All posts by Dr. Charlie Self

How to Pray for People in Power: Especially Ones We Disagree with Deeply

October 12th, 2022 | Dr. Charlie Self

Devout Christians and thoughtful people of all worldviews are aware that there is genuine conflict between good and evil in our world. At the same time, these forces find their way into human hearts and we see contradictory impulses in ourselves and others. Compassion for the downtrodden can devolve into control over too many areas of life. Freedom can become anarchistic hedonism. And good and evil are often veiled by political ideology and impulses toward power.

In the midst of real spiritual conflict, we must participate in the public square, make prudential decisions, and be good neighbors with those who differ deeply. There is one resource too often overlooked in our navigation of the rapids of conflict: courageous, fervent, genuine, and humble prayer for the very people we disagree with the most.

When Jesus called his followers to “pray for those who persecute you” (see Matthew 5:43-48), and St. Paul admonished followers of Jesus to, “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse” they were not offer good advice for irritating moments – they were commanding a completely different disposition.

How do practice this godly attitude when we feel under assault all the time? What about the prophets who denounced evil and called out abuses of power? Good questions…and both are answered by a posture and practice of intercessory prayer. We forget that the prophets railed against idolatry, immorality, and injustice with tears, calling on God’s people to return to the Lord and have new hearts (Hosea 14). Of course, we stand against the slaughter of innocents through abortion. We must advocate for the marginalized and the voiceless, calling for systemic changes that open opportunities to flourish. But the power for change begins on our knees.

Our Almighty and Holy Lord had decided that our prayers matter as we are invited to join Jesus on his mission of reconciliation and restoration (Isaiah 61; 2 Corinthians 5:11-6:2). Jesus wanted prayer support in Garden of Gethsemane as the Passion reaches its climax in a coming crucifixion (Matthew 26:40-41; Luke 22:39-46). The Apostle Paul appreciated his friend’s prayers as carried out his mission (Philippians 1:19). Where do we start? Here are four insights for our prayers that will change our hearts and be used by the Lord to work in the lives of others.

First, we must turn our anger into active prayer, processing our reactions and choosing blessing over cursing. This is not easy! Every day we hear and see outrageous assertions and events and our first impulse is invective…and frankly, we think they deserve it! But. Changing the world begins with our own hearts and our choices to bless, pray for, and desire the best for those we are most upset with. Starting with our own inner examination of attitudes and motives, we are then positioned for influence.

Second, we are never the arbiter of anyone’s eternal destiny, but we can discern good and evil, renouncing wrong actions and beliefs with a desire for change in those who oppose us. Put simply, we must NOT say, “S/he is a jerk” or “S/he is hopelessly stupid”, etc. We CAN say, “S/he is wrong on this policy” or “I oppose what they are doing” WHILE we pray for them. Historically, this is one key reason President Trump was not re-elected in 2020. Some of his policies were wise and worked well, but his character, especially his personal insults, overtook competence and in reaction, we have our current leadership.

Third, we must believe that God can change hearts. We must desire forgiveness for ourselves and others and affirm that the Lord can redeem even current enemies of the truth. How long has it been since we sincerely prayed, “O Lord, open the eyes of those in power and help them see clearly”? This is more than agreeing with us – it is a deep desire to see all align with God’s kingdom.

Fourth, we must keep on praying, even when the tide rises against us. We may still experience injustice and even overt persecution. The key is being persecuted for humble obedience, not hubris and obnoxiousness! Yes, the public square is unfair and tilted against the truth of Christ. Jesus told us such days would come (John 16). St. Paul also mentioned the inversion and perversion of love and truth that can arise in a hostile world (Romans 1:18-32; I Timothy 4:1-3; 2 Timothy 3:10-13). We do not have a guarantee of worldly success. We do, however, have an eternal hope that animates our current obedience, knowing that all will be well in the end (Romans 8:26-39).

This call for prayer is not a retreat from activism. It is the animating power underneath our pronouncements, the heavenly resource that will strengthen our wise efforts. We love testimonies of transformation as new converts discover liberation in Christ. Will we desire this freedom for all around us?

Solving The Immigration Crisis: A Call for Compassion and Courage

September 30th, 2022 | Dr. Charlie Self

Hypocrisy is an ugly trait. It is one thing to fall short of one’s ideals and humbly aim to do better; it is quite another to profess virtue while willfully doing the opposite. It is not hypocritical to fail at times, if there is repentance and resolve to improve. It is hypocritical to present oneself as a paragon of compassion and then recoil when called upon to act in accordance with one’s ideals.

