The Church’s Mission in a Polarized World

By John Stegeman

Father Aaron Wessman had the unique opportunity to study and live outside the United States from 2014 to 2017. When he came home, he was confronted with the reality of a significantly more polarized atmosphere than when he left. Soon enough, his personal interest in the topic transformed into his debut as an author with The Church’s Mission in a Polarized World.

Challenge staff sat down with Father Aaron to discuss the project.

How did this book come about?

I didn’t anticipate writing a book. I gave a talk at St. Meinrad Seminary in 2019. In that talk, I began to outline the ideas that would begin to infuse the book which exists today. It’s kind of surprising in a sense, how God works. I had a lot of people come up to me after that talk and they said, ‘I’m really interested in that theme. Can you point me in the direction of other resources? Can you give me suggestions on how to approach that topic?’ I realized that there was somewhat of a lacuna existing addressing specifically the challenge of polarization from a Christian perspective.

Who is the audience?

I’m trying to speak to the Catholic world, trying to speak to a Protestant Evangelical Christian world. Then I’m also trying to speak to the world of folks who maybe don’t believe in Christianity, but do have a concern for what is happening in the American context. I would say first and foremost, the audience is anybody who is concerned about the polarized climate that exists in the United States. I think that it’s a book that’s accessible.

Were there any challenges in writing this book?

It’s a unique experience to write a book in which, while one is writing, the author himself is being challenged to transformation, and to look at my own life and ask, how have I been affected by polarized culture in the United States? How is it undermining my own discipleship? And how might I better conform my life to Christ in order to respond to the time in which we’re living? I provide some very practical tools for people to use.

It seems many people immediately label others based on these “culture war” issues. Is that something you address?

I do that too. I do that with my brother Glenmarians. I do that with family members. I do that in my ministry. I was really saddened sometimes when I was writing the book, because I said, ‘that’s me, right?’ That’s me struggling to live in the culture that exists in the United States. In a sense, the book was kind of me seeking a life raft in the flood.

How is the book structured?

The first third of the book looks at the theme of polarization based on sociology, political science, psychology, philosophy and theology.

The middle part actually serves as a kind of examination of conscience. I provide actual questions which people can consider in their own lives, looking specifically at the Christian demographic. What are we called to? How are we called to live in the Church? How can polarized culture tend to undermine that? And how might we be personally being called to change our lives to kind of conform ourselves to Jesus?

Then the latter part of the book is really about how we should respond to polarization. I go through looking at the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, and I articulate a theology of crossing over. The idea is that Christians are being called to be in conformity with the way in which Jesus lived his life. We’re called to leave our tribe, to leave our polarized group, not necessarily losing our identity, but to cross over to the outgroup, to the other, to cross over to even perhaps the other tribe in order to be in solidarity with them, to listen to them, to enter into conversation with them.

Has the Church been part of the problem in building a polarized culture?

With all humility, the Church, and in some cases other Christians, have adopted the metaphor of war to inform their missionary endeavors rather than adopting Christ as the image which forms their missionary endeavors. The consequences of that are evident…. I’m not excited to have to hold up something in which, first of all, I’m guilty of, but that I know is part of the Body of Christ, which is something that I have given my life to.

Some have said, ‘this is one of the most meaningful things that I’ve heard,’ and other people have gotten extraordinarily upset with me. They’ll say, you don’t understand. It’s so bad today that we need the war metaphor to form our response, because these people are the enemy. My response is always, I agree that there are challenges that the Church is facing today. However, we cannot let the challenges of our time force us to become something Jesus does not call us to be. The war metaphor does impede us from living the message of the Gospel.

Father Aaron Wessman is an emerging voice in national Catholic thought. He serves on Glenmary’s Executive Council as First Vice President. The Church’s Mission in a Polarized World is his debut work as an author.

Can you expand more on how the war language isn’t helpful?

In essence, I create you as my enemy. When you’re my enemy, then war means I can bomb you, destroy you. I can put up security against you, put up bastions between you and me. I do not have to come close to you. I don’t have to talk to you. I don’t have to listen to you. in that sense, there’s just no way to share the Gospel with another person when we’ve done that. Jesus is so clear. Like, even if a person is our enemy, we’re to bless them and to pray for them, not destroy them. Love your enemies. It’s at the very heart of it. I admit it’s hard.

How does this book relate to Glenmary’s ministry?

Glenmary lives a theology of crossing over. This theme is central to the argument of the book. There are very specific references to the types of ministries done by Glenmarians that truly bring about unity. I refer specifically to Brother Craig Digmann, and his work in ecumenism, and to Father Steve Pawelk, and his work in a parish. Though unnamed, Brother Curt Kedley was the inspiration for some of the other examples.

The Church’s Mission in a Polarized World, published by New City Press, is available for $24.95 in paperback or $18.95 for the Kindle digital version. The book is available at NewCityPress.com, Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble and various Catholic bookstores.