We all need to find common ground!

"We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature."

Abraham Lincoln's said that in his first inaugural address, and his words were directed to the people of the South before the Civil War.

Now at this time in our history, it is imperative that we pay attention to Lincoln's words. Our nation is again in crisis and none of us know what is coming next.

There was a time not too long ago when the U.S. had a healthy democracy, and the two sides --Republicans and Democrats -- were willing to negotiate and compromise to find solutions to benefit us all.

Today the U.S. does not have a healthy democracy. And political animosities have reached a very dangerous level. Seeing the other side not as a political adversary but as an enemy, Republicans and Democrats have, to a great extent, paralyzed the federal government. That is not good for anyone because the federal government has to function effectively to solve domestic problems such as health care, a crumbling infrastructure, and immigration. Of equal importance, it has to support global political stability and work with the rest of the world to solve the climate crisis.

In this polarized climate in the U.S., Democrats vote for their party's candidates even if they are weak, unappealing candidates because their main goal is to prevent Republicans from winning. Republicans do the same thing.

Liberals and conservatives tend to live in different worlds, watching different TV news shows and associating mostly with like-minded people. Liberals and conservatives also appear to have different values. And both sides tend to reject views that don't fit their pre-existing beliefs.

How can we end this destructive polarization?

What we must do is find a way to bring all of us together and tap into our shared humanity. When we do find a way out of our present darkness, we will come to realize that we are not as different as we thought we were. We will discover that we all share the same goal of being happy and living in peace and prosperity.

So, how do we begin?

Let's start with a book by Henry Drummond, a distinguished scholar and writer in the 1800s. It's called The Greatest Thing in the World. Henry Drummond didn't find this "greatest thing" in a huge stock portfolio, a real estate empire, or any form of wealth, fame, or power. He found it somewhere else. The Bible. He latched onto NINE qualities he found in the Bible's 800,000 words: patience, kindness, generosity, humility, courtesy, unselfishness, good temper, guilelessness, and sincerity. In his book Mr. Drummond wrote that the expression of these qualities would lead us forward in every aspect of our lives.

This has to include the political causes we think are right and just but appear to be endlessly stalled in partisan gridlock.

Now is the time to apply what Henry Drummond talked about to the problem of political polarization.

            Patience. “Love suffereth long,” Love doesn’t rush to make a judgement but waits to figure out what the right thing is to say or do. For example, do we have to be patient with Democrats if we are a Republican and patient with Republicans if we are a Democrat? Yes. And here's what will happen when we are patient. We will actually listen to their concerns, think about them, and look for common ground and solutions to problems that can only come from working together. What can we lose by trying? We've now almost hit rock bottom in our political views and actions. If it gets any worse, we could descend from a war of words to battles in the streets across the country.

            Kindness. “And is kind.” Who are we being kind to now? Our friends? People who are kind to us? What is demanded of us all -- liberals and conservatives -- is to take the first step. We must reach out and be kind to everyone. We might be pleasantly surprised by what happens as a result of our efforts.

            Generosity. “Love envieth not.” Owners of corporations think that paying themselves more and their workers less gets them everything they want. What they don't realize is that a little more generosity toward their workers -- which would enable their workers to buy more stuff from the company -- would increase owner's profits much more than they gain from their present selfish way of treating their workers.

          Humility. “Love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up.” Democrats, let's be deferential enough to consider that the outgoing Republican president with his unorthodox style might actually have kept the country out of war. It may not be easy to do this, but make the effort. Talks are better than guns. Republicans, let's be deferential to those advocating immediate action on the climate crisis because we love our children and grandchildren just as Democrats love their children and grandchildren.

           Courtesy. “Doth not behave itself unseemly.” Not acting unseemly is to exhibit good manners, to be respectful, considerate. Republicans and Democrats, if the other side goes low, should we go even lower? No! We should go high. And by doing so, we may eventually gain an outcome that will benefit both sides.

           Good temper. “Is not easily provoked.” We might think that a daily battle is what our constituents expect of us, and we need their continued support to insure our re-election. That may be so if getting re-elected is all we care about. But what if everyone -- elected officials and voters -- held their temper, saw some good points in the other side's position, negotiated, and advanced the common good? Wouldn't it be better in the long run for elected officials if the vast majority of voters got a meaningful tax cut, viable health care, better roads and bridges, and clean air and water?

            Guilelessness. “Thinketh no evil.” Although this may force us to possibly reverse a deeply ingrained habit, why don't we try it every once in awhile? Expect the best from the other side and they might surprise us by coming to the table and compromising.

            Sincerity. “Rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth.” We must reject the tendency to tell lies to ourselves and to others in order to advance our cause. If we stick with the truth at all times, what could happen? Both sides just might start trusting each other more and working together again.

If expressing these qualities toward all human beings seems like an impossible task, think again about Lincoln's words, which are as important today as at any time in our history.

By listening to the better angels of our nature, we can bring about an end to the political polarization in this country and halt our descent into another civil war in one form or another. And with the end of polarization, we will find ourselves living in peace with our neighbors, those who dwell on our left side and those who dwell on our right side.

Rick McManus wants to see the world remain a beautiful place for everyone now residing on this planet and for untold generations to come. His novel EMPTY EARTH is available on Amazon.com. And his latest novel ATHENA: A TEENAGER FIGHTS THE CLIMATE CRISIS is also available on Amazon.com