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<h2 class="western">
D<font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">ignif</font>ying<font
face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">
</font>The Other </h2>
<p align="right" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0.04in"><font
size="1" style="font-size: 8pt">Arthur
Blomme</font></p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0.12in"><font
face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">Several
months ago, the World Community of Christian Meditation (WCCM)
introduced some of us to the Dignity Index—a valuable tool for
deepening the practice of Christian charity. This framework uses
an
8-point scale to measure how we respond when we disagree. Each
point
represents a particular mindset toward the other side, ranging
from <font color="#ed333b">one</font>: seeing our adversary
with total contempt, to <font color="#cc0000">eight</font>:recognizing
the inherent
dignity in every person no matter what.<img
moz-do-not-send="false"
src="cid:part1.0bBnfq3I.1dM811aO@integralshift.ca" alt=""
align="right" style="max-width: 100%;" width="302"
height="689"><br>
<br>
A comprehensive
set of resources for building and teaching skills for dignified
disagreement is available at:<br>
<a href="https://www.dignity.us/resources"
moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-freetext">https://www.dignity.us/resources</a>.</font></p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0.12in"><font
face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">The
site offers practical exercises and guidance to enhance
charitable
disagreement in various contexts—teaching, community, politics,
family, and the workplace. How much easier might our lives have
been
had we encountered such training earlier in our lives?
Evaluating
our own responses to conflict—by asking how dignifying or
contemptuous they are—can surely aid us on the path toward a
global
community united in love.<br>
<br>
I also find this scale of
dignified disagreement to be a helpful lens through which to
read the
Gospel narrative. This year’s reading for the Fourth Sunday of
Advent offers a compelling example. </font>
</p>
<p style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0.12in"><font
face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">In
the Gospel passage, Joseph’s first reaction to Mary’s pregnancy
was to minimize the scandal: “<i><b>Joseph, being a righteous
man
and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to
dismiss
her quietly</b></i><i>.</i>” This action preserved a measure
of
dignity for Mary, yet still acquiesced to the contempt demanded
by
the social conventions of his time.<br>
<br>
After much
contemplation, an angel appeared to Joseph, calling him toward a
higher order of dignified action: “<i><b>When Joseph awoke from
sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he
took her as
his wife…”</b></i> Joseph thus chose to fully dignify Mary
by
accepting her as his wife, defying the social pressure to do
otherwise.<br>
<br>
What strikes me in this passage is the power of
the social narrative to dictate contempt for Mary because of her
perceived violation of norms. That power is even greater today.
We
are continually bombarded with narratives that tell us not only
what
to consume, but also whom to hold in contempt. Certain stories
are
amplified, while others are ignored. Powerful interests
increasingly
own and control the narratives that shape our social reality. In
a
time of growing inequality, war, and injustice, we must be
critically
aware of how our beliefs are being manipulated. As the saying
goes,
the first casualty of war is truth.<br>
<br>
The scale of dignified
disagreement can help us discern truth in our political
discourse.
Dignified disagreement is far more likely to reveal truth than
contemptuous disagreement.<br>
<br>
I have come to admire Jeffrey
Sachs for the dignity he extends even to those with whom he
disagrees. I first became aware of him at the beginning of the
COVID-19 pandemic and initially viewed him with some contempt
for his
support of the vaccine roll-out. Although it helped that he
later
reconsidered his position, what truly impressed me was the
dignity he
showed toward Donald Trump. Sachs praised Trump for attempting
diplomatic engagement with Putin on Ukraine—noting he was the
first
in years to meet directly with the Russian adversary. He
conveyed
disappointment in Trump’s failure to follow through, critiquing
his
ideas and actions without ever showing contempt for his person.<br>
<br>
The
Dignity Index is a useful tool, not only for evaluating personal
relationships but also for assessing the truthfulness and
integrity
our leaders demonstrate in engagement with others—whether across
a
table or across nations.</font></p>
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