hostility now and Christians with very strong and more conservative convictions really don’t seem to be contributing much to a civil discourse and a calming of the heated discussions in the larger culture,” Mouw thinks. “Evangelicals are more accustomed to inflammatory rhetoric from the pulpit and therefore don’t see it as a problem in politics.”  A third of white evangelicals think the past election was more positive than those of recent years. This is a significantly higher percentage than with white mainline Protestants and Catholics.

            If Dr. Mouw is correct in his assessment of the situation, what does this say about white evangelicals and their relationship to the Sermon on the Mount? What about, “Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God?”(Matthew 5:9) Are we as Christians free to commit verbal terrorism on our brothers and sisters who do not agree with us? Are pastors who indulge in hyperbolic language consciously or unconsciously giving permission to their hearers to verbally savage their opponents?

            According to the report, white evangelicals and Republicans are less likely than other Americans to say that the 2010 election’s tone was more negative than past campaigns.

            Rabbi Steve Gutow,  president of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, said, “I don’t think this country, and I don’t think our community are going to make good decisions if people can’t talk to each other rationally and pragmatically. We need to lean back, talk to each other, look each other in the eye and respect each other’s humanity. Calls for civility have clear religious roots. In Judaism, Talmudic study encourages back and forth conversation.”

            The Apostle Peter tells Christians to express their convictions “With gentleness and reverence.” Mouw noted. “In the world where our Savior has not yet returned to make all things right, we’re going to have to find our way of coping in the present and trying to do as much good as we can without oppressing other people, and without bearing false wittiness against other people.”

            In its new Statement on Civility the JCPA states that Jews pledge to “Treat others with decency and honor and to set ourselves as models for civil discourse, even when we disagree with each other.”  We could all benefit from following that pledge.

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            Resolve not to add to the situation by responding with hostile remarks or actions. Don’t encourage explosive words from others or pass them on. Let those words languish where they are. Famed preacher/writer Norman Vincent Peale gave the best advice, “Don’t walk away from negative people. Run.”

            Recent racial remarks, acts of vandalism, and threats made against members of congress show just how far we have moved from a civil society. We have moved from attacking each other’s arguments to attempting to destroy each other both literally and figuratively. There is more than enough blame to go around, but assigning blame will not solve the problem. Who is to blame depends on our perspective.

            Acting with civility doesn’t mean giving up your ideas or accepting the opinions of others. It means respecting the other person. I love the story about the women playing bridge at Fort Hood. An older lady announced, “I am not going to sit here and listen to you telling lies about Ike.” She has the right approach.

            My father told me a wonderful story which has stayed with me about a men’s meeting. The guest speaker looked around the room and said, “I don’t see any ladies present and so I have a great story for you.”At that moment a man stood up and proclaimed, “No. There aren’t any ladies here, but there are some mighty fine gentlemen.”

            Taking personal responsibility for what goes on around us is not always easy or without personal risk; however, it is the only way to create an atmosphere that is conducive to productive, respectful dialogue.

            Practicing civility is more than not adding to the verbal poison; it also involves being a positive influence. We need to utter a kind word. We can encourage those around us. We can demonstrate that there is a better way to act. Look around you. There is someone close by who needs a cheerful, uplifting word from you.

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