HOW DO I SPEAK MY TRUTH?
by Margaret Benefiel, PhD
In the face of racism, police brutality, and bitter political divisions in this country, I struggle with how to relate to those with whom I disagree. How do I find the wisdom to interact in a loving way; how do I speak my truth so they might hear?
I know that I can pray for them. When I pray, I am changed from an oppositional stance toward them to feeling compassion for them as I see the fears and hurts that draw them. As I am led, I can speak to their fears and hurts, and also speak prophetically to them. And when the conversations grow tense, I can keep returning to my spiritual grounding, keep praying that I will come from a place of compassion. When my ego gets hooked and the conflict escalates, I know it is time to take a break and center down.
Loving and speaking prophetically at the same time is a spiritual practice for me. Will it change others? I don’t know. But I do know that it changes me and that it can sow seeds of transformation in others that might take root and grow, either now or sometime in the future.
There is no template for loving across differences, no formula that we can follow that will result in transformation of others at the end. There is the lifetime work of spiritual practice, practice that will change me and, through my actions, sow seeds in the world. Whether those seeds grow is up to other people and to God.
So, as the election draws nearer, how can we have courage, faith, hope, and love for all, even for those with whom we disagree? First, by staying spiritually grounded through daily spiritual practice. Second, by making the practice of loving across differences one of our regular spiritual practices. Third, by discerning in community “What is mine to do?” and being faithful in carrying out our part.
Margaret Benefiel, Ph.D., is the Executive Director of the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation in Washington, D.C. She has served as Chair of the Academy of Management’s Management, Spirituality, and Religion Group. She also serves as Co-chair of the Christian Spirituality Group of the American Academy of Religion, and has held various leadership roles in Spiritual Directors International. She is the author of Soul at Work and The Soul of a Leader, and co-editor of The Soul of Supervision. Dr. Benefiel has also written for The Leadership Quarterly, Management Communication Quarterly, Managerial Finance, Journal of Organizational Change Management Organization, Personal Excellence, Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, America, Presence, The Way, Studies in Spirituality, Radical Grace, and Faith at Work. She lives with her husband in Washington, D.C. and enjoys hiking, cycling, reading novels, and scuba diving in her free time.
