In My Opinion
By L.N.P.

Somewhere In The Middle

I was inspired to write this column after reading Benjamin Benedict’s recent short piece entitled “We Know Nothing” on this site. What he wrote is something I’ve probably complained about a thousand times; we have absolutely no idea what the truth is about anything anymore.  In order to get an unbiased view of a particular news event, we’d have to watch NBC or CNN and then we’d also have to watch FOX. Somewhere in the middle lies the truth, and apparently it’s up to us to figure it out. But of course, that’s usually not how it happens. Unfortunately, most of us tend to watch the news or information show that best reflects our own world-view; that’s where we feel most comfortable. And that means we are rarely exposed to a different view.

You’d think that since most intelligent people are aware of the fact that there IS no news source without a (barely) hidden agenda, without a subliminal message it’s trying to convey, that we’d occasionally rebel against being fed only that which reinforces our own opinions about the state of the world.  But we actually love it; it confirms for us that we’re right!

It’s sort of like life. Quite naturally, we tend to hang out with “our own kind.” Whether it’s people we work with, worship with, identify with racially or ethnically… we may come across all kinds of people in the course of a day, but when we want to feel relaxed and comfortable, we seek out those with whom we have the most in common. They don’t always share our world-view, but they are far more likely to.

I’ve experienced this first-hand, because I’m a person whose world-view has shifted noticeably over the past few years. So I know how it feels to be totally comfortable and relaxed with a group of secular, liberal, trash-talking, drug-experimenting, whatever makes you feel good, party-‘til-you-drop people. I was completely at ease among them. I was one of them. And while I was one of them, I was rarely exposed to a different way of life, a different way of looking at the world. On the rare occasions that I was, it made me uncomfortable.

But about five years ago I flipped the channel. And in so doing, I eventually found myself being most comfortable, once again, hanging out with my own kind. Only this time, the group consisted of God-loving, conservative, clean-talking, drug-free, whatever makes the other person feel good, party-on-soda pop people. And although I never would have believed it, I found myself completely at ease because I was one of them. As I wrote in last month’s column, I love being surrounded by people for whom putting God first comes naturally; it’s the common bond that strengthens our feelings for each other.

And I have to admit that the last time I spent a few hours among members of my former group, I found the curse words, and the “all about me” stuff, and the free-wheeling sex, drugs, and rock and roll attitude a bit jarring. Me: the former queen of sex, drugs, and rock and roll. Amazing. I felt as though I was being a hypocrite if I joined in, and if I didn’t, that I would be the cause of everyone’s discomfort. I wasn’t sure how to behave, because I really liked these people despite their different way of looking at the world, so I think I settled for someplace in the middle.

Which brings me back to my news analogy. We shouldn’t confine ourselves to one network, the one that conforms to our worldview, or we’ll never be exposed to opposing views. It’s easy to believe everything FOX News tells us if we never listen to CNN. Bill Maher becomes a prophet if we don’t balance him with Dennis Miller. The fact is, right now I can’t say for certain if the surge in Iraq is a miserable failure or going exactly as planned. I can’t tell for sure if global warming is an imminent threat that can be fixed if we humans take it seriously, or if the whole concept is junk science. The truth, I assume, lies somewhere in the middle, and it’s up to me to care enough, and be discerning enough, and to explore enough to figure it out. Just like it’s up to me to figure out how to behave when I’m confronted with another group. Usually that isn’t enough, but I have the words of the apostle Paul to spur me on. “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2)

And we aren’t supposed to confine ourselves to one group, either, just because it’s the one where we feel most comfortable, or we deprive ourselves of other viewpoints.  Not just viewpoints, but other people, valuable people, people who undoubtedly have something to teach us, or something to learn from us. And that doesn’t just apply to those with a different worldview based on their religion or their politics. It also applies to getting completely out of our comfort zones: volunteering at a homeless shelter or a prison, reaching out to the elderly or to at-risk adolescents.  

After all, if Jesus had confined himself to His group, there would be no such thing as Christianity. He and his apostles went where no one in their group had ever dared go, mingling and dining and speaking to “all the wrong” people.  He was never a hypocrite, yet He never made anyone—not a Samaritan, a tax collector, a prostitute, a sinner—feel uncomfortable.

When I get too comfortable, I try to remember what Paul wrote in Hebrews 13:2. “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.”

Send me your opinions at LParis@netlistings.com