.cross.wired.mind.

I took a walk from my office near City Hall in Philadelphia to the mall called the Gallery some half dozen blocks away. It was lunchtime and the crowded streets were filled with a mix of city dwellers, suburbanites, and tourists. There was a lawyer discussing the details of a case with a cop. Further down the street two women shouted at each other about stealing perfume as a trio of Philly’s finest stood by, not quite knowing what to do. A group of people wearing badges proclaiming them to be on jury duty lined up by cart to order lunch. An elderly woman wrestled with her bags as she left Kmart and stepped out onto Market ST looking to hail a cab.

Sounds normal, right? Added to this usual mix of holiday pedestrian traffic was a woman I have seen many times on my walks around center city. She is in her early 50s. Her clothes alternate between two outfits, both clearly worn form frequent use. Her graying hair looks clean but never well organized in spite of the three or four hairpins she uses. She always has a mobile phone in her hand though I have never seen her use it. In her other hand is a ragged scrap of cloth that she uses to wipe away her tears.

She cries constant streams of tears and sobs almost inaudibly.

She marches down the street with purpose. The first time I saw her I thought she might be looking for a lost child, but she is never that frantic - just determined, or is it more fatalistic than that? She never begs, nor does she ask for help. She just walks, cries, sobs, dabs at here eyes, and clutches her phone with white knuckles.

Every time I see her I say a short prayer for her safety.

…

Go anywhere in center city and you will find people wandering in a daze, clearly suffering from mental illness, and clearly not getting the kind of treatment they need.

How is it possible that we could let anyone suffer like this? How is it that we can spend so much of our time, energy, and resources fighting over abortion, creationism vs evolution, gay marriage, and all of the other issues raised by the right and the left.

It is like two parents fighting in front of their children. Is our society so self absorbed that we cannot see the people crying, literally crying, in the street? Has our collective will been bent too long on fighting each other that we have allowed ourselves to slip so far to the edge of catastrophic societal failure?

The right blames everything from video games, to Harry Potter, to not going to Church on Sunday. The left blames cold corporate entities in collusion with a corrupt government. Frankly, I don’t give a damn who is to blame. We can fix it.

Why do we keep electing politicians that want to lower our taxes, cut services, and fatten the coffers of the richest amongst us? Why do we think that non-profits and religious organization can make up for the ever-shrinking tax base? Why is it that “promote the general welfare” has been reduced to hoping for wealth to trickle down? Rich people are very good at building wealth, not at redistributing that wealth to the people that need it.

O CHILDREN OF DUST! Tell the rich of the midnight sighing of the poor, lest heedlessness lead them into the path of destruction, and deprive them of the Tree of Wealth. To give and to be generous are attributes of Mine; well is it with him that adorneth himself with My virtues. - The Hidden Words of Bahá’u’lláh

…

Matthew 25:44-46 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

“He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

…

And let not those of you who possess grace and abundance swear against giving to the near of kin and the poor … - the Holy Quran

… the quotes could go on and on. If we are truly a Godly and spiritual society (not a Christin country - that is different) - If we adhere to the ideals enshrined in the very core documents this country is founded upon, then why have we ceased to promote the general welfare? Why do we allow fellow members of the human family to wander the streets in pain.

Have we grown so cold hearted that we cannot see the reality of our world? And upon seeing that reality can we not do something? Drop money in the pot next to the ringing bells of the Salvation Army; give to charities that can truly help. Become aware of what this world is truly like. Leave the comfort of your homes and visit the people who are helping. Go to a soup kitchen and serve. Go to a homeless shelter and serve. Leave the philosophical and ideological bubble that you have been trapped in and walk amongst the poor and see what their lives are like.

I am sorry if I sound like a preacher but I can’t help myself. Besides - how many preachers out there are leading the way to help the poor? How many are sheep and how many are goats?

We can be sheep without them. Just do something.

Now, where is that bell ringer? I have to make a deposit in honor of the crying woman cruising the sidewalks of center city.

Did you know that division is sinful?  No I am not talking about the mathmatical operation (though long division is definitely evil).

As I have been reflecting on faith and politics it came to me that I should take a look at the source most often quoted by the current administration (and evangelical politicians of every stripe) when it comes to the moral justification for the actions they undertake on behalf of the United States’ body politic.

I decided to go to the Bible and see what I could find that has given the religious right the motivation to wage war, cut funding for the social services directed towards those at or near the poverty line, and to generally favor the wealthiest of citizens and corporate interests over the vast majority of us that are not a part of the upper class.

What I found was quite at odds with what I have witnessed over the years,

I started at the base - what about faith?  What is it?  How does it work?  This is what I found:

James 2:14-26

What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? 17In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.

You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.

You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.

