The cycle of dysfunction
In the previous journal entry, we established that collaboration is how we should use power, particularly for people of faith, because our hope is placed in the kingdom of God, and because collaboration is how we participate in political self-governance by loving God and loving our neighbors as we love ourselves.
Collaboration is also how we heal from the cycle of dysfunction. Based on my own observations from working in politics, the cycle of dysfunction begins with ideology, or simply ideas. While it makes sense to have a perspective and suggestions for what solutions might be, in the cycle of dysfunction we take ideas with limited insight and polarize the conversation so that we force people to choose a side that’s not well-informed. We do this intentionally, and to the point where it passively becomes the standard way of operating across our entire culture.
By constantly pushing one limited viewpoint as the final answer to our problems, we force ourselves to divide people into groups of for and against, with a third group who doesn’t buy false choices defined as “squishy.”
When we do this, burnout will always be the inevitable outcome. The problem with ideology and division is that they are not true. Similarly, burnout is not true in this sense: it is not a component of creative restoration and human flourishing. Where burnout exists, something is off: and that something could be moral or internal, relational, or ways we manage creative energy.
The Cycle of Dysfunction
My observation based on experience in campaigns, grassroots organizing, and Congress is that the cycle of dysfunction repeats every election cycle, and also every year, month, week, and day working in American politics.
The result of the cycle of dysfunction is that we have become out of touch with ourselves. We don’t lead the free world the way we know we can. We don’t get the best effort out of ourselves. We don’t solve problems, and we aren’t making the country stronger for the next generation. People who should be involved are exhausted, and the people who do the work of governing are exhausted too.
In politics, problems are often over-stated on purpose to drive action. Liberatus began without spending significant energy to define the problem because we all live in it, swim in it, breathe it every day. We all see the problem of dysfunction and we all want something better. Sometimes it matters more to reset our focus on what we believe in—at the end of a marathon, electrolytes are needed, not forums on fueling for performance with some free samples.
But with nine years behind us, as we begin again, it’s time to give a clarifying shape to the problem and the way forward. We can reverse the cycle of dysfunction—ideology, division, and burnout—when we choose the pattern that is the essence of unity: collaborate, build trust, and build endurance. In the stories that we tell in printed volumes, and as we build up leaders and a leadership team for American unity, these are the lifestyle actions we hope to inspire.
It’s an infinite pursuit, and everyone can participate where they are to unite the country and make it stronger.
We reverse the cycle of dysfunction when we:
The remaining journal entries in this series will explore the cycle of dysfunction in more detail, including the roots of ideology, division, and burnout, the path out of each to freedom, and will conclude with a look at quality craftsmanship in politics and ways to live a creative lifestyle.
WEEKLY ACTION POINT:
Take a look at the vision overview as we look to produce a biannual publication. Take time to pray in nature about your vocation or calling. Then, you can set up a monthly recurring donation as a Liberatus Advocate at the tab below. You can also write Volume Two with us by responding to a one-question interview. We will compile responses to the question about the future you imagine into a new vision asset to guide the stories that we tell, the research that we include, and the partner organizations that we fund.
Mission: Inspire American Unity
Liberatus offers inspiration for American unity in beautiful, well-researched illustrated journals, written by professionals across the political spectrum, to help us all choose unity, build endurance, and become the leaders who make our country more just and free for the next generation.
Journal Entry #143
ISSUE 021: THE BEGINNING, AGAIN — PART 2