Healing the Heart of Democracy: The Courage To Create a Politics Worthy Of The Human Spirit

印象文字 Value in Press

by Parker J. Palmer

How “We the People” can reclaim our democracy—updated with a discussion guide, author videos, and a new chapter-length Introduction

In this updated edition of his prophetic book, renowned author and activist Parker J. Palmer celebrates the power of “We the People” to resist the politics of divide and conquer. With the U.S. now on a global list of “backsliding democracies,” Palmer writes about what we can do to restore civil discourse, reach for understanding across lines of difference, focus on our shared values, and hold elected officials accountable. He explores ways we can reweave the communal fabric on which democracy depends in everyday settings such as families, neighborhoods, classrooms, congregations, workplaces, and various public spaces—including five “habits of the heart” we can cultivate as we work to fulfill America's promise of human equality.

In the same honest, vulnerable, compelling and inspiring prose that has won Palmer millions of readers, Healing the Heart of Democracy awakens our instinct to seek the common good and gives us the tools to pursue it. With a text enhanced by a Discussion Guide and forty online author videos on key issues, you'll be able to…

Reflect on the personal implications of the claim that “the human heart is the first home of democracy” Consider everyday actions you can take to restore the infrastructure that supports our democracy Transcend the “us vs. them” mentality and find ways to expand and enrich your life by appreciating the value of “otherness” Reignite your sense of personal voice and agency to resist authoritarian appeals and restore a politics of freedom and responsibility Healing the Heart of Democracy is for anyone who values the gift of citizenship and wants to make a difference for themselves, their families and communities, and our collective wellbeing. As the late Congressman John Lewis said, “We have been trying to bridge the great divides in this great country for a long time. In this book, Parker J. Palmer urges us to ‘keep on walking, keep on talking’—just as we did in the civil rights movement—until we cross those bridges together.”

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, Spirituality, Leadership, Philosophy, Social Justice, Book Club

Kindle Edition

First published September 6, 2011

About the author

Parker J. Palmer (Madison, WI) is a writer, teacher and activist whose work speaks deeply to people in many walks of life. Author of eight books--including the bestsellers Courage to Teach, Let Your Life Speak, and A Hidden Wholeness--his writing has been recognized with ten honorary doctorates and many national awards, including the 2010 William Rainey Harper Award (previously won by Margaret Mead, Paulo Freire, and Elie Wiesel). He is founder and senior partner of the Center for Courage Renewal, and holds a Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley.

Reviews

[robin friedman · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Politics Of The Brokenhearted

In times of national difficulty, it is both tempting and desirable to step back, reflect upon the situation, and see what might be done to make things better. The process might carry its own danger in the rush to either easy or impracticable answers. I took the opportunity offered by the Amazon Vine program to read Parker J. Palmer's new book "Healing the Heart of Democracy: the Courage to Create a Politics Worthy of the Human Spirit" for the insight it might have on our national situation as witnessed by the recent budget and debt-ceiling deliberations and their aftermath. Palmer wrote his book before these events occured, but they make his examination all the more timely. Palmer (b.1939) received his PhD in Sociology from the University of California at Berkeley in 1970. This book was my first exposure to his work, but he is a noted writer on educational and social issues with a focus on spirituality.

I liked a good deal of this book especially its personal tone. Palmer tries to combine events and feelings in his life, and the way in which he reflects upon them, with our national experience as Americans. He uses throughout the figure of the "habits of the heart", the title of a book by Robert Beulah which derives from de Tocqueville's "Democracy in America". Palmer discusses his own experiences of loss, disappointment and "brokenheartedness" in his life. When these experiences occur, the spirit, or the heart can be shattered. The better course is to put the pieces together, use disappointment creatively, integrate conflicting feelings and move ahead from weakness to strength. So it is, for Palmer, in a democracy.

