“‘Come let us reason together,’ says the Lord” Isaiah 1:18
Plane from Berlin Airlift
Our guest story author today was the topic last week, E. Wayne Kempton, who graduated law school with a Juris Doctor, which led to his career as a Special Agent, now retired, retired pastor, retired attorney, and current author.
“During the Cold War, I served at the US Embassy in Bonn, Germany, and Klaus was a German Customs officer at Frankfurt Airport. On the day we met, Klaus showed me two cargo aircraft commemorating the 1948 Berlin Airlift. Klaus said, “This is what America means to me; when we were starving, you fed us.” This began a beautiful friendship.
One evening I received an urgent call from a colleague saying there was a nuclear warfare device at Frankfurt Airport destined for a hostile nation. The shipment was scheduled to depart the next morning. He asked me to prevent that departure.
The next morning? Really? Impossible! Following protocol, such action would take months.
So, I phoned Klaus and told him a nuclear device was scheduled to depart Frankfurt to a hostile nation. Klaus acted immediately, locating and detaining the device.
Klaus did not know whether he had the authority to detain the device. But Klaus employed unconventional reasoning. He did not know if he had the authority to let it depart. So, he requested the licensing agency to determine whether the device would be permitted to be exported. Klaus knew it would take them months to decide.
That gave me time to act. I contacted headquarters in Washington and our President requested the German Chancellor’s assistance. The Chancellor complied.
Klaus’ unconventional reasoning and bold action resulted in stopping a madman dictator from developing nuclear weapons.
Singlehandedly, Klaus made our world a far safer place.”
***
We live in fraught times. We talk past each other, merely listening for a chance to disagree. We insult those who don’t share our opinions. Maybe we need to, “let us reason together” (Isaiah 1:18). But how do we reason in these times of disagreeing? From university classes I’ve taught, here’s some tips.
Reasoning is “thinking in a logical, sensible way” (Dictionary.com). First, we truly desire truth, not merely confirming our biases. Jesus is the Truth in John 14:6, so we cannot follow Jesus and ignore truth.
Second, listen genuinely to all sides, “The first one to plead his cause seems right, Until his neighbor comes and examines him” (Proverbs 18:17 NKJV). A counselor once said the key is repeating back to the other what they said. I like this passage, “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires” (James 1:19-20). I struggle with this.
Third, realize that evidence needs to be given and evaluated. Argument has three parts: the claim we wish they would accept, the evidence we provide that supports that claim, and reasoning that connects the dots of evidence to the claim. We do pretty good at claims, but we struggle with evidence and reasoning. If we miss any item, then we merely have an opinion and do not give the evidence and reasoning that shows why they should accept it.
Maybe, if we unconventionally reasoned, we could learn more and get along.
Kick Starting the Application
Do you value truth in itself, more than your current opinions? Are you willing to change? How often do you provide credible evidence for your beliefs?