What To Do About The News

As I talk to people these days, one of the most common things I hear is “What are we going to do about the news?” People all over the political spectrum are finding it difficult to know what to think or feel about the flood of contradictory or frightening bits of news that bombard anyone who isn’t spending massive effort to avoid them. Between television outlets, online news sources, and our own Facebook and Twitter timelines, we’re expected to process more information than ever before. And that doesn’t even include the so-called “Fake News,” which can safely be ignored, but only after paying enough attention to determine its unworthiness.

In his 2014 book, The News: A User’s Manual, Anglo-Swiss philosopher Alain de Botton contrasts the frenetic pace of the news cycle with the more stately, though no less unrelenting, pace offered by religious faith. He writes, “Exactly like the news, religions want to tell us important things every day. But unlike the news, they know that if they tell us too much, in one go, and only once, then we will remember—and do— nothing.” (31) This must ring true for anyone from a religious tradition that emphasizes the lectionary. Week by week, in an endless cycle, we Episcopalians hear the stories of our faith, delving deeper on each turning and returning, deeper into the truths of our world that are not new at all, but rather timeless. Other Christians and other faiths do the same. Here at Seminary of the Southwest, where we observe the ancient pattern of prayer known as the Daily Office, de Botton’s point is even more pronounced. The voice of God’s most ardent followers, the sometimes awful beauty of the Psalms, the complex teachings of Jesus himself, recur again and again, daring us to see something, not distractingly shiny like a bit of foil, but deep and reflective, like a clear, still pond.
The situation in our country right now is far too complex to allow ourselves to make decisions based on which channel our TV happens to be tuned to at the moment, or which pundit shouts the loudest, or who has the sharpest wit on Twitter. The major faiths, says de Botton, “sit us down in a solemn place, quieten our minds and then speak to us with dignified urgency rather than panic, understanding that we will have to return to their ideas over days and weeks if we are to stand any chance of being influenced in how we think and behave.” (31) The voice of God is small and still, quite unlike the wild, almost maniacal, song of today’s news.
What, then, is to be done about “The News?” Perhaps nothing, literally. Don’t hear me say we should not engage politics or that we should willfully ignore injustice in favor of our own tranquility. I’m suggesting quite the opposite. The news is only one source of information about the world, and a pretty unreliable one at that. Instead, ground your response to current events in your deeply-held, abiding faith, in the timeless truths revealed to you in moments of quiet reflection and listening for the unwavering voice of God.
Is your response to what’s going on in our country an emotional reaction based on fear, or is it based on your faith in the God you know?
What can you do when you feel overwhelmed by the news? Perhaps turning it off and reading Scripture or praying could help keep you grounded.
Micah Jackson (@Micah_SSW) is the Bishop John Hines Associate Professor of Preaching at Seminary of the Southwest. Micah’s interests include homiletic form, the spiritual discipline of preaching, and the postmodern relationship between the preacher and the congregation.