Palmer offers some inspiring stories to illustrate what he means. He describes meeting with members of a small African American church in rural Georgia in 1974 who showed the strength and discipline to carry on in hard times. He describes meeting a New York City cabdriver who, while navigating the city streets, explained that the attraction of his job was that it allowed him to hear and consider the varied opinions of the many different types of people who rode in his cab. He praises openness to difficulty and a willingness to accept tensions -- in the form of divergent opinions -- and work through them. Palmer also makes excellent use of historical figures. Abraham Lincoln emerges as the hero of the book for his ability to overcome his own demon of depression and for his attempt to reconcile tensions in a crisis as shown by both his First and Second Inaugural Addresses. Alexis de Tocqueville, for his diagnosis of the strengths and weakness of American democracy also receives valuable discussion. Palmer explains his own conclusions in a few words: "We must be able to say in unison: It is in the common good to hold our political differences and the conflicts they create in a way that does not unravel the civic community on which democracy depends."

There is an excellent focus in the book on commonality and civic life, as witnessed in the use of public streets, bookstores, pubs, libraries and other places where people of different backgrounds and persuasions can meet and get to understand one another. I am writing this review, as I generally do, in a public library, largely because I share Palmer's commitment to the use of public space. Palmer also emphasizes the value of people explaining to one another the reasons why the believe what they do on important, controversial matters, based upon their own experiences without attempting to demonize someone who thinks differently. I tried to follow this good advice after reading the book, as I exchanged lengthy emails with a close friend who holds an opinion different from mine on same sex marriage. Perhaps it helped to air the reasons for one's belief and to understand those of another person.

I liked aspects of this book less well. Palmer does not always handle well his own project of openness to ideas with which he disagrees. He frequently translates his project into support for his own distinct agenda and tends to belittle those who think differently. In a passage early in the book Palmer shows awareness that he does this as he comes close to demonizing his political opponents, perhaps by reducing them to straw men ("Get me going on politicians who distort my faith tradition to win votes or on racial bigots and homophobes who want to translate their personal shadows into public policy, and this nice Quaker boy from the Midwest does a passable imitation of the Incredible Hulk") before half-heartedly catching himself and falling back. There is a good deal of cliche and half-formed ideas in this book intertwined with much that is insightful. I found, for example, Palmer all--too--quick in his uncompromising discussion and rejection of "consumerism". Although Palmer has much good to say about the need to both develop and hold one's opinions and to have a degree of modesty and humility in thinking about the opinions of others, his use of the overused term "chutzpah" distorts and distracts from his point. His discussion of American public education, I thought, made a variety of points, some good, some questionable. In places, I thought Palmer was expecting too much from ordinary citizens. Democracy, and the American political process, was made to accomodate a degree of human weakness. And some of the thinking in the book I thought wooly and undeveloped.

This is a worthwhile book to read and to think through. It has many insights but it is not a panacea, in my view, for understanding the current condition of American democracy. Like much other writing, the book deserves to be read but read critically and with skepticism.

Robin Friedman

[Michael Kruse · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have really appreciated Parker Palmer's books over the years but this book is a profound disappointment. I quit reading at the halfway point. If you are a liberal/progressive, then I suspect you may enjoy the book. It plays very well into the meme that at core of the discord in our country are conservatives. I can't help but feel that Palmer missed an opportunity.

I know he is a Quaker pacifist. I've suspected his political views were to the left based on other writing I've seen. I have no problem with that. But his topic is "Politics Worthy of the Human Spirit." Every few pages he trots out examples of the values and misbehavior that are contrary to his aims and they are invariably those of conservative citizens (without him ever explicitly saying this.) The outrageous values and misbehavior of the left are not on his radar. And that is the problem.

We each see our opponents actions as threatening and crazy but we feel justified in our threatening and crazy behavior because we know our opponents wrong. That is how Tea Party rallies (where some park service people report that participants left venues as clean or better than when they came) can be dubbed terrible hate-filled racist mob, while the Occupy Movement with its illegal occupation of property, vandalism, defecating and urinating on police vehicles and passersby, is heralded as a wonderful expression in Democracy. (I actually think both movements are hopeful signs of our democracy, that both have their excesses.) That is how there can be obsessive anger at activists talking about death panels, while be oblivious to the President calling Congress terrorists and hostage takers, as well as the VP and leading Democrats talking about Republican desires to kill people.

