Beneath our division lies a crisis of dehumanization

Rose O’Connor writes that modern social and political divisions are contributing to a crisis of dehumanization. In a column for The Monitor, O’Connor suggests that people are increasingly unable to maintain relationships with those who disagree with them or cause disappointment.

O’Connor notes that political differences and differing perspectives often lead individuals to organize into silos of like-minded people. This separation can cause people to treat disagreements as issues of human dignity. She argues that individuals do not lose their dignity due to different opinions, mistakes, or sins.

To address this, O’Connor points to the Christian challenge of seeing others as God sees them. She uses the parable of the prodigal son to illustrate this, noting that the father in the story embraced his son despite his failures and refused to let his son's mistakes define his permanent identity.