Political hypocrisy is on full display as hundreds of migrants are bussed or flown to sanctuary locations. None of the leaders of sanctuary cities complained when these folks were transported under cover of night to conservative suburbs or rural locales. But the moment a few dozen folks arrive in Martha’s Vineyard, suddenly such actions are now “inhuman” “Illegal” and even “akin to the Holocaust.”

Open borders serve no nation well. Neither does xenophobia. America has a wildly contradictory history of immigration law and practice and current systems are in need of reform. Before offering a way forward, balance is needed as we critique the current crises. Some Democratic leaders want a flood of people dependent on state help and they offer rapid citizenship so migrants will vote for their benefactors. Republicans have been unfairly portrayed as White Nationalists for simply wanting order and security at the border. But many Republicans are secretly happy with an endless supply of cheap labor.

How do we make progress? We must start with ending the “either/or” thinking that poisons reasonable policymaking. We can be hospitable and secure, creating pathways for citizenship and residency that welcome hard-working people from all nations. A secure border matters. The wall must be finished and many hospitality centers constructed on both sides of the border with Mexico. Criminals must be screened out and current undocumented felons must be deported. DREAMers deserve a pathway to citizenship while we eliminate incentives for anchor babies and the tragic separation of families.

Legal immigration is a mess. It is cumbersome and expensive and we can do better. Instead of reactive, symbolic actions (open borders, shipping migrants, etc.), Let’s gather people from all sides of the issue, keep the cameras outside (I know, that is impossible!), and forge real policy. For those in the USA illegally, offer a streamlined pathway to normalization with real accountability. ONLY citizens can vote. Apart from basic food, clothing, and temporary shelter, government benefits require registration and screening. Reform the whole system and while this is taking place, take the monies designated to the IRS increases and apply them to border security and compassionate care.

There is no place for racism and xenophobia in our policies. And there is a need for secure borders and screening for criminality and diseases (which can then be treated). Once our agitation propaganda is replaced by compassion and courage, there is hope for our nation and for millions we should welcome to our land.

Unspoken Absolutes: What Lies Beneath All the Outrage

September 21st, 2022 | Dr. Charlie Self

About 1,960 years ago, The Gospel of Matthew was penned, offering collections of the words and works of Jesus of Nazareth. Central to all the teachings presented are the Beatitudes found in Chapter 5. They constitute foundational dispositions and disciplines for followers of Jesus the Christ. One of these pithy and profound sayings is found in Matthew 5:9: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.” The “blessed” (happy, to be congratulated, under divine favor) actively pursue peace (concord, harmony, end of conflict, enemies becoming friends).

This peacemaking includes personal conflicts, peace among contentious groups, warring nations, and rival powers. Jesus was building on the Wisdom traditions of Israel calling the faithful to, “seek peace and pursue it.” (Psalm 34:14) and the Apostle Paul would highlight both the individual and relational facets of peace with God and among humankind (Romans 5:1; Galatians 5:22; Colossians 3:16). Jesus’s words have inspired intercultural and interracial harmony, as well as reconciliation movements throughout history. The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in the 1950s and 1960s, and President Nelson Mandela in the 1990s are examples of peacemakers bringing justice and calm to intense struggles.

In our contentious public square, peacemaking is needed more than ever. The agitation propaganda, apocalyptic hyperbole, outright anger, and egregious personal insults are not fostering concord and harmony! Why is it so hard for people of conscience to ignore the reactive emotionalism and forge principled compromises and offer proximate justice? The answers are complex, but we can unearth the unspoken absolutes that create the conditions of contention. Underneath all the “be a good person” and “we ae all one” and “be kind” sayings are pillars of post-modern anarchy and subjectivism that make consensus hard. Here are a few of these new “absolutes”

Knowledge is not objective, but subjective. Pursuing the truth of a matter is now replaced by “my truth.” Even the words, “fact(s)” and “objectivity” are considered oppressive and racist.
The human person is now a malleable creation of the autonomous self, not an identity to cultivate and refine as a human being who is male or female. Gender anarchy is a deliberate subversion of the divine image and everyone is now their own god, manufacturing new narratives of victimhood and pseudo-liberation. Of course, anyone affirming the commonsense view that all humankind is one race (with many ethnicities, of course) with binary female and male characteristics is ignorant at best and evil at worst.