The first step in restoring democracy is to resolve not to use other people's bad behavior as excuse for your own. I don't think Palmer is there. I will continue to give his "Let Your Life Speak" book to others as gifts. I still think his "The Active Life" book is one of the best books I've read. But this book simply isn't worth my time.

[Joyce · Rating 3 out of 5]

Published in 2011, this book still rings true, perhaps even more so. We Americans have been greatly divided for a long time and sadly to say, remain so today.

This book discusses how we Americans can strive to bridge that gap because: "When we forget that politics is about weaving a fabric of compassion and justice on which everyone can depend, the first to suffer are the most vulnerable among us -- our children, our elderly, our mentally ill, our poor and our homeless. As they suffer, so does the integrity of our democracy." And so, "Every time we fail to bridge our differences, we succumb to the divide-and-conquer tactics so skillfully deployed by individuals and institutions whose objective is to take us out of the political equation. We the People then become fearful and suspicious of each other and widen the gap further."

This book challenges us to realize that we can do something about this gap, not only by becoming politically active, but by simple acts of listening to one another, finding the common ground from which to build upon and more.

The book is well researched and direct. This book is for those who would like to help make our democracy better and trying to figure out how to work in that direction.

[George · Rating 3 out of 5]

Important and wise but it wasn’t revelatory for me. It was a good summary of needed principles but maybe in way that felt too theoretical and abstract.

[Kyra deGruy Kennedy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Parker J Palmer SO much. This book was divine. Both practical and emotional, it completely shifted my perspective about divisiveness and how to bridge the gap between polarities. Highly recommend!

[Kathrina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really useful.

[Payson Rigsbee · Rating 4 out of 5]

great book, chapters were too long for me but that’s personal preference. truly loved the ‘habits of the heart’ very thought-provoking, especially for people deeply engaged in the political process.

[Dnicebear · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes! I want to be involved in democracy that stays rooted in reality while dreaming of possibility and is willing to enter the gap between the two to bring it about. Parker Palmer has encouraged me in previous books to see myself as a teacher and to let my life speak. Now, I'm with him again into this exploration into being part of "we the people" in a way that allows respect and true sharing of who we are. "Life in the company of strangers" really seems possible here, and in a way that honors the human heart. Terry Tempest Williams speaks of the heart as the "first home of democracy." Parker goes on to say: "If our hearts are large and supple enough to hold the tensions of democracy's basic questions in a life-giving way, they produce ideas and ideals that feed a living democracy. If our hearts are so small and brittle that they implode or explode under tension, they produce 'ideals' like Aryan supremacy and 'ideas' like the Nazis' 'Endlosung,' their chilling, 'final solution.'" (p. 152)

[Deidra · Rating 4 out of 5]

So many people say they "don't do/talk about politics" when nothing could be further from the truth. We all do politics every day. Our unwillingness to engage politics thoughtfully is what hinders a lot of forward movement, but some of our unwillingness comes from a lack of voices encouraging us to think differently about politics so that we can talk differently about politics. Parker J. Palmer does a great job of helping to reframe the role of politics in everyday life so that we can each be better stewards of our role as people in a political context. I wish it had been required reading before the last few US presidential election cycles.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has been in my ever-shifting "to be read" pile since shortly after it came out in 2011. I'm not sure why I hadn't picked it up. I would reach for it and then decide that something else was more compelling or more urgent for my non-fiction read-of-the-moment.

For three years now (and in many respects longer), our country's future has seemed in serious jeopardy from the forces of a a divisive politics dominated by a greedy oligarchy and by an incompetent and unhinged ruler (because he behaves as a ruler, not an elected officials, and other elected officials keep enabling his autocratic practices.)

And yet it was not until a couple of weeks before my country was plunged into the chaos of coping with the coronavirus pandemic that I began to read this book. In the past two or three weeks, a time when our president has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is incapable of leading and the deadly consequences of the erosion of our democracy have been thrown in sharp relief, the contents of this book became ever more urgent for me.

