We’re conflating empathy with agreement on action.
There’s a
huge emphasis right now on the need to listen to the experiences of people from
marginalized communities, and that’s a really good thing. If
you’re personally unaffected by the issues these communities face, it’s far too
easy to live in ignorance and not feel the sense of urgency for change. I’ll
personally acknowledge that the extent of the (peaceful) protests has raised my
own awareness of just how much sadness, anger, and injustice simmers under our
cultural surface. If we don’t take the time to listen, our ignorance will only
deepen the wounds.
It’s
extremely concerning, however, when it’s implied that listening with empathy and
compassion means 1) the listener has no further place in the conversation, and
2) truth is dictated by the experience of the person being listened to. When
the call to listen with empathy and compassion turns to, “Be quiet
(permanently) because you have no right to speak to an issue if you don’t fit a
specific profile,” there is a major problem from a Christian worldview.
Abortion, for example, doesn’t suddenly become morally acceptable just because
a black person shares their experience of discrimination and injustice, then
states that it’s oppressive to the black community to be pro-life (something
I’m seeing a lot of online). This should be a simple matter of logic, if only
because multiple people who have experienced discrimination and injustice can have
different views on abortion (whose view wins?). But beyond this self-evident
logic, Christians believe that objective truth exists—truth that applies to all
people, regardless of their demographic profile or personal experience.
Compassion
doesn’t equal agreement on action.
Read the entire excellent, thoughtful article here by Natasha Crain.
Picture used by permission from Pixabay.
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