Inherent Worth

As I sit here today deeply saddened by the news of the assassination of Charlie Kirk, I wonder how our nation has come to this. How can one man kill another simply because he disagrees with his speech? How can people cheer this act?

The Problem of Sin

I think it has to do with inherent worth. When I am writing history, I always try to understand both sides because there are always two sides. I spent a lot of time researching how Americans were able to justify their treatment of the Indigenous peoples in the 1800s. I discovered that the answer has to do with worldviews and the underlying problem of sin, specifically sin brought on by pride.

Instead of two men living peacefully together, one starts to think he is better than the other. The things he likes are more important. His well-being is more important. His comfort is more important. Before long, he has convinced himself the other man is inferior and less important. Because he is less important, anything can be done to him for the betterment of the first man. He can be stolen from. He can be pushed aside. He can be killed. It seems acceptable because he was not as important. He was not as strong. He was not as fit for survival.

Social Darwinism

This idea is known as Social Darwinism, which became popular in the mid-1850s with the rise of evolutionary theory. If we were not created, and if we were instead a series of random mutations, there is nothing special at all in humanity. Nothing deserving of better treatment except for those who are the strongest and the fittest. The strongest survive; the weak do not. If we want something, we just have to convince ourselves and others that we deserve it more because we are somehow superior.

Inherent Worth

This idea is completely opposite from Christianity. Core to Christianity is the idea that everything was designed and created by God. Each animal, each species, each race, and each person has inherent worth simply because of the one who made them. True Christianity says that all people are created equal. The United States Declaration of Independence says, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” (US 1776).

However, as a nation we have forgotten this inherent worth of all people. We are a divided nation with strongly opposing beliefs. Instead of viewing those across the aisle as individuals with value and inherent worth, they are seen as the enemy. Once someone is the enemy, he is seen as simply evil, and anything can be done to him amid cheers.

Dehumanization

How do we turn our fellow Americans into the enemy? It is through a process of dehumanization, or making them seem less than human. One study found that “liberals and conservatives have such strong faith in the moral superiority of their own political groups that they have come to view political outgroup members as alien, as untrustworthy, and in many cases, as sub-human” (Petsko, 2023). What we see in the media today is political dehumanization.

There are many tools that are used for this dehumanization, especially by the media.

Loaded language intended to cause a strong emotional response: “savage,” “barbaric,” “threat to democracy”

Selective Stories: News sources selectively decide which stories to write about, and they only choose stories that fit what they want people to believe. Stories are grossly exaggerated. While based on truth, the exaggerations make it much worse than the event actually was.

Controlling the Narrative: There are always two sides to every story, and rarely is one side pure evil. However, when controlling the narrative, only one side is told, and the other is left out, leading viewers to believe the side that is told even though there may have been a reason for the actions of the second side.

Demeaning Nicknames: One side is looked down on and given demeaning nicknames to make them seem unintelligent and less than human. They call others things like “racist,” “sexist,” and “fascist” when the person actually just has a difference of opinion.

Negative Stereotypes: Portraying all people of a particular political party as “immature,” “savage,” or “stupid.”

The answer isn’t to oust or make war with the people across the aisle. The answer is to see that each person has inherent worth simply because of the one who created them. That “leftist” or “right-wing” across the aisle isn’t your enemy. The best way to honor Charlie Kirk is to continue his legacy. To continue to have civil and respectful discourse with those who disagree.