In it, Palmer explores what he calls, "the politics of the broken-hearted," an apt description for our time if ever I heard one. He says, "There are times when the heart, like the canary in the coal mine, breathes in the world's toxicity and begins to die." And yet, he says, the despair inherent in broken-hearted politics can be a call to re-engage with our common life and find a way to move forward that restores the goodness that is at the heart of our democratic values.

Palmer is no romantic. He is well aware of the tensions inherent in a democratic system, its messiness and inefficiency. He is well aware that our national myths are, as he puts it, aspirations that have never reflected our reality. He argues that "some of America's political pathologies result from the fact that we keep desperately trying to save face." (181) By that, he means that we try to deny the ways in which our nation fails to live up to its highest ideals.

He knows that much of our current national dysfunction grows our of our fear of people who are different and the fact that "we have developed a variety of strategies to evade our differences, strategies that only deepen our fear." (13) Americans are suffering, and we don't know what to do with our suffering. He writes:

"When our ancient fear of otherness is left unacknowledged, unattended, and untreated, diversity creates dysfunctional communities. . . . The benefits of diversity can be ours only if we hold our differences with respect, patience, openness, and hope, which means that we must attend to the invisible dynamics of the heart that are part of democracy's infrastructure." (13)

And yet he finds hope. Palmer identifies five "habits of the heart" that Americans need to heal the heart of our democracy:

1) understanding that we are all in this together
2) developing an appreciation of the value of "otherness."
3) cultivating the ability to hold tension in life-giving ways
4) generating a sense of personal voice and agency
5) strengthening our capacity to create community

He explores the places where we can cultivate these habits of the heart in ourselves and in our communities including our institutions of government, the "free-wheeling" spaces of public life, schools and congregations, and in our personal and virtual (read on-line) lives.

I found his chapters on school and religious institutions and on safe spaces for "deep democracy" particularly compelling.

Palmer notes that "movements of social transformation are sparked by people who are isolated, marginalized, and oppressed but who do not fall into despair." (184) And there is where I find his call to action. He calls on us to listen to those we vehemently disagree with and to work for change rather than to give in to despair or cynicism.

Palmer calls on us to stand in what he calls the "tragic gap," the space between the hard realities of the world and the possibilities for change. If we focus only on the hard realities, he says, we will become paralyzed by cynicism while if we focus too much on the way the world could be, we fall into "irrelevant idealism." (192) Neither extreme is helpful. Instead we must stand in the tragic gap where we can be faithful to "the eternal conversation of the human race, to speaking and listening in a way that takes us closer to truth." (193)

Never has this message seemed more urgent than this week when the full implications of the denigrating of expert knowledge and the power of government to ensure the health of our population have become apparent. We are all endangered because of the illness at the heart of our democracy, and only we the people can do the hard work of healing that illness.

[Dick · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Healing the Heart of Democracy” by Parker J. Palmer

This book was a gift from my in-laws.

To be honest, I did some research on the author before reading the book and found that he is a pacifist Quaker and at one time was a community organizer.

This meant that my mind was not objective to begin with when it came to reading the book.
Yet, as I read the book, I found myself agreeing with many of his points and yes even some of his hopes for restoring decency in our politics.

He has a tendency to gloss over the issues with liberals and does not really show resultds that are measurable in many ways, if we go the liberal way. He does not acknowledge much of those on the right as being sensible, which is not a good way to begin healing things.

He makes a good point – more than once – that if we could simply sit down and listen – really listen – to others, we might find there is more common ground than we know. As it is now, most of us are already thinking about our responses to someone else’s comments, before hearing them out or considering what they are saying.

I am reminded some years ago when Ronald Reagan was President and Tip O’Neill was leader in the house. In those days the bitterness was pretty bad, but both had great senses of humor. And they found ways to quietly – just the two of them – to sit one on one literally privately and find areas they could agree on and get things done. Sadly that changed with the advent of the “politics of personal destruction”.

As I finished the book . . . I found myself wishing that it could be so – that we could sit and calmly and listen to one another. Further not feel that we have to defend our views just because they are our views. Rather if challenged, think about the potential validity of the challenge.

