Whenever I watch an interview or read an article where people are expressing views and opinions that are counter to my moral compass (and catch myself judging others’ moral compasses) I am reminded of Jonathan Haidt’s book:The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion.

Last autumn through this spring I was part of a UU group of community and parish ministers who met via Zoom video calls to study and discuss the book.

The premise of the book, and our conversations therein, was that humans are highly intuitive beings who act first, and justify later based on our moral predispositions. Regardless of where we are religiously/politically, our beliefs, convictions, and values are far less “rational” than we imagine. But because they are built and supported by our tribal/societal norms, they have the appearance of being rational. This trait is seen beyond politics and religion, as it remains true for all group/class subsets we are part of as we “rationalize” with self-interest based on the preservation of our group and/or our group’s ideals.

Understanding this helps create the kind of empathy that can open doors and build bridges. The other good news, as Haidt concludes, is that:

“we all have the capacity to transcend self-interest and become simply a part of a whole. It’s not just a capacity, it’s the portal to many of life’s most cherished experiences.”

May it be so. Amen.

I once preached a sermon where I talked about (as a reflection of my life experienced) always having two buckets – one filled with all things joyful and the other filled with things that bring anything but joy and that they can co-exist, not separate from but part of the whole. We tend to think of emotions as individual. Existing singularly. In pathways to understanding communication within the sphere of human interactions, Aristotle sites emotions with their opposites:

Love and Enmity

Confidence and Fear

Joy and Sorrow

We often align our minds to think that opposing emotions cannot co-exist in the same moment. Kahlil Gibran suggests that joy and sorrow are inseparable. He says that the deeper the sorrow carves into our being (into our hearts), the more joy we can contain. He talks about how when one emotion is active, the other lies in wait.

I would like to suggest that Joy is not the absence of Sorrow. (or any opposing emotions) I feel the two can co-exist. And that when Sorrow presents in its many forms, that if we train our hearts to look and listen,we can discover that Joy has not left the building. That it is still present. May it be so.

“Joy is not the absence of Sorrow. The two can co-exist, not separate from but part of the whole.  When Sorrow presents in its many forms, if we train our hearts to look and listen,we can discover that Joy has not left the building. Joy is still present.”