Those Troublesome Incompatibles

Mercy and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

 - From Psalm 85

The problem in American Politics today, is that one side emphasizes Mercy, while the other emphasizes Truth. 

One party prefers Righteousness. The other, Peace.

When will we simply accept the fact that our omnipotent God is unrealistic in His expectation that we practice lifestyles and attitudes that do not, cannot, go together? 

That's what makes it so unreachable. That's what makes it such a grand aspiration for Humanity. It's the very essence of why we fall short; why we sin. Because we can sort of muster a pretty good record as merciful people . . . but then we have to speak Truth and it gets awkward.

We have made our electoral system our fall-back action plan to advancing the priority that God has given each of us. If we win, well . . . we win. And winning feels good. It's like, I must be right, if I win.

There was a time people on the Left would say "Well it's a good thing we have Conservatives here, to keep us focused on budgets and economies," while the Right would return "Our Liberal friends keep reminding us about social justice, and that's a good thing."

But not today.

We need mercy. Not judgmentalism. We need acceptance of others; all others. Unconditionally. But somehow we have to do that while articulating a holy, sinless goal and target. We need to love others while defining the godly standard for life: responsibility, hard work, loyalty, purity . . . 

We need righteousness. The human race cannot progress without taming its passions and selfish yearnings. Righteousness is our barometer as to whether or not we are reaching for the Good. Are we becoming more Christlike? But at the same time we can't alienate others. We have to set ourselves apart as people of God, while establishing peace and security for others. 

Those troublesome incompatibles.