For my Facebook followers…
I am not always able to monitor the threads on my Facebook page during working hours. Later, I am sometimes saddened to discover there has been bullying and ridicule on my site. I have seldom deleted comments on this page, but I may need to start erasing comments that are rude or uncharitable.I believe the purpose of human speech is communication. Taunts and ridicule may express how we are feeling, but they do not usually communicate information across social divides. Rudeness also risks rupturing the tender web of communion that might hold our one human family together. We have a duty to each other to test our ideas scientifically and to not pass along dubious claims. Remember that science is not a body of beliefs, it is a method of honestly testing our truth claims. We are not being scientific when we cruise the internet seeking for information to justify what we already believe. Being reasonably and scientific is an important part of any love that seeks to heal our ruptured species.Emerson implored us to put other people’s arguments in the best light, not the worst. When we study different world views, if we dwell only on their weaknesses we will learn little or nothing. If we look at other people’s ideas charitably we can learn something from almost everyone. This page WILL be a place for respectful communication. I want to provide a place where Theists and Atheists can discover that each has a different kind of wisdom for our world. I want a place where Pagans and Christians can come to a mutual understanding. In other words, I want a place where people can reach across the divide. But for this to be a place of communion, abuse and ridicule have to be limited. Inclusive community actually requires STRONGER boundaries because it must preserve civility and reason. Just as free speech is essential for communicating in the public sphere, so is respectful speech essential for the beloved community. This page isn’t just about expressing ourselves personally, it is about finding the courage to cross the bridge from personal opinion to mutual communion. My assumption is when people are unnecessarily rude it is because they do not really trust the validity of their own beliefs. They ridicule because they want to make their opponents emotional so that reason will not cast its harsh light upon their dubious claims. All this to say I am going begin erasing some comments simply because they are rude or uncharitable. We must always remember that labeling is not understanding. Calling someone a name is not refuting their argument. I want this conversation to abide by the following credo:”When confronted with ignorance, foolishness ridicules but wisdom teaches.”