In 1987, the Federal Communications Commision voted 4-0 to repeal its own Fairness Doctrine. Created in 1949, these rules required licensees of public airwaves to discuss important public issues fairly and to present news to listeners honestly and responsibly.
Thirty years later, what we hear on the radio can seem a lot louder and not always fair. But whatever our personal or political opinions, we should be able to agree as Christians that the ways of Jesus are gentle and kind. Even when society removes its rules, we should strive to listen with charity and to speak with care, maybe most to those with whom we disagree.
There were Thessalonians in Paul’s time who accused his ministry of self interest. But Paul asks the Christians in Thessalonica to remember the gentle nature of his visits among them. Is Paul right to remind them of something they may have forgotten?
To whom could I speak more gently or approach more fairly today?
—Joe Kraemer, SJ, is a Jesuit scholastic of the West Province currently beginning his Regency assignment in the Advancement Office in Los Gatos, California.