Living Well in an Outrage Culture by Doug Paysour

Transcription

1 Living Well in an Outrage Culture by Doug Paysour Our culture is obsessed with outrage. In a recent situation, congressman-elect Dan Crenshaw showed us a different way to respond in the face of outrage. As people of faith, what can we learn from his unique response? Shutterstock.com FaithLink is available by subscription via (subservices@abingdonpress.com) or by downloading it from the Web ( com/faithlink). Print in either color or black and white. Copyright 2018 by Cokesbury. Please do not put FaithLink on your website for downloading. SNL and Dan Crenshaw On the weekend before the recent midterm elections, comedian and Saturday Night Live cast member Pete Davidson made one of his regular appearances on the show s Weekend Update segment. During his appearance, Davidson made fun of several candidates for their appearance, but one in particular struck a nerve. While showing a picture of Republican congressional candidate Dan Crenshaw, who lost an eye while serving in Afghanistan, Davidson made a joke about Crenshaw s eye patch. When the joke fell short, Davidson followed up with, He lost his eye in war, or whatever. Many felt that his comment demeaned Crenshaw s service and was disrespectful to veterans in general. In response to the controversy, SNL invited Crenshaw to appear on the show the Saturday following the midterms for both a public apology and the opportunity to get in a few scripted jabs at Davidson in return. After gracefully accepting Davidson s apology, Crenshaw added this coda: There are lots of lessons to learn here. Not just that the left and the right can still agree on some things, but also this: Americans can forgive one another. We can remember what brings us together as a country and still see the good in each other. It was a rare scene of forgiveness and reconciliation played out in the public sphere. In an op-ed published the following week in The Washington Post, Crenshaw said he woke up the morning after the original joke with hundreds of texts about what Davidson had said. A lot of Americans weren t happy and 1

2 apparently believed that, in Crenshaw s words, some lines still shouldn t be crossed. While many similar public missteps draw recriminations and calls for dire consequences, Crenshaw s response was more measured. Crenshaw noted that he, personally, wasn t really outraged or offended about the comments, and therefore he didn t demand an apology or that someone be fired. He added, That doesn t mean the war... or whatever line was acceptable, but I didn t have to fan the flames of outrage, either. He pointed out that this was yet another chapter in a phenomenon that has taken complete control of the national discourse: outrage culture. Crenshaw s refusal to act offended ran counter to the so-called outrage culture we live in every day. Though you may not have heard the term before, I m outraged or similar expressions of sharp disapproval and anger have become common in our society at large. What examples come to mind of the outrage culture in recent days? How have you found yourself drawn into discussions about a particular outrage? Understanding Outrage Culture One way to try to understand outrage culture is to try to understand the predictable cycle that each outrage event engenders. In 2014, Slate published a project in which it tracked a specific outrage for every day of the year. In her summary of the project, Julia Turner describes the typical cycle for each event: anger, sarcasm, recrimination, piling on; defenses and counterattacks; anger at the anger, disdain for the outraged; sometimes, an apology... and on to the next. Twitter and Facebook make it easier than ever to participate from home. And the same cycle occurs regardless of the gravity of the offense, which can make each outrage feel forgettable, replaceable. The bottomlessness of our rage has a numbing effect. As I look back at this project with four years of perspective, very few of the outrages of the day captured by Slate are particularly memorable. Despite this, the cycle continues. It even has a cumulative effect, as warring interest groups seek to push their message into the public square and control the conversation. These tactics have been adopted across the political spectrum, and each side seeks to claim the moral high ground while demonizing their opponents as unthinking, uncaring, and less than human. Social media has made the cycle of outrage instantaneous and unrelenting, contributing to the decline of civic discourse overall. How did Dan Crenshaw interrupt this cycle in his response? In what ways is the cycle of outrage helpful to our civil discourse? In what ways is it harmful? A Better Way In his op-ed, Dan Crenshaw points out several ways that we can have a more civil discourse with one another. He writes that he s under no illusions about political adversaries getting along in harmony simply because of an apology on Saturday Night Live. The events of the week, however, gave him a forum through which he could suggest how we can react in a better way. Let s agree, he wrote, that the ideas are fair game.... But there is a difference between attacking an idea and attacking the person behind that idea. Namecalling, labeling, and attacking the person aren t helpful and are often, at least to Crenshaw, an indication that the one responding doesn t have a solid argument. Crenshaw makes a second key point that these kinds of responses often attack not just an idea but also the motives behind an idea, which raises the emotional stakes of the public discussion. Assuming the worst of the other makes it difficult to have a productive discussion. 2

