Happy Holidays to all. In the spirit of good will I’d like to share my favorite moment from the Sunday morning talk shows. It happened during Meet the Press with Tim Russert on NBC during a discussion on Faith in America. Russert’s guests were Pastor Rick Warren, author of "The Purpose Driven Life," and John Meacham, Newsweek’s Editor and author of "American Gospel." The program’s underlying theme spoke to the role of religion in our country, especially it’s significance as we head into the 2008 presidential elections.
What struck me most was Russert’s inquiry into the controversy surrounding Warren’s World AIDS day event at his California-based Saddleback Church on December 1st. The mega-church evangelical leader had invited Democratic Senator Barack Obama to speak, along with Republican Senator Sam Brownback. It was an offering by Warren to find common ground in battling the AIDS pandemic.
Galvanized by the idea of a liberal appearing in a evangelical church, various Christian media lambasted Warren for hosting Obama, who is known for his pro-choice stance. On Meet the Press, Warren said this about his decision to invite Sen. Obama to his church alongside Sen. Brownback:
"I called it the face of compassionate conservatism and the face of compassionate liberalism, and what they had in common was compassion."
Warren then went on to quote some scripture and added this:
"…you don’t have to agree with everything a person agrees in order to work with them…if you can only work with people who you agree with on everything, then you rule out the entire world."
This rang true with me. But I don’t think getting along with everyone is just about tolerance. It seems even as we hold to our own moral code, there is often a tendency to judge another’s beliefs or place a higher value on our own principles. This is where I think we get into trouble. While professing to be tolerant, there is still some wiggle room for judgment. That’s why I liked what Pastor Warren said in his aforementioned quote on compassion.
Compassion goes beyond tolerance. It’s a virtue exalted by most religions. It is simple and seemingly has no boundaries while opening the gates for communication on so many levels. In closing, here’s a quote from spiritual teacher and theologian Matthew Fox on compassion:
"Compassion is not sentiment, but is making justice and doing works of mercy. Compassion is not a moral commandment, but a flow and overflow of the fullest human and divine energies."
Here’s to the divinity in us all.
