And why is it so important to act strong? I have been graced with the strength to endure. But I have been assaulted, and in the assault wounded, grievously wounded. Am I to pretend otherwise? Wounds are ugly, I know. They repel. But must they always be swathed? I shall look at the world through tears. Perhaps I shall see things that dry-eyed I could not.

— Nicholas Wolterstorff, Lament for a Son

I have seen many say that the events that took place on January 6th do not represent this nation, but I disagree. This is precisely who we are. The American Church, and particularly white evangelicals, have peddled a gospel antithetical to Scripture for quite a while and the fruits of that labor are finally coming out into the daylight. The Christian symbols and terminology associated with the rising hate, lies, and political movements in this country have co-opted a faith that is so much bigger than its supposed symbiosis with a political party. My blood boils at these ideas and particularly at the images of crosses and nooses side by side. What has the Church done to perpetuate these lies? How have we been formed in this false gospel? How can we move forward?

In our western world, we live in a culture that stresses the importance and significance of the individual, while at the same time downplaying the importance of God. These two emphases, the significance of the individual life and the absence of God, cannot go together without creating an intolerable restlessness inside each of us.

— Ronald Rolheiser

I see a lot of people saying, “No matter who wins the election, Jesus is on the throne.” While this is true, and I hope that we understand the weight of this statement, it must not preclude the necessary work for loving our neighbor, mourning with those who are hurting, or bringing His Kingdom to earth. This electoral cycle is particularly charged and the idea that God is in control is a comfort, even a balm, to our anxious souls. However, the concept of God being in control of a leader that is actively oppressing certain groups or peoples around them may not be the message that Christians should spread in the face of our hurting neighbors. Our culture has a propensity to sweep things under the rug in favor of apathetic, lazy statements by taking away the importance of our actions and decisions. It is dangerous for this to become the case for the Church, as it has in the past, especially in our current cultural surroundings.

Plenty of leaders know of the Iceberg Principle, and you do not have to understand this theory to get the point. The majority of our emotions, values, meaning, or disagreement lies under the surface. It’s up to us to mine the depths of who we are to find how they impact us in our daily interactions. However, I am becoming increasingly aware that what is rewarded in our culture is very rarely the depths of our being, but rather, the tip of the iceberg.