3 Jesus words are helpful here: Don t judge, so that you won t be judged. You ll receive the same judgment you give. Whatever you deal out will be dealt out to you (Matthew 7:1-2). Assuming the worst of the other s motives is a form of judging that ramps up the emotional temperature in any discussion. In our outrage culture, both sides typically assume the worst about the other s thoughts, motives, and actions. Lastly, Crenshaw writes, When all else fails, try asking for forgiveness, or granting it. On Saturday, Pete Davidson and SNL made amends. I had some fun. Everyone generally agreed that a veteran s wounds aren t fair game for comedy. Maybe now we should all try to work toward restoring civility to public debate. Notice that neither asking for forgiveness nor granting it is a part of the routine cycle of outrage. It is, however, profoundly Christian. Though Representative-elect Crenshaw s interruption of the outrage cycle may be long-forgotten within the month, it s notable that it can be done and we can have moments of reconciliation. If we can have moments, we can have days. If days, then years. Finally, that will begin to look like the kingdom of God, glimpsed on earth. We have learned our habits of how we respond to outrage. We have learned to attack in anger, to pile on, and to use the tools of sarcasm and demonization. This means we can unlearn them, too, and as Christians we can model a better way. What are some other ways that you can avoid contributing to the outrage culture? Is it important always to do so? Why or why not? Principles for Living Well In the podcast The Mission Daily, an episode from July 31, 2018, titled Russ Roberts and 7 Principles to Win Against Outrage Culture features Russ Roberts, an economist, researcher at Stanford University s Hoover Institution, and podcaster. The episode delineates seven principles that help us focus less on winning and more on living well in the face of outrage culture. Like John Wesley, Roberts begins with humility. In particular, Roberts says, When you say... I don t know, it s very liberating. These three words aren t uttered often in today s environment. A second principle involves following someone on social media with whom you don t agree. Preferably, this person is civil and not snarky; otherwise, he or she will just reinforce your own opinion that this person must be wrong because of his or her behavior. Another helpful idea is to hold your anger for a day. Sometimes, in the light of a new day and time to reflect, we sense that it s not worth our anger and our energy. Roberts encourages other principles: (1) taking a sabbath from social media; (2) noticing in ourselves when we seem to be enjoying outrage and checking it; and (3) finding a way to be around others who aren t of your tribe in ways that aren t political so that you aren t living in your own echo chamber. What he suggests is that you join other tribes, which would put you in relationship with people who aren t of your political tribe, who may think differently than you do. Which of these principles would be the hardest to keep in our current social environment? Which would you commit to focusing on in the next month? Is there diversity in your church or is it an echo chamber of your beliefs? Explain. 3

4 Core Bible Passages: Jesus Creative Response There were a number of times that Jesus opponents sought to entrap him, with questions about paying taxes, divorce, and the signs of the times. In John 8:1-11, Jesus opponents brought a woman to him who had been caught in adultery. The trap was they wanted to show that he rejected the Mosaic law. In her commentary on the passage, New Testament scholar Gail O Day notes that when Jesus bent down to write in the dirt, it was an act of disengagement. He wasn t taking the bait. Then he stood to respond: Whoever hasn t sinned should throw the first stone (verse 7). And then he knelt down again to write in the dirt, another act of disengagement. We can imagine them tossing down the stones in their hands in disgust. Notice that Jesus didn t respond immediately to their trap. He took his time. We aren t sure what he was doing. Pondering his response. Letting his anger subside. Letting them stew as he waited. Jesus opponents sought to show him as lax on the Mosaic law or expected him to be outraged at the woman s sin. But when he told her to go and to sin no more, he showed that he was unwilling either to condone her behavior or fall into the outrage trap and escalate the situation. What can we learn from Jesus example about when we re expected to respond to a word, an incident, or a situation with outrage? How would Jesus example help us apply this story to our current social media environment? United Methodist Perspective In his sermon The Lord Our Righteousness, John Wesley, founder of the Methodist movement, says, If there [is] a difference of opinion, where is our religion, if we cannot think and let think? Wesley teaches ways that we can deal with our current differences, both inside and outside the church. It begins with humility and a sincere desire to be better informed. As shown in the preface to his Sermons on Several Occasions, Wesley acknowledges that he could be wrong. He goes on to say in the preface that if he still doesn t understand, then the one who disagrees should take time to teach him and try to persuade him to the other position. In this, he teaches both humility and patience. However, Wesley encourages the other not to browbeat him nor to give him hard names when he is slow to come around. He notes that these tactics would not set me right. Rather, it would make me run so much the farther from you, and so get more and more out of the way. While Wesley was teaching about differences among Christians and didn t live in a pluralistic society such as today s America, there s much we can learn from his teaching for our circumstances. Additionally, some believe Wesley was the first to put in print the phrase agree to disagree, accentuating that we can live and function together, though we don t all think alike. In what ways does John Wesley s teaching conflict with the tactics of the outrage culture? How can we follow John Wesley s teaching to better respond to an episode of outrage? 4