These crises of knowledge (epistemology) and human identity (anthropology) make peacemaking quite challenging. Part of peaceful relations is living civilly with our deepest differences, desiring for all freedom of conscience and opportunity to flourish. But the purveyors of the aforementioned axioms purposefully cultivate conflict so they can rage against the machine forever, instead of offering principles and pathways for a preferred future. There are two more unspoken absolutes that govern this grievance culture:

Morality is subjective and traditional religions are the enemy of human freedom. Marxist ideology aims for a “new person” free from economic and spiritual history with the state in control of every detail of life. One set of absolutes is now replaced with “liberation” through class struggle…and history tells us this is disastrous!
History must be shaped to promote political agendas, regardless of the tapestry of narratives and the beauty and brokenness of humankind in all cultures and all eras. “Presentism” is the fashionable ideology of making today’s wokeism the lens by which all people at all times are evaluated.

Is there a way forward? Yes! Peacemaking requires values and virtues shared by diverse groups. People of conscience and common sense must affirm that pursuing the truth is noble and possible. We must allow science to speak loudly about the DNA of human identity, without imposing cultural idols. We must affirm that there are moral standards we can agree on. And we must learn all historical narratives and allow them to inform our decisions. I pray we will find the courage and wisdom for peacemaking rooted in enduring principles.

We Know Better, Part 10: Sex Education and Gender Ideology

September 7th, 2022 | Dr. Charlie Self

In such volatile times, prudence is a special virtue. The moment the words gender and sex are used, accusations start flying and anger overtakes reason. In this essay, I am going to share some principles for a new civil consensus on sex and gender issues, especially in public education and public square debates.

I am NOT advocating any kind of coercive ideological or religious conformity – just the opposite. I am searching for principled compromise that will lower the temperature, restore toleration (as a virtue of living with our differences, not being forced to affirm ideas we reject), and offer a way forward for the common good. I think liberals and conservatives dedicated to the highest ideals of freedom of conscience can find some level of agreement. Radical activists will never be satisfied with anything other than cowing their opponents and compelling eternal penance from any who differ.

Principle One: We must acknowledge that we live in a pluralistic society and that freedom of conscience is a first freedom that establishes all others. Political and social majorities do not have the right to impose their beliefs on minorities. We can celebrate cultural, ethnic, and religious diversity, and the free market of ideas.

Principle Two: We want all people to being their highest selves to work and public service; therefore, we are not demanding that religious convictions be checked at the door. We are expecting maturity that affirms Principle One and works for principled consensus.

Principle Three: The family is the primary educator and purveyor of values and worldviews. The state does not have the right to compel belief or speech contrary to conscience. Expressing deeply held moral convictions is not hate speech or violence, provided our citizens learn to share them with respect. For example, my belief that sexual intimacy is reserved for lifelong, heterosexual, monogamous marriage is not intolerance, for I share these ideas with neighbors who see the universe differently and they have the same right to share their convictions.

Principle Four: Sex education in public schools should focus on biological changes and reproduction, leaving gender ideology to the family. There is no place for schools to secretly oppose family values or impose their ideas in or out of the classroom.

Principe Five: People with body dysphoria deserve love and compassion and good counsel. Any medical procedures, from drugs to surgery, should be reserved for adults and paid for by the persons seeking the changes. If a 10-year-old boy wants to be a girl, he/she can seek out specific treatments once they are 18 or 21, just like other adult activities. In most cases, experimentation with gender and identity finds its natural place eventually (as the brain matures in the early 20s), so serious interventions are premature, unproven, and even dangerous to long-term well-being.

Principle Six: We must restore toleration to its original meaning of living peaceably with our deepest differences. Toleration is not compelled agreement. No business or artist should be compelled to promote ideas that violate their conscience. It is interesting noting that activists never target Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, or Buddhist bakeries or businesses, only ones owned by Christians.

Principle Seven: The mostly binary nature of humankind and the animal kingdom is a scientific fact. Exceptions exist, but we have allowed exceptions to become the rule and distort obvious statements of fact. A woman is an adult biological female. She may be attracted to the opposite or same sex, but she is a female. A man is an adult biological male. The DNA and biology do not lie. This said, we are not demanding that adults who have crafted a particular identity be prohibited form living peaceably in our world. Those who disagree with these choices are not evil.