The author sprinkles Lincoln quotes throughout his book – which attracted me as a student of Lincoln. But to be honest, he tended to cherry pick the quotes to support his view, and ignored the consummate practical politician that was Lincoln.

Over time I have found that my views have changed in many ways. Mellowed? Matured?

Experience has a way of making that happen. I can still remember my father saying that if you cannot defend with logic your position, perhaps you need to review your position. Heavy decisions cannot be made solely on emotion, for that is dangerous. But cold hard decision making can have similar disastrous potential results.

Let us resolve to stop yelling, sit down and listen – really listen to one another. Our political leaders and the media have been able to divide us for far too long. They do that for their benefit, not ours.

God’s Peace, Dick Freeman

[Grace Wiles · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love you Parker Palmer and these are great ideas but PLEASE repeat yourself less. Perhaps I am jaded and this book was written in 2011 but like… yeah, I got that democracy is sustained by compassion and welcome of the “other” the first time you mentioned it. Sorry for being a downer I still love you king

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an intensely personal book; it is clearly written from Mr. Palmer’s heart. As such, it certainly appealed to me, but many other readers — especially in this jaded and angry time — might find it uncomfortably…hmmm, what’s the right word...emotional.

However, if you are eager to escape from the harsh judgmental tone of so much of what is written and spoken these days, and are open to receiving reminders of the heart-truths that lie deeply within each of us, then I think you will find this book appealing and convincing.

The “heart” that Palmer references echoes what Alexis de Tocqueville had in mind when he coined the phrase “habits of the heart” in his very important work of the 1840s, “American Democracy.” Such “habits” are those essential for citizens in a democratic republic to retain as automatic impulses, such as respect for other citizens, acknowledging the validity and importance of their having opinions of their own, relying upon thoughtful exchange of views and acknowledging the centrality of working towards compromise positions, and keeping the interests of the whole as a guiding light superior to more individually focused “self-interest.”

in this context, the “heart” is not so much an “emotional symbol” as a place where our deepest values reside, and in which our whole self is brought to bear upon the most troubling issues.

Taking what matters most “to heart” means truly embracing those issues as worthy of the deepest reflection and requiring the focused attention of our entire being, the “self” we have become over many years of witnessing and dealing with challenges and conflict.

The “habits of the heart” provide us with the tools to navigate through hateful spite, the demagogic appeals by would-be authoritarians, the fear others would employ to manipulate us, and the fog of unreason which is the enemy of democratic discourse.

What follows is largely Palmer’s argument in his own words, taken from the opening of his book in which he discusses his purpose and goals.

I think all who value the “heart” as a place of wisdom and calm — and who disdain the all-too-frequent appeals to the emotions of fear, rage, and disdain — will find much in this book that is true wisdom.

IN MR. PALMER’S WORDS:

“As our distrust of ‘the other’ beyond our borders hardened,” Palmer writes in his Prelude, “and we began making aliens of each other (a ‘we’ that included me), I fell into a spiral of outrage and despair. How did we forget that our differences are among our most valuable assets? What happened to ‘we have nothing to fear but fear itself’? When will we learn that violence in the long run creates at least as many problems as it solves? Why do we not value life, every life, no matter whose or where? Or understand that the measure of national greatness is not only how successful the strong can be but how well we support the weak?
“And where have ‘We the People’ gone — we who have the power to reclaim democracy for its highest purposes, unless we allow ourselves to be divided and conquered by the enemy within and among us?” (P. 2)

“How shall we respond to these cultural trends that diminish all of us? …we must protect people’s freedom to believe and behave as they will, within the rule of law; assent to majority rule while dedicating ourselves to protecting minority rights; embrace and act on our responsibility to care for one another; seek to educate ourselves about our critical differences, come together in dialogue toward mutual understanding; and speak without fear against all that diminishes us, including the use of violence.
“…The more you know about another person’s story, the less possible it is to see that person as your enemy.” (P. 5)