5 Helpful Links The apology on Saturday Night Live s Weekend Update from November 10, 2018: The link to Representative-elect Dan Crenshaw s opinion piece dated November 13, 2018, in The Washington Post: Slate s article tracking each outrage of the day throughout How many can you remember? The Mission Daily podcast, Episode 66: Russ Roberts and 7 Principles to Win Against Outrage Culture : This podcast is a product of Chad Grills s media company The Mission, which publishes stories, videos, and podcasts to make smart people smarter. Doug Paysour is an ordained elder in the Virginia Conference and serves at Windsor Hills United Methodist Church in Roanoke, Virginia. Follow us on Facebook at or at Next Week in Fewer Children in America by Jill M. Johnson According to numerous studies, the fertility rate in the United States is at one of its lowest points in history. Why are Americans making the choice to have fewer children or none at all? What concerns does this raise? What role does the church play in addressing these concerns? FaithLink: Connecting Faith and Life is a weekly, topical study and an official resource for The United Methodist Church approved by Discipleship Ministries and published weekly by Cokesbury, The United Methodist Publishing House, 2222 Rosa L. Parks Blvd., Nashville, TN Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from the Common English Bible, copyrighted 2011 Common English Bible, and are used by permission. Permission is granted to photocopy this resource for use in FaithLink study groups. All Web addresses were correct and operational at the time of publication. comments to FaithLink at faithlinkgroup@umpublishing.org. For problems, send to Cokes_Serv@umpublishing.org. To order, call , or visit our website at 5

6 Opening Prayer O Lord our God, God of grace and God of power, sometimes we grow weary of the constant debates in our culture and all of the negative energy that abounds. Guide us, O Lord, to discern a better way to respond to all of the negativity, to learn of the way of Jesus, the way of love, mercy, and grace. We pray this in Christ s name. Amen. Leader Helps Open the session with the provided prayer or one of your own. Have several Bibles on hand and a markerboard and markers for writing lists or responses to reflection questions. Remind the group that people have different perspectives and to honor these differences by treating one another with respect as you explore this topic together. Begin the discussion by asking participants: What controversies or current cultural outrages are on your mind today? Write down their responses on a markerboard or large sheet of paper. Tell participants that we will be naming controversies for our list but not commenting on them. After making the list, ask participants: Looking at our completed list, how does it make you feel? Are you surprised by some of the items on our list? Why or why not? If you have access to the Internet, you may wish to review Dan Crenshaw s response on Saturday Night Live as found in the Helpful Links section. Read or review highlights of each section of this issue. Use the REFLECT questions to stimulate discussion. Before closing the session, ask participants: How will you choose to respond when you feel drawn into discussions about a particular outrage? What are some steps that you will take? Close the session with a time of prayer using the provided prayer or one of your own. Teaching Alternatives Some writers note that the roots of our current outrage culture may be traced to Saul Alinsky, a community organizer who sought to empower members of low-income communities politically, socially, economically, and personally. Just before his death, he wrote the book Rules for Radicals: A Pragmatic Primer for Realistic Radicals, which outlines many of the tactics now used by various political and special interest groups. For a deeper understanding of outrage culture, find a copy of his rules at Discuss each rule and attempt as a group to find examples of each in current controversies. Closing Prayer God, our King and our salvation, we know that outrage and anger do not ultimately bring us closer to you. Help us to navigate the frustrations and difficulties of our society in healthy ways that encourage kindness and love among others. Help us to avoid unnecessary fights and to look for the image of you that can be found in everyone, including our enemies; in Christ s name. Amen. 6