“The best thing you can say about 2050 is that many didn’t live to see it. Billions died before average summer temperatures hit the 130-degree Fahrenheit mark. World War III also had much to do with the death count. Emulating the break-up—or was it breakdown?—of the European Union, the United States plunged into civil war.”
This is the opening to The Civility Mosaic: How Anyone Can Use the Principles of Freemasonry to Repair Our World that I cowrote with Michael Ashley and published in 2021. Little did we know back then that the hot civil war we warned of might erupt earlier. Much earlier. It’s fair to say that based on last week’s attempted assassination of President Donald Trump that America was mere inches away from an all-out melee the likes of which we haven’t seen before. Note: I phrased the last sentence purposefully as I believe the casualties from today’s domestic hostilities would well surpass the 19th century Civil War. Our weapons technology alone has exponentially advanced in the ensuing years and includes automatic guns, nuclear ordinances, and now even autonomous drones, to name a few deadly innovations.
Returning to last Saturday’s historic event, if Donald Trump hadn’t turned his head at the last moment, 20-year-old would-be assassin Thomas Crooks might have killed the 45th president, finally exploding the powder keg of tension built up over the last few years. If Trump fell at the hands of Crooks, it almost certainly would have set off violence coast to coast, derailing an already fraught presidential election, and leading to uncontrollable unrest to boggle the mind.
Thankfully, we were spared such suffering.
But just because we dodged both a literal and figurative bullet doesn’t mean we are out of the woods yet. Anyone who has been watching public affairs for some time has likely come to this unfortunate conclusion: the United States of America has been in a soft form of civil war for years. It’s little wonder that Netflix just released a movie with this exact title depicting the terrifying breakdown of polite society due to embattled secessionist forces.
Back in the real world, even sporting events have devolved from escapist entertainment promoting lighthearted competition and comradery to yet another arena for endless cultural combat. Social media only seems to amplify this worrying trend as algorithms feed us tailored content that solidifies our beliefs. Meanwhile, both sides of the political coin endlessly duke it out online as they hunker down in their respective ideological camps.
Clearly, it’s getting more divisive by the moment in our nation. It didn’t have to be this way, though. The crisis we endured during the COVID-19 Pandemic beginning in 2020 could have unified people on the left and right as we collectively sought to overcome a raging virus that took far too many lives. That, of course, did not happen. Instead, divergent responses to the disease—often strictly demarcated along party lines, only widened the yawning gulf between citizens. Similar to the previous Civil War, battles broke out between dissenting family members, poisoning relationships. Sometimes permanently.
Returning to last week’s assassination attempt, there seemed to be a glimmer of hope as raging hot political tensions cooled. But that only lasted for a day or two at most. Before long, the same uncivil clashing we have seen so much resumed with a vengeance. There is little doubt that we are in for even more societal turmoil in the coming weeks and months, especially as we draw nearer to what promises to be yet another contentious national election.
Now that we better understand our collective challenge, and even more importantly, the outsized stakes involved, it’s past time we do something about it. Never one to sit on the sidelines, I wrote a book about this very problem. And as Saturday’s events demonstrate in technicolor clarity, we desperately need a solution. Below are some practical insights we can all follow—Masons or not—to heal our world and growing civil divisions.
Presume Decency
Whether we are interacting with others online or in person, the tendency these days is to rush to judgment. It’s natural to be defensive in these trying times, especially if we have preconceived notions of others. We must buck this instinct. Rather than lead with suspicions, let’s use the signature egalitarian framework Freemasonry extols to give the other person grace and latitude, assuming their best intentions until (occasionally) proven otherwise. A small but critical gesture, it goes a long way toward establishing a cooperative atmosphere from the outset, especially now when so many people feel ill at ease with one another.
Recognize Others Communicate Differently from Us
Our cultural differences can be a source of division—or an opportunity for deeper connection. The way forward is to recognize that others possess unique life experiences and backgrounds, informing their disparate communications styles. By choosing to develop emotional intelligence (EQ) so as to accommodate the unique and novel ways others relate to us, we can find common ground, turning what could be contentious exchanges into something positive. Don’t believe me? The next time you find yourself in a heated exchange, lean into empathy. Try to hear the other person out—even if what they are saying goes against everything you believe. You may be surprised by the results.
Treat Everyone On the Level—And By the Square
One of the biggest problems we humans face is our need to feel superior to others. The constant jockeying for position is something British journalist Will Storr explores in his recent book: The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It: On Social Position and How We Use It. Rather than trying to place others beneath us on the social hierarchy, let us lean into Masonic principles emphasizing the human family we all belong to.
Walk the Talk
In Freemasonry we look up to leadership, especially our Grand Masters, to show us the right path. Similarly, parents serve as the exemplars their children follow. Like it or not, our kids pick up on everything we do, especially the actions we take, not just our pretty words. Starting today, let’s be sure to model the kind of ethical, civil behavior that we want others to emulate. It’s been said being ethical is about what you do when no one is watching. If we live our lives in the most upright manner—even in the quiet, seemingly banal moments, we can establish a pattern of goodness for others to follow.
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It’s no secret we live in dark times. But it’s also true that but one candle can extinguish the darkness. In the trying times ahead, I implore you to be that light for the world. If you each one of us accepts our civic responsibility with courage—not fear—in our hearts, we can transform this world for the better. Not just for us but for all those generations to come. To learn more about how you lean into Freemasonry’s tenets to affect such positive social change, please get your book here today (also available on Kindle and Audible).
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