“In this book, the word heart reclaims its original meaning. ‘Heart’ comes from the Latin cor and points not merely to our emotions but to the core of the self, that center place where all of our ways of knowing converge — intellectual, emotional, sensory, intuitive, imaginative, experiential, relational, and bodily, among others. The heart is where we integrate what we know in our minds with what we know in our bones, the place where our knowledge can become more fully human….
“The politics of our time is the ‘politics of the broken-hearted’….”
(P. 6)

“Looking at politics through the eye of the heart can liberate us from seeing it as a chess game of moves and countermoves or a shell game for seizing power or a blame game of Whac-A-Mole. Rightly understood, politics is no game at all. It is the ancient and honorable human endeavor of creating a community in which the weak as well as the strong can flourish, love and power can collaborate, and justice and mercy can have their day. ‘We the People’ must build a political life rooted in the commonwealth of compassion and creativity still found among us, becoming a civic community sufficiently united to know our own will and hold those who govern accountable to it.” (P. 8)
“For those of us who want to see democracy survive and thrive — and we are legion — the heart is where everything begins: that grounded place in each of us where we can overcome fear, rediscover that we are members of one another, and embrace the conflicts that threaten democracy as openings to new life for us and for our nation.” (P. 10)

“…human nature…includes an ancient fear of “the other.” In the face of diversity, we feel tension — and that, in turn, can lead to discomfort, distrust, conflict, violence, and even war. So we have developed a variety of strategies to evade our differences, strategies that only deepen our fear, such as associating exclusive with “our own kind” or using one of our well-tested methods to dismiss, marginalize, demonize, or eliminate the stranger. When our ancient fear of otherness is left us acknowledged, unattended, and untreated, diversity creates dysfunctional communities….The benefits of diversity can be ours only if we hold our differences with respect, patience, openness, and hope, which means we must attend to the invisible dynamics of the heart that are part of democracy’s infrastructure.

“…Tension creates stress…so we must reduce or eliminate these enemies of well-being…. if our stress comes from a toxic workplace, an abusive relationship, or some other assault on body or soul. But the stress that comes from being stretched by alien ideas, values, and experiences is of a different sort. That is why some psychologists distinguish between distress (which is negative and destructive), and eustress (which is positive and a prod to growth) …. Positive stress may try our patience, and yet it can help our hearts to become more spacious and generous. Refuse to hold stress of this sort, and our society as well as our souls will suffer from shrinkage and stagnation.” (P. 13)

“When we choose to engage, not evade, the tension of our differences, we will become better equipped to participate in a government of, by, and for the people as we expand some of our key civic capacities:

• “To listen to each other openly and without fear, learning how much we have in common despite our differences
• “To depend our empathy for the alien “other” as we enter imaginatively into the experiences of people whose lives are radically unlike out own
• “To hold what we believe and know with conviction and be willing to listen openly to other viewpoints, changing our minds if needed
• “To seek out alternative facts and explanations whenever we find reason to doubt our own truth claims or the claims made by others, thus becoming better informed
• “To probe, question, explore, and engage in dialogue, developing a fuller, more three-dimensional view of reality in the process
• “To enter the conflicted arena of politics, able to hold the dynamics of that complex force field in ways that unite the civic community and empower us to hold government accountable to the will of the people
• “To welcome opportunities to participate in collect problem solving and decision making, generating better solutions and making better decisions as we work with competing ideas
• “To feel more at home on the face of the earth amid differences of many sorts, better able to enjoy the fruits of diversity

“Instincts and capacities like these allow us to make full use of the institutions of American democracy, institutions that were designed for creative tension-holding…. American democracy was intended to generate, not suppress, the energy created by conflict, converting it into social progress as a hydroelectric plant converts the energy of dammed-up water into useable power.

“But our democratic institutions are not automated. They must be inhabited by citizens and citizen leaders who know how to hold conflict inwardly in a manner that converts it into creativity, allowing it to pull them open to new ideas, new courses of action, and each other. That kind of tension-holding is the work of the well-tempered heart; if democracy is to thrive as that restored prairies is thriving, our hearts and our institutions must work in concert.” (Pp. 14-15)

“…Partisanship is not a problem. Demonizing the other side is.” (P. 16)

“…the truth is that Americans are suffering.

