Confessions of a Progressive

Pardon me for being Progressive!

Excuse me for being both politically and theologically liberal.

I know you hate the “L” word. I hear it in your voice. You say things like:

“Liberals are what’s wrong with America.”

“Liberals are all bleeding hearts.”

“Liberals are always whining about something.”

“Liberals want to open wide the doors of America for terrorists to enter.”

“Liberals like spending our tax money on welfare give aways.”

On and on it goes ad nauseam. The barrage of insults towards those who think progressively are non-stop. Progressives are portrayed as some sort of infectious contagion that if left unchecked will cause a horrible global plague.

We hate America you say. We are against Democracy and the American way of life you claim. We are a threat to the future of our nation. Progressives are a blight on America’s sacred history. We are even a danger to Christianity. 

Progressives are tree huggers who are spinning wild theories about climate change. Climate change is a liberal conspiracy to take down America’s industries you claim.

Progressives don’t take the Bible seriously enough we are told; we don’t read it literally and therefore diminish its authority. We aren’t Bible-believing enough.

Now I find all this interesting to say the least, since most all of it is untrue. Most of the vitriol towards Progressives today is based more on perception  than on facts. I might add that the same may be said about the baseless attacks of Liberals on Conservatives. Yes Liberals can be pretty nasty too.

But here’s my story (confession) for what it’s worth: I wasn't born Progressive anymore than I was born Conservative. I was reared in a mostly Conservative home although I don’t ever recall my parents talking about politics—ever.

My maternal grandmother was a lifelong Democrat, mostly due I think to her having experienced the Great Depression and thus crediting Franklin D. Roosevelt (a Democrat) for saving America. But she never once told me I had to be a Democrat—not once! She never revealed who she voted for either. That was top secret.

My parents never told me which political party I should align myself with or how I should read and interpret the Bible. I guess they thought I’d figure it all out sooner or later. I am grateful for this freedom to decide for myself.

Yet becoming Progressive was something that just happened to me slowly over time I think. I didn’t wake up one morning and suddenly declare: “I’m a Liberal!”  Quite frankly I don't know when it happened, it just did. I can’t attach a date or a time to it.

I do know this: I didn't stop being an American or a Christian when I landed in the Progressive camp.

Perhaps this is how it happened:

There were Gospel seeds planted in my heart from my overexposure to the teachings of Jesus. These seeds were planted, watered, and eventually sprung to life within me: Seeds such as justice, compassion, non-violence, peacemaking, concern and care for the poor, racial equality, and a healthy respect for the environment. Seeds both Progressives and Conservatives might embrace.

So if my being Progressive(Liberal)  as the result of an over exposure to the Gospel then I am guilty as charged. So lighten up. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Progressives are not what’s wrong with either America or Christianity anymore than Conservatives are. So please quit telling me that we are the problem. Here’s the real culprit and if the hat fits wear it:

A closed mind operating within a closed binary system: A mind that requires black and white solutions to all of life's complex issues. A mind that is imprisoned in a dualistic framework void of nuance. Such thinking is quite naturally divisive and harmful. Such thinking is incapable of stepping out of one's echo chambers and seeing one's world from a much larger perspective.

This is perhaps what we all should be looking at as the culprit of our national and religious divide.

Think about it:

Last time I checked we all want the same thing: The joy of being alive and flourishing as fellow human beings (as God intended for us to live), whether as a Conservative or as a Progressive. 

So please stop telling me Progressives are the problem for we are not. 

The real problem is the lack of influence the Gospel has over our lives.