On Humility, Empathy, and Understanding in a Digitally Networked World

Guest post by John Deuel

Before he went on his sabbatical, The Sustainist was taking advantage of our election-soaked context to invite us into conversations about parts of our national identity. He wrote about the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, the Gettysburg Address, Brown v. Board of Education and others. In each posting, he gave readers a dialog process to use with others on aspects of these documents.

If you did launch conversations with people along the lines of Eric’s recent suggestions, perhaps you were exposed to points of view very different from your own. While the KI dialog process is open and welcoming, at a national level our current dialog is particularly polarized and feels, to me anyway, as if it is filled with much more talking than listening. This seems especially true online. 

Our online social lives have a great amount of openness, sharing and community. But electronic communications inherently possess a distance or separation. Not just physically, but there is frequently an empathic distance. We find ourselves being misunderstood as we dialog with others online. We have a tougher time understanding others’ intentions. This presents a challenge to building sustainable communities.

I humbly submit that the readings from this coming Sunday share a theme that can help us with this challenge. In Job, God asks, "where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?” Hebrews speaks of Jesus' own obedience to his father and of the fact that priestly leaders have weaknesses just like their flock. Finally, in the gospel, Jesus says “whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant.”

Each of these readings carries a lesson in humility. If we can hold humbleness in our hearts as we dialog with others in our networked world, perhaps we can hear them more genuinely. We can remind ourselves that we were not there when God formed the universe, that we have our own brokenness just like our fellow humans, and that we are called to serve rather than be served. We can live this openness in our hearts with joy, encouraging others to do the same through our humble example.

Dialogue Process with reflection questions for Proper 24: Choose one of the scripture passages for Proper 24: Job 38:1-7, (34-41); Psalm 104:1-9,25,37b; Hebrews 5:1-10; or Mark 10:35-45. Form small groups of no more than 6-8 people per group. Inform participants that the chosen passage will be read three times. After each reading, participants will be invited to share their reflections using the Mutual Invitation process. (See 8/13/2012 post for a description of Mutual Invitation.) Invite participants to capture a word, a phrase or image that stood out for them from the document while the text is read out loud the first time.  Using Mutual Invitation, invite each person to share his or her word, phrase or image briefly Invite participants to consider the reflection question for the chosen passage as it is read a second time: Job – What does it mean to you when scripture says God “laid the foundation of the earth”? Psalm – How does this Psalm speak to you now that we regularly “make the clouds our chariot”, the “winds our messengers” and the “flames of fire our servants”? Hebrews – How does the word “obedience” speak to you in this passage? Mark – What do you hear when Jesus says “whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all”? Invite someone to read the passage a second time. Using Mutual Invitation, invite each person to share his or her reflection on the question. Invite participants to consider the following question while listening to the text again: As a result of studying this passage, what are you being called to be, do or change today? Invite someone to read the passage a third time and, using mutual invitation, invite each person share his or her reflection on the final question. Conclude the reflection and dialog with a Circle Prayer: a. Join hands. Invite participants to pray aloud, one at a time: “I thank God today....” and “I ask God today…" The facilitator starts then squeezes the hand of the person next to them. When the pulse returns to the facilitator, everyone recites together the Lord’s Prayer in whatever language or version each person feels most comfortable.

Professionally, John Deuel is an IT Director.  Personally he is an EfM mentor & graduate who tries to be a good friend, husband, and caregiver while blogging occasionally at http://cheztudor.blogspot.com.