“…What shall we do with our suffering?... Violence is what we get when we do not know what else to do with our suffering.

“But when the human heart is open and allowed to work its alchemy, suffering can generate vitality instead of violence.” (P. 19)

“…The powers of the heart that transform personal anguish can also transform the way we do politics. The suffering that undermines democracy by driving us into foxholes and fragmenting the civic community has the potential to open us to each other, to hope, and to the hard work required to sustain the American experiment.” (Pp. 19-20)

[Raven · Rating 5 out of 5]

beautiful writing that roused a level deeper than intellect

[Rita Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

The use of the word heart in the title gives away the author's main belief, i.e. "a good society will emerge from the tension between freedom and discipline, between what the Constitution calls 'the blessings of liberty' and the rule of law. He sees the heart as holding transformative power, but can only release these powers when we make ourselves vulnerable to the demands for them. In other word he thinks of the heart as having to break open to release our "lesser angels" allowing us to face divergent problems. Hi poem states it beautifully:

Out
Of a great need
We are all holding hands
And climbing.
Listen,
The terrain around here
Is
Far Too
Dangerous
For
That.

[Matthew Gutschick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Proceeding from the premise that our democracy is dependent on individual and collective action, Palmer argues that the urge to act stems from a mix of hope and heartbreak. This fertile tension plays out in the private, public, and eventually political spheres. We rely on the development of five habits in sustaining productive democracy: 1. understanding that we are all in this together 2. developing an appreciation of the value of otherness 3. cultivating the ability to hold tension in life-giving ways 4 generating a sense of personal voice and agency 5. strengthening our capacity to create community.

Palmer is articulate, passionate, and ultimately persuasive. His arguments are hard to quantify, but he gives historical context and philosophical backing to the vast majority of them. This was a book that felt like a healing gesture after the opening of such collective wounds over the course of the 2016 election. What this book helped reinforce for me is that we are in deep trouble by virtue of our unwillingness to confront the space between our founders' vision for Ameerica and its realization in the current moment. That space is productive if we mine it with compassion and an ability to turn common concerns into collective action. It is toxic if we retreat into our private selves. This felt like a huge challenge to issue to a reader in 2016, though the book is several years old.

[Gary Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Parker Palmer began writing this book in 2004 and published it in 2011, but it is so timely it could have been written during the current election year. It speaks of the great political and social divisions in our country, divisions many are seeing as permanent and unreconcilable. This book is a thoughtful and thorough rebuttal of that view.
Parker's view is that we can bridge this gap by looking at our hearts for the cause of our division, and healing this chasm through constructive engagement.
I read this book as part of an ongoing spiritual formation study group, a small group of men who met over breakfast once a week. Our group does not all think alike politically and we come from various walks of life. We moved slowly through the book taking time to discuss each section. We didn't always agree with the author or each other, but with the book's central theme of continuing to creatively hold the tension between contradicting points of view, we had much productive discussion. Speaking for myself and (I'm confident) others in our group, the book made us think and see the world a little differently. I believe Palmer has shown us a path through the dark time of political gridlock that we are in.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tired of the sniping, nastiness and cynicism in Washington D.C.? So is Parker Palmer. In his usual attempt to be a redemptive thinker, Palmer gives us a clear-eyed assessment of the situation, describing the broken-heartedness of our democracy. And again, as usual, he calls us to our better selves--to quote Abraham Lincoln--"the better angels of our nature." This is not the usual language heard around the beltway, but it's quite refreshing to hear from a wise, hopeful man about one way he can find that could lead us past the divisiveness of our country and save the union. Basically, he lovingyl says that we're better than how we're behaving. This is a country that can embrace a diversity of human beings, we can embrace a diversity of opinion and hold it in tension. We can get to know the strangers next door, to become a community again. These basic American qualities are the keys to keeping the American experiment going. There is a lot more in this book. Well worth the read.

