Winsome Conviction Can Help Overcome Neighbor Conflicts


Tim Muehlhoff, who wrote “Winsome Conviction” is concerned about the level of divisiveness in America and the cracks in our unity. He contends that one of the main causes for this discord is how we think about our convictions.

“The reason we fight with each other, and often believe the worst about each other, is that we form convictions about things for which we care deeply. Unfortunately, we all care deeply about different things,” said Muehlhoff. “And even when we care about the same things, we often see these things differently and commit to different courses of action. If we are going to live together, we will need to moderate our convictions.”

And Muehlhoff says that is also part of the problem because convictions are about moral absolutes.

“In life we encounter two types of issues: absolutes and preferences. It is important that we distinguish these two,” said Muehlhoff. “Convictions are what we have about absolutes, and preferences are what we have about matters of taste.”

If something is merely a preference, we should just live and let live and not argue about it. On the other hand, there are moral issues—issues of right and wrong. We should form convictions about these issues, and we should follow our convictions.

The big take away from Muehlhoff is that he does not believe that strong convictions cause incivility. Instead, poorly formed convictions cause incivility.

“What is really important about a conviction is not whether it is strong or weak but rather whether it is well-formed or poorly formed,” said Muehlhoff.

In many cases, Muehlhoff thinks we should reexamine what is really a conviction and what is in the realm of disputable matters. That is difficult, even in church settings, when not everyone agrees on all matters of conviction or even what is a disputable matter.

“It is not enough to merely consider the formation of convictions. We must also learn how to have productive conversations about our convictions,” said Muehlhoff.

MORE INFORMATION

Does this article make you interested in taking the Engaged Neighbor pledge? Five categories and 20 principles to guide you toward becoming an engaged neighbor. Sign the pledge online at http://engagedneighbor.com.

Contact the blog author, David L. Burton at dburton541@yahoo.com.

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