Principle Eight: Human beings are complicated and there should never be bullying, intimidation, or any kind of intolerance or violence toward people who see the world differently. This does not mean I celebrate ideas I differ with. This does mean that we must not reduce maleness and femaleness to time-bound idols, personality and interest types, or particular subcultural characteristics. We must desire that all people flourish and bring their gifts to our world.

It is impossible to address these issues without provoking reactions. Good! Reactions mean we care. The question is, will we move from reaction to true toleration? I live among neighbors who see the world very differently. I have family members with diverse worldviews. We argue, debate, and then have dinner. May we find the courage and compassion to do the same.

We Know Better, Part 9: Economics 101: A Call for sanity

August 30th, 2022 | Dr. Charlie Self

If we managed our family checkbook like the federal government, we would all be bankrupt. It is one thing having deficit spending in wartime or particular crises. It is quite another to simply print money, sell T-Bills and leave $30T for future generations to manage. It is immoral, unconscionable, and terrible economics. We have tried to be a warfare and welfare states since the 1960s and we must alter course.

In this essay, I am not ranting about the current administration’s out-of-control spending and highly political largesse for voters. Anyone can do that. I am not going to lambaste both parties for their refusal to trim waste and remember that all the money they spend in Washington, D.C. originates with taxpayers. I am going to offer a way forward that is at first glance naïve and simplistic, but upon further reflection, incorporates the insights of leading thinkers of the last half-century and is non-partisan and non-ideological.

I think we must argue about spending priorities, just like the family dinner table, a small business, or the corporate boardroom. I think we must argue about a fair tax system, from flat taxes, modified flat taxes, progressive tax rates, and levels of corporate taxation. Let the debates begin in the House of Representatives where they belong, and let Congress do its job.

We also forget that decentralized administration is almost always more efficient and fairer, so it should be a long-term priority to have our states, counties, and cities receive a larger portion of our tax dollars and Washington, D.C. much less.

OK, here are three simple points that will transform our economic future, without starving anyone or leaving America defenseless.

ONE: We must achieve a truly balanced budget ASAP, preferably in the next five years, beginning with significant deficit reductions and then living within our means. What does this mean? Here are some ways forward under this heading:

Reduce ALL federal spending by 15-20% across the board, targeting inefficiencies, encouraging retirements, rewarding departments under budget, and placing moratoriums on discretionary spending. (Oh, and place all elected and appointed officials back in the social security system and privatize their pensions.)
Look to eliminate unneeded agencies, restore as many functions as possible back to state and local governments, and welcome input from business leaders on more effective administration.
Decide ahead of time that we must live within our means. Need more money for a particular program that is working? Then find new revenues that are not hurting the productive and perhaps cut other budgets if needed.

TWO: We must transform our overly-complex federal tax system. We have higher corporate tax rates that many “semi-socialist” nations in Europe. The top 10% pay more than 60% of the taxes and almost half of all American pay little or nothing. Here is a pathway forward:

Move to a modified flat tax that is revenue neutral from the baseline of a selected year, like 2019 (when the economy was good). Start at 5% and set the cap at 20%. Do the math. There is enough money.
Over a five-year period, eliminate all personal deductions – yes, ALL deductions, including charity, mortgage interest, etc. If I know I will never pay more than 20%, then I am still incentivized to earn more. If I know that at least 5% will be paid, I will aim to work hard and advance.
Corporate tax rates must be fair and reasonable and we must stop the cronyism that exempts some elites and places the burdens on the rest of corporate America. Tax only profits after accounting for expenses, R&D, etc., and do not tax dividend, stock, and other capital gains above the lower rate. I recommend 20% as a maximum rate.

THREE: This is the hardest of all: We must stop looking to the federal government to directly solve problems best tackled by more local private-public partnerships. WE DO need the universal ethics of the federal government, but not the ubiquitous administration. For example, an FDA is good, but a government-run meat company would be terrible. Here are some first steps:

End all loans for education. Encourage grants and scholarships from states and private sources. Continue with scholarships for veterans and particular fields that serve the common good.
Streamline military and welfare agencies so that the cost of services is reduced and the frontlines are actually helped instead of everything being entangled in a bureaucratic mess.
NO taxes on personal inheritances. It is immoral to tax again monies already taxed.

The burden for these changes is on us, the American citizens that vote. Will we see the moral problem of spending or capitulate to fatalism and hope we get our share? Our grandchildren need our courage! And if we make these changes, our economy will again be the envy of the world.