In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

Ok.  Got it - faith does not function if you do not act in accordance with faith.  Isn’t that what the politicians from the religious right do?  They believe they act out of faith.  But what should a person of faith actually do.  What virtues should a person of faith manifest?

Here is what I found:

Galatians 5:16-26

So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. 18But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.

The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

So we are not supposed to foster discord or promote factionalism.  Isn’t that the very heart of partisan politics?  Division is an aspect of a sinful nature.  There it is.  If faith is to be alive then the fruits of the spirit, according to the Bible, must be made the center of our works.

So how will God judge us when all is said and done?  Well, according to the Bible God has a pretty good test - and this is a test for which we already have the answers. 

Matthew 25:31-46

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

“He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

So why don’t we just do this?  Why is it so hard to do?  Why do we insist on acting like goats?

Now, I believe that heaven and hell are states of mind and not literal physical places so this takes on a very different meaning but still - the New Testament is filled with these gems.  If those that claimed to be devout and pious Christians just followed these three quotes could you imagine how different our political situation would be right now?

With the passing of Rosa Parks we have lost a living connection to the birth of the modern civil rights movement. Her simple act of defiance was a spark that led to a firestorm of change. But did things change enough? One need look no further than the LA riots of 1992 and the recent results of hurricane Katrina to see the outward signs that racism is an unresolved issue.

Many people would like to think that racism has gone away. They pay lip service to diversity. They eat food from different cultures, enjoy a ride through “It’s a Small World“, and might even have some [insert racial minority] friends. They think that they are not racist because they do not hate anyone because of the color of their skin. Racism is not always about hate. Racism can also be about apathy and a lack of true appreciation of our common humanity.

Yes, the civil rights movement created great progress, but mostly in a legal sense and then only at the most basic level. We now have legal equality, but that has not resulted in the systemic change required to create true justice for the victims of racism. The clear lack of government action in response to hurricane Katrina is the clearest indication that institutionalized racism continues to plague human relations.

That is the key - its all about human relations. As individuals we lack a sense of justice, a willingness to demonstrate respect, and an ability to express brotherly love when it comes to those whose skin color, accent, or social class does not match our own. Racism is a disease of the spirit. It is an attitude that lives in our subconscious. It is fed by the media and spreads like a virus in our culture of fear.

When faced with the reality of racism and the continued pain it inflicts on my fellow human beings I cannot help but mourn for all of humanity. I feel compelled to act. I try to do what I can do. I participate in diversity activities at work. I serve on the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday committee for my community. None of that helps. The only thing that does help me is to act everyday to be mindful of race and the part it plays in our lives. I remember the words and deeds of the Central Figures of my faith, and I am encouraged to press on. I see the words and deeds of the people that stood up for civil rights and I see that determined acts, even very simple ones, can make a difference.

This is why Rosa Parks was so important. She was a person who simply stood her ground when the forces of hate and separation tried to force all people of color into a place of second class citizenry. She was an example of a human being who placed justice above all else. I am glad that she has become the first woman to ever lie in state in our nation’s capitol. Her life and her courage are an example for all of us. Let’s hope that this, her final act of defiance, can be another spark.

Andrew Hinton posted his reation to an interview with Jonathan Haidt (The Believer - Interview with Jonathan Haidt). I posted the following response (plus I have a few additional thoughts tagged on at the end):

It was a very interesting and thought provoking interview to be sure but I guess the whole premise of his experiment bothers me, and not because of his evolutionary take on moral reactions.

The example of his experiment, the whole brother/sister thing. It presents a situation that may not actually be factual. Can a brother and sister have sex without any negative psychological impact? Even with two forms of birth control is that still 100% effective? He says that they do it once and never again. Can desire be flipped on and off like that? He assumes that sex has no emotional component.

Basically he has set up an example to nullify all possible reasoned objections to what most would perceive as an immoral act. In that regard his work is significant and worthy of consideration.

But then there is the blink factor. What if our moral judgments happen the same way rapid cognition happens. Throughout Malcolm Gladwell’s survey of rapid cognition we saw many examples of individual who could not rationally explain their judgments and yet those judgments were often accurate (with the exception of the “Warren Harding error”). Perhaps there is a relationship between rapid cognition and rapid moral response.

Perhaps our moral education (formal as well as culturally influenced) and our life experience informs a moral “blink” response?

I guess they way I see things is a combination of evolutionary biology and our creation by God. I know, I know. Some of you may not like the idea but hear me out.

I fully believe that this planet and all of the life upon it came into being following the laws of physics, chemistry, biology, and all of the other hard sciences. Because of my belief in science I have no problem with a biological explanation for our morality. It is a part of the human experience. It is part of human nature. The same holds true for the blink response and rapid cognition. We are a part of a biological world. We have the same basic building blocks as every other form of life and are subject to the same evolutionary process.

