COGNITIVE DISSONANCE

Cognitive dissonance is the human capacity (indeed penchant) for holding simultaneously contradictory values, beliefs or practices.  We see it in individual people, and we see it in faith communities.  Among conservative Christians, it might be love of guns or participation in the military alongside worship of a character who was practically a pacifist.  Among liberal Christians, it might be belief in the theory of evolution alongside a belief in divine creation  - that somehow both are true.  Or for all Christians, cognitive dissonance occurs when we claim to believe in an all powerful God of love, but we also live with problems of evil and suffering that seem to have no redemptive value.

Anytime you see a conundrum or conflict set up in a church or denomination, its often a matter of cognitive dissonance.  Israeli anthropologist Yuval Noah Harari says that the best way to understand any group of people is to study closely the flash points of their cognitive dissonance.  Indeed, our identity as people and churches often forms around the push and pull between powerful and contradictory impulses or beliefs. The rub between the contradictions will tell you more about us than any definition that one faction or another can produce.

Let's test this little idea.

Muslims.  We have the people who are radicalized, who bombed Paris - and we have the vast majority of Muslims who are peace loving folks just trying to make it through the day faithfully.  Yet neither of these polar opposites really explains the fundamental dynamic of Islam - which is a religion of peace that struggles with a long history of violence against infidels.  Explore that tension and you begin to understand Islam at a deeper level.

Christians.  We have those who value tribal purity of belief and others who value justice toward neighbors as the ultimate values.  Yet, again, to really grab hold of the power of the Christian faith, you need to find the critical treasure conserved in each of these poles.  Hence the greatest energy in American Christianity at the moment goes to those who might label themselves progressive evangelicals.  Wherever there is tension in the Christian (or any community), dig to the heart of it, and you begin to really understand how we tick.

A Particular Congregation.  Grace Presbyterian Church, for example, cannot decide if its a growing city church of consumer Christians or a family chapel where long relationships are primary.  Truth is that it is both, and to understand Grace (or any particular) congregation, you must understand the strong and often contradictory impulses which drive the church forward (in this case, desire to grow versus desire to honor church family seniority and intimate relationships)

The UMC.  I will spend no further ink on this paragraph.  You get it.

Very often cognitive dissonance produces conflict. In nineteenth century America it produced a War Between the States.  And yet a conflict may offer a powerful gift to a community.  Because when we dig to the heart of it, and give full heed to the power of the convictions or forces that are in tension, we will invariably better understand who we are and what defines us as a people.  When we are willing to step aside from righteous polarization and hear the other side, we inevitably discover something valuable.  We may or may not be able to synthesize the dissonance into complete harmony on our watch, but very often our children will succeed where we fail.

As a church interventionist, I pay close attention to the conundrums and the conflicts that I discover in working with a congregation.  These tender places in a church's life teach me infinitely more than all the statistical data that they can send me.

Pay attention to the dissonance.