002 | The Danger of Division

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The Danger Of Division

There is a pattern of division plaguing society today. From George Floyd’s death and the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to political debates over the Presidential election and the way countries are handling the COVID-19 epidemic - there is a lot of turmoil, misunderstandings, and division taking place among individuals, communities, and governments around the globe.

What can we, as individuals, do to combat this division? How can we work together to encourage more inclusion, compassion, and understanding?

Today, we discuss societal injustices, judgments, and divisions that often occur based on our own cultural beliefs and biases and how the lack of compassion, understanding, and willingness to understand other people’s opinions often breeds hate, injustice, and exclusion. We discuss how the Bible addresses issues of hypocrisy, hate, judgment, and why it’s often easier to forgive others when we acknowledge our own mistakes and imperfections. We discuss what it means to live by the Kingdom of God’s values, how God views justice, and how a steady diet of social media and news often warps our view of reality. We also discuss the impact of social anxiety, self-loathing, and anger on our mental health, God’s views on justice, grace, and mercy, as well as how to adopt these views to create a happier, healthier way of life.


“People tend to get lumped into an entire group of people because of one idea that they have - and people tend to get labeled ‘enemies’.”
- Matt Hook

This week on Shepherd & the Shrink:

  • How the lack of compassion, understanding, and willingness to understand different perspectives leads to hate and division

  • The role that news and social media currently plays in the division occurring across our country

  • Why we believe some versions of Christianity is more cultural than biblical

  • How people often justify their judgments and hatred of others based on their own cultural beliefs or ideologies

  • Why forgiving others is often easier when acknowledging our own imperfections

  • Why forgiveness has nothing to do with qualifying someone’s wrongdoings

  • Recognizing and understanding that all sin is a sin against God

  • Why it’s unrealistic and hypocritical to expect everyone to agree

  • Living by the Kingdom’s values

  • Understanding the difference between news and gossip

  • How social anxieties impact mental health and the psychological effects of self-hate and anger

  • The connection between passive-aggressiveness and anger

  • The division of self and how humbling and forgiving yourself for your mistakes can help you avoid self-division and self-judgment

  • Understanding your ‘place’ in social situations

  • How ‘speck checks’ help increase your compassion and improve your views of justice

  • God’s view of justice, mercy, and grace and how to embrace them in your everyday life

  • Why most bad things come from ignorance, not malice


Resources Mentioned:

Bringing Mental Health and Spirituality Together

Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of Shepherd & the Shrink Podcast with your hosts Dr. Matt Hook and Dr. Martin Fletcher, the show where theology meets psychology. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review wherever you get your podcasts.

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