I happen to also believe that we are a product of a divine creation. But creation does not mean that we suddenly popped into existence fully formed and fully physically human. I believe that science is just a way to examine the details of God’s handiwork.

Oh, and BTW - I do not like the idea of intelligent design and I do not support it being taught in schools. The idea that complexity is proof of a creator is faulty logic. To force the school system to teach a statement of faith as fact is never a good thing.

Just to level set - I see the world through the filter of my Faith. I often make cross connections to quotes from scripture or ideas contained in the teachings of the Baha’i Faith.

I try not to be too preachy but its hard to keep faith out of my thoughts, and therefore out of my posts.

The most important thing to know is that while I hold strong religious convictions I do not, and will not, impose them on others, nor will I judge people based on my personal faith. So, if you can live with a little religiousity from me I will try not to make you feel like I stand in judgement of you or your beliefs, whatever they may be.

Its the golden rule.

I am in the process of reading Malcolm Gladwell’s book blink. In chapter three he talks about the “Warren Harding error” where we make a subconscious snap judgment and then stop thinking about it. We allow the subconscious to make a value judgment and never revisit our decision. The reason it is called the “Warren Harding error” is because of the process that got him elected President of the United States.

Warren Harding was a strikingly handsome man. People would see him and they would assume that he was a true leader and an insightful politician. Turns out he was arguably the worst President we have ever elected. The evidence was there to suggest he was going to be a horrible President.

He talks about and provides samples of the IAT (Implicit Association Test). The IAT uses a technique that measures the time it takes to sort a list of terms into columns. Each column is give a pair of values. So for instance one column is “Male or Career” and the other “Female or Family”. The terms are names like John or Holly and terms like capitalist or laundry. The test measures the time it takes to sort the terms into the columns. The test is then taken again with the column pairings switched so that one column is “Male or Family” and the other “Female or Career”. The terms and names become harder to sort. The reason is that our culture has built into us a subconscious implicit association between “Male and Career” and “Female and Family”.

The test is also run on the term pairs “European American or Good” and “African American or Bad” and the opposite pairing “European America or Bad” and “African American and Good”. Te results of this test are staggering to consider. People who say that the are in no way shape or form racist still hold a closer association between European American and Good and African American and Bad. This was true regardless of the conscious opinion of race held by the participant. Of the 50,000 participants who were African American about 50% of them held a strong association between European American and Good and African American and Bad. This speaks volumes about the cultural climate and the value our society places on race.

As it turns out there is a way to shift the opinions uncovered by the IAT. The best way to avoid the “Warren Harding error” is to expose ourselves to positive associations. For example, by studying the lives of Martin Luther King Jr. or Nelson Mandela we can prime ourselves to make a stronger association between African American and Good. By exposing ourselves to the best of other cultures we can actually effect our subconscious bias.

After reading this chapter of blink I recalled one of my favorite quotes from the writings of my faith (its the Baha’i Faith for those that do not know). The quote is from Baha’u'llah, the founder of the Baha’i Faith.

He wrote :

O CHILDREN OF MEN!

Know ye not why We created you all from the same dust? That no one should exalt himself over the other. Ponder at all times in your hearts how ye were created. Since We have created you all from one same substance it is incumbent on you to be even as one soul, to walk with the same feet, eat with the same mouth and dwell in the same land, that from your inmost being, by your deeds and actions, the signs of oneness and the essence of detachment may be made manifest. Such is My counsel to you, O concourse of light! Heed ye this counsel that ye may obtain the fruit of holiness from the tree of wondrous glory.

The key phrase in that quote is “Ponder at all times in your hearts how ye were created.” The Writings of Baha’u'llah are filled with reminders to think about or meditate upon a connection or condition or action that will be helpful, or that will eliminate a prejudice, or that will increase the capacity ogf the individual to serve humanity.

Faith can focus our minds on positive connections, on the elimination of bias. The trick is that we must be ever mindful to fight the messages that bombard us on a daily basis. We must overcome the negative with a mindful thought of the positive. Abdu’l-Baha, the son of Baha’u'llah and a central figure in the Baha’i Faith said:

I charge you all that each one of you concentrate all the thoughts of your heart on love and unity. When a thought of war comes, oppose it by a stronger thought of peace. A thought of hatred must be destroyed by a more powerful thought of love. Thoughts of war bring destruction to all harmony, well-being, restfulness and content.

Thoughts of love are constructive of brotherhood, peace, friendship, and happiness.

Regardless of a person’s Faith or their belief (or non-belief) in God, I think that there is a truth in this that cognitive science is beginning to see. Our thoughts and our experiences create deep subconscious reactions that we cannot control or alter except through a mindful effort to foster positive perceptions.

I think I am going to read about MLK or maybe Saladin to wash away some of the negativity building up in my subconscious.