Civil Contract
Voting: An Expression of Human Dignity
What we found we could say together — and why Paths to Understanding joined Faith in America On Sunday, November 1, we gathered online for the last of our Faith in America prayer events before Election Day. Around the table were Episcopalian, Lutheran, Muslim, Evangelical Christian, Jewish and Indigenous leaders. We prayed. We did not…
Read MorePTU Partners in Faith in America
Why Paths to Understanding is part of Faith in America — and what we can all do before November 3 The contract we already share Across the wisdom traditions we walk with — Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh, Indigenous, humanist and many more — there is remarkable agreement on two things. Every person has…
Read MoreThe Moral and Relational Crisis Beneath American Division
One of the deepest questions many activists, organizers, faith leaders, and community leaders ask today is this: Why don’t people seem to care anymore? After violence, cruelty, corruption, or public dishonesty, many people feel exhausted and bewildered. It can seem as though empathy itself is disappearing. Some conclude that America is in a moral crisis.…
Read MoreLeadership After Radical Individualism
Over the last 60 years, radical individualism has reshaped not only our society, but also how many leaders imagine leadership itself. It has taught us to focus almost entirely on our own group. Our own congregation.Our own organization.Our own audience.Our own success or survival. And in some ways, this made sense. Many groups have faced…
Read MoreWe Cannot Heal Society With the Tools That Burned It Down
The attack on a mosque in California is heartbreaking. It is also terrifyingly familiar. After violence against Muslims, Jews, Sikhs, Indigenous people, Black churches, immigrants, LGBTQ people, as well as violence against those considered conservative, we often hear the same question: “How could this happen?” The answer is always complicated. But some patterns are becoming…
Read MoreThe Civil Contract and Cross-Group Relationships
Many leaders I talk to feel the same tension. We can see the division.We can feel the distance growing.We know something deeper than politics is breaking down. So we ask: What do we actually do about it? For a long time, we thought the answer was better ideas. Those matter. But they are not enough.…
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