The Way of the Peaceful Patriot

Tuesday, November 5^th of this year, is a historical moment in America. This election represents a country divided in its political beliefs. Like many elections, half of the country supports the Democratic agenda, while the other half endorses the Republican positions. But unlike other elections, candidate hatred has reached an all-time high.

America has endured many divisions since the birth of our nation — most significantly — the Revolutionary War with Great Britain and the Civil War between the North and the South. In both cases, our country was divided. In both wars, the internal conflicts almost destroyed us. We were anything but united. Yet, we endured. We survived because the voices of reasonable and enlightened leaders like Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln shined a light on a better direction despite their flaws. Jefferson was no stranger to living a material life and bore children with one of his slaves.[1] Lincoln suffered from depression and a troubled marriage.[2] Regardless, they both made major contributions to the improvement of the country and left an indelible mark on world history.

Right now (though for different reasons), we have reached a pitched level of volatility that doesn’t best serve our nation. Even as far back as Lincoln, politics has been a deadly profession, and now, 168 years later, we are still stuck in a fatalistic mindset. There have been two assassination attempts on the former president’s life and a great deal of anger and even violence amongst family and friends whose political opinions differ. When being right is more important than love, bad things happen.

Patriotism is important. Our country needs its citizens to care about the future and well-being of our nation. However, patriotism should never be violent unless it is self-protection. There’s a difference between a real threat and a perceived danger. Often, in heated debate, perceived danger overrules the real. In these instances, there’s no tolerance for an opposing position because both people believe our country will crumble if the other candidate wins. Instead of coming together for solutions, the political divide has become too wide. When this happens, people make irrational choices, often alienating themselves from loved ones, acting out anger instead of working through conflicts, and even worse, refusing to search for truth. It’s the intolerance and not the differences that allow the divide to swallow our democracy.

The passionate yet peaceful patriots are not afraid to listen to differing points of view. Instead of anointing themselves as superior, they remain humble and educable. They close their mouth and open their ears to adverse positions. They are not afraid to express their views without hostility. They are proactive in gathering facts from diversified sources (articles, books, internet videos, experts) instead of relying solely on a favorite mainstream news source. They arm themselves with truth instead of hatred. They never surrender by being apathetic. They vote.

Hopefully, regardless of Tuesday’s election outcome, we will work toward peace and do what’s right for this land that sustains us. May we trust the democratic process to move in the direction of true progress determined by its citizens, not a controlling few. America is free, and freedom has a cost. That cost means we must love our country more than we love violence, war, and dishonesty. The peaceful patriot lives by the words of Frances Samuel Smith, who wrote, “… sweet land of liberty … from every mountainside, let freedom ring…” Freedom, like air, is easy to take for granted – until you don’t have it anymore. May we all be warriors for peaceful patriotism, lest we lose something vital — without ever noticing that it silently slipped away.

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