Letters

Christians, as a whole, make up perhaps the largest voting demographic in the U.S., but they don’t tend to vote as a united bloc and, in fact, are a source of great division in our politics over the issues of abortion, gun control and immigration.

I believe it is because we have not really taken to heart Jesus’s teaching when he quotes the prophet Hosea in saying, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice,” and we support politicians who lack this mindset. It has greatly contributed to this quagmire we are in as a country, where everyone has locked their mindset into their personal sense of moral superiority.

Starting with the issue of abortion, it comes through when some of those on the left talk and act like the procedure has no more serious moral import than cosmetic surgery, while those on the right demand under the threat of law that women carry a pregnancy to term, even in cases of rape, incest and untenable circumstances.

Christians believe God will ultimately judge the women making these decisions, but I believe, as Jesus indicated, God asks us to strive to make merciful decisions for all in how we establish our human laws of conduct.

When it comes to immigration, those on the right have shown no mercy to those undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as young children or recognized the root causes and broken immigration system that are the force behind migration, while those on the left fail to understand the real and psychological pain felt by working class people whose standard of living has been greatly diminished by the impact that automation and globalization of the economy have had on the loss of good-paying jobs over the past 40 years who now face the arrival of new competitors in the labor market.

With regard to gun control, I’d ask us to think about what mercy looks like to an elementary school kid, perhaps your child or grandchild, who becomes frightened to go to school, pondering whether someone is going to enter their school with an AR-15 rifle designed for offense, not defense.

I believe there are common-sense, middle-ground compromises to all of these issues, but they will never be found as long as we are locked in our corners with no empathy or mercy for others and their perspectives. If we don’t stop voting for politicians who support our single-issue attitude of “my way or the highway,” we’re going to stay on this pothole-ridden road with no view of the future.

We all need to look inward and ask ourselves how we can do better.

Ron Schaefer

Hampton Bays