[Read Ribbet · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gift from Kathy Champeau, I wanted to see what Parker Palmer had to say on this topic. Some I know follow his work religiously. Others like to quote him for inspiration while their actions seem to suggest otherwise. The tone of the book is somewhat somber and we come to learn at the end that Palmer found it hard to embracce writing on this topic. His own concern about where society is at after years of writing on compassion and wisdom must be a bit disheartening, but he remains hope-filled that we can find these third places where critical conversations can take place and lead us forward. The chapter on schools and churches resonated the most with me. School structures inherently send messages contrary to the need for consensus building through dynamic tensions. It would be a good book to read collectively with others of different viewpoints as we try to find something between exteme points of view.

[K.A. Krisko · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had a hard time with this book. i only managed to read a paragraph or two at a time, and I skipped the exercises in the back after a quick skim. I appreciate the general idea, but I found it rambling, disjointed, and heavy on the historical review, with very little actual suggestions for healing the 'heart' of democracy. I'll take very few ideas away from this into the future, I'm afraid, despite also attending several discussion sessions on the book.

It's well-written, well-edited, and well-formatted. No issues there. It just didn't quite hit me where I live. On the other hand, this could definitely be a good library supplement for people who haven't read a lot of philosophy and/or calls to action. I may just be a jaded old fart.

[Pam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Did this for book club, Pauline and I were the only two who finished it. That said, it gave me a truly good grasp on our private, public and political lives. We need to develop the habits of the heart that fuel and support democracy. I am so tired of people thinking participation In the political process is a waste of energy. Parker reminds us that we are democracy at its best and if we choose so, at its worst.
Loved this book, he has a great command of language, lots of epigrammatic phrases for the reader to take away.

[Marilynoregan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the best antidote I know for confronting the apathy and, worse, defeatism that I can find in myself in the face of the ongoing barrage of bad news and pessimism that assault us daily. Yes, democracy can be preserved if we can reactivate the "habits of the heart" that permit us to be We the People. And this book by one of my favorite authors goes well beyond nice thoughts to practical ways to begin to restore our democracy to health.

[Maughn Gregory · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've developed a deep fascination with the relationships between progressive political activism and contemplative practices. Gandhi. Jacob Needleman. Parker Palmer. Palmer is the most explicit about the many ways in which the two realms of practice need each other: self-work and working on the world. Meditation and marching. Strident witnessing and deep listening. This book is a modern classic in the prophetic tradition that calls us to fight inner and outer injustice at the same time.

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so sincere, and so complete and humble. I can see why so many politician aspiring to a better world like it so much. I've just read it three times as it is part of study I've done on leadership and his ideas hold together so well... every time I thought some connection had been missed, I realized that it was there all along. I really like his ideas about meeting and embracing the shadow and that leadership has something to do with including the "other."

[Robert D. Cornwall · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must read book, especially right now. It speaks to the crisis we face and calls us to find ways of reclaiming and rebuilding the institution of democracy. I'll have a full review soon, but please read this book for the good of the nation and our local communities.

This is my book of the year!
http://www.bobcornwall.com/2012/01/bo...

[Silke · Rating 5 out of 5]

There isn't anything that Parker Palmer has written that I don't find worth reading, absorbing, and sharing. My kudos to Parker Palmer for taking the concept "Habits of the Heart," which also happens to be the title of a sociological must-read (Bellah et al. 1985/1996/2008) that connects with Palmer's work nicely, a level closer to application. Palmer's style is eminently readable and enjoyable.

[Martha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Palmer said this was his hardest book to write, and I had a hard time reading it - in part because the topic is so important and I don’t have a lot of optimism right now. But I did glean some good things, and particularly enjoyed a few pages he had about strategies some neighborhoods had used to increase their sense of community.

[Eric Gnezda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Right on the money about this culture's illness and how, together, we can heal our democratic society. Ultimately, our problems will not be solved through political answers, but through a collective awakening of the heart.

[J. Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing book that is much needed at this time. I highly recommend it to all who are concerned about faith, politics, civility, and the "soul" of the United States.

[Chuck Peters · Rating 5 out of 5]

Core concepts are powerful. References are insightful. Challenge to media worth taking up.