In a sermon at the National Cathedral on March 31, 1968, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. – referring to the civil rights efforts underway in this country – said, “We shall overcome because the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice.” This is an often-quoted, hopeful, faith-filled thought. I like to believe it. But truth be told, I have times of great doubt.
The reality is that the long, historical evidence in the human experience reveals an unbending trajectory of selfishness and unbridled hatred of others based on prejudice, caste, religion and race. The ‘moral arc’ only seems to bend when people seeking “to do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God” (Micah 6:6) pull on the persistent trajectory of selfishness and this unbridled hatred with unrelenting effort.
I think that the moral arc is formed when we learn to know better than to continue screwing up or screwing over other people.
The process of growing up – maturing – as we live our lives has always been a great learning curve effort to “know better.” We have all been taught to “know better” than to lie, cheat, steal, and commit all sorts of violence – emotional, mental or physical – on other people. Knowing better in such matters are learned values. If nothing else, they are values of enlightened self-interest. We learn and live the “golden rule” because experience teaches that if we do not, we reap the hurt we sow.
The better angels of our nature do not get their wings without nurturing those angels so that greater good in our lives takes flight. The content of our character develops as we learn to create healthy relationships. We learn how to build effective communities. We learn such essential things as citizenship, patriotism, and love of country. We learn to know better what love is, what love means, and how to share it. We learn to be on the lookout for opportunities to put love into action.
This is why I am wearied by and worried over what our now-concluded presidential election is revealing about our character and our level of knowing better.
To be sure, the past election reveals that we are a significantly divided country. This is not news to any one of us. But for me the disturbing division is not so much our political landscape of red and blue states as it is that “knowing better” is not important – at least enough – to nearly half of our voting population.
What does it mean that more than 71 million people who cast a ballot voted for a man who is described, by those who know him best, as a person consumed regularly by fits of anger and an unrelenting thirst for vengeance? What does it mean that a man who has bragged about grabbing women by their genitals, calls African nations “s…hole countries,” and praises white supremacist, armed militias as “good people” can have such great support? What does it mean that for every 10 white people who cast a ballot for president in 2020, 6 of us – SIX – voted for this person?
Political points of view aside, how is it possible to offer support for a person who lies, cheats, tears the fabric of integrity from bedrock social norms, and personally behaves in a manner that gives personal license to commit acts of emotional and physical abuse on others has ANY support? How is it possible to support a person who consistently demonstrates an amoral and narcissistic quality of life making such claims that HE ALONE can “drain the swamp” he perceives Washington to be?
What does support for this man mean? If we were seeking a person to fill a position in a company or business or enterprise, would we offer this person a job? Would we cheer him as a role model for our children? Would we entrust such a person to handle our personal accounts or care for our property or anything of personal value to us? Would we trust him to act in our best interest? Would we trust him to care for our daughters?
I do not understand how such a person, whose lack of content in character is supported and encouraged. It sickens me that TV evangelists and persons describing themselves as faith leaders, all the while claiming to know better in all things moral and spiritual, can offer their unyielding support.
Tens of millions of Americans who cast their ballots for the continuation of another four years of the morally bereft life and leadership of the current president live honorable, faithful, loving, and community-enriching lives. In their families and all the civic efforts in which they are engaged they teach by both precept and example that we must seek to “know better” and build excellent content of character. This is a truth that ultimately gives me hope and encouragement. But, regardless of this important fact, it continues to astonish and confound me that – at least in terms of who we choose to be our civic leader at the highest level – over 71 million of us cast a vote to say that “knowing better” no longer seems to matter…enough.