Braver Angels and Christianity

More than two years ago St. Matthew’s, St. Paul, started a chapter of Braver Angels, a national organization rooted in Minnesota. Braver Angels mission is “Bringing Americans together to bridge the partisan divide and strengthen our democratic republic”. We work to overcome the toxic political polarization we see around us.
 

Initially, Braver Angels was deliberately secular, not wanting any negative religious stereotypes to stand in the way of participation. But the overlap between Braver Angels mission and the reconciling message of Christ is so strong that soon several faith-based versions of Braver Angels workshops were developed.

Braver Angels has brought multiple blessings to St. Matthew’s. We previously believed that we were as polarized as we perceived the larger society to be. That turned out to be not true, we learned that most of us reside somewhere in the political middle, not on the fringes of either red or blue. We also found that this forum for political discussion created a safe space for those who might have felt they were in a fragile minority. It created a space for them to participate more fully in our discussion and in our broader parish life. One St. Matthew’s parishioner, Warren Poole, said “what I like about Braver Angels is the chance to discuss serious issues with someone I would not otherwise speak with in a place that is free of anger or the threat of anger."

Because St. Matthew’s tilts blue we wanted to seek out another faith-based community that could be a counterweight. We found it in the ACT Parish, a Lutheran parish centered around Kerkhoven, MN. For almost two years we have been in relationship with them, regularly traveling back and forth to each other’s parishes to engage in workshops and discussion-based meetings. Not only are they a bit more conservative in their leaning but they give us the added contrast of rural versus urban perspective. It has been a wonderful collaboration. Randy Atchison of St. Matthew’s was instrumental in making the St. Matthew’s – ACT Parish connection, having grown up in Kerkhoven. Randy said, “I am particularly glad to have this rural / urban connection both because it gives us a fresh perspective and because it reminds us that so many of us living in the city have rural roots."

In the first two Braver Angels workshops in which we integrated scripture, prayer, Dwelling in the Word and visualization we found the overlay between the skills being taught in the workshops and the Christian message of inclusive love and reconciliation to be essentially perfect. We hope that other parishes will take this on. They may find their role as healers within their community may also be enhanced. If you are interested in learning more, or would like your faith community to experience these workshops, please contact me at danielawhite1124@gmail.com.