COMMENTARY: In the Fog of Change, Character Can Steer Us Through

c. 2006 Religion News Service (UNDATED) “What happens now on the Supreme Court?” asked my son on the eve of Samuel Alito’s confirmation to replace Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. It’s the same question being asked about the victory of the Hamas party in Palestinian elections, and about massive layoffs at Ford Motor Co. and General […]

c. 2006 Religion News Service

(UNDATED) “What happens now on the Supreme Court?” asked my son on the eve of Samuel Alito’s confirmation to replace Justice Sandra Day O’Connor.

It’s the same question being asked about the victory of the Hamas party in Palestinian elections, and about massive layoffs at Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. What now? Something fundamental is changing. What happens next?


The answer is the same to all three questions: It’s all about character. It isn’t about how deftly one group or another maneuvered. It isn’t about legal opinions written two decades ago or militaristic stances taken while out of power or decades of stubbornness in management or labor. It isn’t about slogans or labels.

It is about character. As the new swing vote on a bitterly divided Supreme Court, serving a bitterly divided nation, will Alito cling to theories advanced in younger years or will he engage with realities that his theories didn’t anticipate and the broader stakes of a nation? Will he serve one extreme or move to the middle?

Hamas faces a similar challenge: to stick with a historic agenda _ terrorism, death to Israel _ that was good for recruiting when on the fringe but could be disastrous for a ruling party. The challenge, as for all ideologues, will be to look beyond the delicious aroma of righteous indignation and spiritual zeal and to wade into the less savory fold where people actually live.

To see a need for radical renunciation of the past, watch Detroit. Three thought-worlds in the auto industry have crashed at once. One is historical enmity between management and labor, a mutual loathing that probably influences policy as much as any balance sheet or sales forecast, causing both sides to make self-destructive choices rather than give in to a despised enemy.

Another is a belief that marketing will trump common sense and that car buyers can be led anywhere. A third is a refusal to be as adaptive and humble as the market needs them to be.

Character will determine whether Detroit sees both a market that defies its stereotypes and a nation that deserves better leadership from one of its dominant industries. Laying off 30,000 workers merely shifts the problem to other shoulders; nothing is resolved.

I am concerned about the state of character in this nation. Character is shaped by faith. I don’t mean ideology masked as doctrine or triumphant sprays of Scripture bullets. I mean encountering human suffering and the ambiguity of existence, sensing the need to be sacrificial and humble, and hearing God’s discomfiting call to love those whom others reject. I am concerned that today’s religious leaders are focused too much on franchise development.


Character is shaped by self-denial and common sense, two attributes that seem in short supply. When corporate cheats smirk on their way into court because they know their lawyers can game the system, cleverness has vanquished character. When people treat such behavior as entertainment, passivity has vanquished common sense.

Character accepts accountability, even punishment when it is deserved. Character sees a large canvas _ larger than class, larger than party, larger than getting one’s way. Character imagines a commonweal in which everyone has a stake, even the lowliest, even the newest, even ideological foes, even those who lost the last vote.

Character listens to the inarticulate, waits for the slow, touches the outcast, and sees worth in everything that God has made, not just in those who talk about God correctly.

No family, institution or nation is safe when extremes rule. Extremes become cruel and blind. Even though we live in a world of extravagant extremes _ read our blogs and letters to the editor _ we depend on leaders with character to stand close to the middle.

MO/PH END RNS

(Tom Ehrich is a writer, consultant and leader of workshops. His book, “Just Wondering, Jesus: 100 Questions People Want to Ask,” was published by Morehouse Publishing. An Episcopal priest, he lives in Durham, N.C. His Web site is http://www.onajourney.org.)

Editors: To obtain a photo of Tom Ehrich, go to the RNS Web site at https://religionnews.com. On the lower right, click on “photos,” then search by subject or slug.


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