In just two days, Americans who have not already cast their votes will be going to the polls to decide who America’s next President will be. I was a young man during the Vietnam War. There was a great amount of division in the U.S. during the 1960s. Temperatures in major American cities were literally rising as they were set ablaze similar to the 2020 “Summer of Love.” But the current angst and division in American society is several degrees hotter than in the 1960s and 2020. Historians are drawing comparisons with current division and hatred with that of the Civil War.
When emotions are running high, it is all too easy to say things we may later regret. Angry reactive words will cause the fires of hatred and destruction to burn even hotter rather than enabling a return to rational behavior and tolerance for differing views.
Why is there so much division in America now? Why do we find that people we disagree with have a completely different understanding of what is true and what is false? More importantly to me personally as a Christian, how should I and other Christians face the massive chaos that lies ahead no matter who wins the Presidency? If we really believe as we say that we do that we have a loving transcendent God who has provided eternal salvation, why should that not provide at least some degree of solace?
My guest this week is Missouri Synod Lutheran pastor and teacher Rev. Larry Beane II who provides some helpful guidance for how Christians need to live in the world but not succumb to satanic forces that are the real cause of the hatred and dissension we are all experiencing. So, the question I pose to Rev. Bean is “how should we Christians navigate current troubled waters?” Even those who do not identify as Christians may find Rev. Beane’s comments personally helpful in rebuilding broken relationships that have suffered in recent years.
Rev. Larry Beane
Rev. Larry Beane is a Missouri Synod pastor in the New Orleans area (Salem Lutheran Church, Gretna, Louisiana) and a teacher on line at the Wittenberg Academy. He holds a Master of Divinity (Concordia Theological Seminary, 2004) and B.A. in History (Thomas Edison State University, 2000). Pastor Beane blogs at Father Hollywood.blogspot.com is an editor for the journal Gottesdienst and an online editor for Gottesdiesnt Online). He has been published at Lew Rockwell.com several times, and spoke at the at the Libertarian National Convention in 2016. He is also a chaplain for the Civil Air Patrol and for the Louisiana Sate Guard.
Next weekend, we will hopefully know the outcome of most of the 2024 election including the Presidency. There will be an endless number of pundits in the U.S. that will offer their views on what the election results will mean for America and the world. I’m hopeful of getting a foreign perspective from someone like Alasdair Macleod to share his perspective in next week’s show.
Please enjoy my discussion with Rev. Beane.
Best wishes,
Jay Taylor
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