I wrapped up 2019 with the appropriate book by Jonathan Haidt, The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided By Politics and Religion. In my old ecclesial dreamer days, I would have had much to say about this book but for now I will simply state that I found this book to be extremely helpful. In our contemporary climate of increasing polarization and hostility to viewpoints that differ from our own, the presentation of Haidt’s research in this book is a huge step in the right direction. It is unfortunate that few people outside of academic circles will make the time to read this. In addition to the numerous footnotes and call outs to the evolution of social psychology and the findings in that field, there are helpful illustrations and analogies that make it accessible to non-academic readers. Riders on elephants or the connection of chimps and bees into homo duplex are beneficial because the allow us to be critical of our own beliefs that “bind and blind” us to our convictions.
As one who believes that the salvation of the world will not come from the right or the left, or a particular nation state, but through the faithfulness of God and people who follow God in the way of Jesus, I found that Haidt’s conclusions reinforce my hope that a body politic based on the will to embrace is a much better path than the alternatives all the king’s horses and all the king’s men have laid out before us.
This book was originally published in 2012, but the content is more timely now than ever.
