Unity 2.0 - In the newspaper

Go to Unity 2.0 - Intro

Below is the article that will appear inthe Jonesboro Sun Saturday.

…one nation, under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. You might look at the world around you and set that reality next to these famous words from the Pledge of Allegiance and say something like, “What a crock! Are we really one nation? Are we really indivisible? Are we really under God? Is liberty and justice for all or for the privileged few?”

On the other hand you might look at the world around you and compare it to these words in the Pledge and take comfort that this country enjoys more diverse unity that any other nation on Earth.

How could it be that some people see unity in the same places others see division? Well, you’ll be glad to know that I have the answer to this question. There are different kinds of unity, different layers and depths to unity. If you are looking at one kind of unity, viola, there is it – here, there, and everywhere. However, if you are looking for a different kind of unity, you would have more luck finding an igloo in the Sahara.

When people in America celebrate the kind of unity that is here, there and everywhere, they are recognizing what I call Unity 1.0. Unity 1.0 is the first kind of unity. It is the kind of unity that makes America great. It rests in the ideals and vision of the fathers (and mothers) of this great nation. “All men are created equal…,” “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free…,” “Give me liberty or give me death,” and so forth. We are a country that has made progress toward these lofty ideals through its government and churches. Children of all races, male and female, attend school together. Women can be CEO’s, MD’s, and the Secretary of State. There is enough anecdotal evidence to proclaim unity in America towards the vision set out by the founders.

However, the kind of unity America enjoys right now is only step one. We have yet to fully enjoy or even comprehend Unity 2.0. This kind of unity takes the ideals and vision of the founders beyond anecdotal evidence and legislative constructs and launches it into the hearts of people. It deeply impacts the way people experience real life. Unity 2.0 melts latent prejudices and biases that rely on the societal and systemic processes of division to be prejudice for them and replaces them with a generous and forgiving compassion that refuses for differences to be synonymous with division. In short, Unity 1.0 has had a good run, but its days for laying the foundation are over. Running a country on Unity 1.0 any longer is going to corrupt the system.

Unity 1.0 operates with dreams and visions, platitudes and politics being sufficient to satisfy the agenda. So long as the laws are right and the rhetoric is inspiring, and there is an anecdotal piece of evidence to parade in public, what really happens is not relevant. Colin, Clarence, and Condoleeza are excellent examples of how far Unity 1.0 can go, but do not reflect the national heart at its core. Certainly we need dreams and visions, platitudes and politics to help lay the foundation for unity, but stopping there is a mistake. Unity 2.0 means individuals, communities, and organizations intentionally live in such a way that the visionary dreams of the past are just descriptions of normal everyday life.

So long as we still live in a nation where a man can get pulled over by police for being Black and a mayor of a major metropolitan city can declare God’s desire for a city to be monochromatic, we remain largely in Unity 1.0.

We are moving, I believe, off of the old system and on to the new one. Unity 2.0 is now in Beta testing. Some churches are emerging from denominational strongholds and calling other churches brother and sister rather than Hellbound sinner. Some neighborhoods are clearly multicultural. In some places, women are regarded as equals with men. Some corporations use their power to influence good in the world rather than merely their pocketbooks. New housing developments with intentionally mixed income units are being constructed in major metropolitan cities.

Yes, Unity 2.0 is currently in Beta testing. It might not be where you live yet, but you can bring it there if you want to. You can test out the depth of love that powers Unity 2.0 without having to get permission from anyone.