Some people swear that Linux is the best computer operating system, others will only using Microsoft or Apple products. Some people grew up in the Northeast, and Tom Brady can do no wrong. Some people support their nation’s wars because that’s where they were born. Some people’s religion tells them that god hates homosexuals …
Humans join together in groups. It’s a throwback to our early days, when it was important to band together for protection and to compete for scarce resources. It’s called tribalism and it can be very dangerous. Tribalism tends to shut down our ability to reason, and elicits emotional responses based on nothing more than the tribe affiliation. We have to strive against this base instinct and recognize the Truth that Jesus taught. We are all part of the tribe of humanity.
Tribalism helped ancient peoples to survive, and there are some benefits to being involved in communities and families. However, when that community connection devolves into tribalism, it has negative consequences. Political partisans provide a great case study. For example, this study found that conservatives discounted scientific information about evolution and climate change, while liberals discounted scientific information about nuclear power and fracking. In both cases, individuals felt “more distrustful of … the scientific community” after reading the data. That lack of trust was based on their emotional tie to their particular belief system, or tribe. This emotional, instinctual connection actually prevents our brains from reasoning properly. A Yale study showed that partisan individuals lost the ability to do math problems when their ideology was brought into the equation. In fact, the better the person was at math, the more their partisan beliefs affected their ability. Their political beliefs made them stupid! The underlying problem stems from the way our brains are trained to default toward group think. In fact, when presented with data that supports our existing beliefs, we get a chemical high, regardless of the facts behind the data. As this political study author noted, “None of the circuits involved in conscious reasoning were particularly engaged.” This explains how we can end up with Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton as our candidates for president.
It isn’t just politics though. There is a famous social experiment called The Robber’s Cave. Two groups of boys were dropped off at a Boy Scout camp. They were unaware of each other for a few days. Then the organizers set up some competitions between the two groups. Immediately conflict arose, even violence. Each viewed the other as inherently evil, based only on which group they happened to belong to. My kids participate in sports and I’ve seen the same thing from the parents and fans. I heard statements like, “The other coach is a jerk” or “I heard they were making fun of our uniforms.” The other coaches and parents are assumed to be inferior. This emotional response may seem harmless on the little league baseball diamond, but we’re teaching our kids that tribalism is acceptable. We’re teaching them that someone’s worth can be defined by the group or team they belong to. When we believe we are superior and “the others” are inferior, it leads to hatred and violence, even at sporting events.
Religion and nationality often devolve into violent tribalism. Christianity is not immune to this, as history shows. Wars have been fought over the proper way to baptize. Religions question science, and promote policies based on their tribe. Some Christians look for ways NOT to serve people because of their lifestyle, there are churches that emotionally abuse those who stray from their version of the truth. American Christians supported wars, against Native Americans and Arabs, to spread their idea of freedom. As Mark Twain said, “To be a patriot, one had to say, and keep on saying, ‘Our country, right or wrong,’ and urge on the little war.” This shows a profound lack of reason, and a misunderstanding of what it means to be a follower of Jesus. This is the same tribal mindset that causes a radicalized Muslim to walk into a night club and slay scores of innocent human beings because it is what he believes his religion dictates.
The problem is clear. There is brain chemistry at work that predisposes us to tribalism, emotionalism, and violence. Christians and non Christians alike can look to the example of Jesus. He taught that every human life has value. He struggled against the prejudices of His day, and reached across tribal barriers to show love and compassion. We have to guard against the barbaric tribal instinct, and use our emotions and our connectedness to bring peace, not harm. We need to pause when we feel group-think welling up, and purposefully engage our frontal lobe instead. When we combine our reason and our compassion together we will make progress toward solving the world’s problems. Instead of creating conflict as part of a divisive tribe, let’s resolve conflict as part of the human race.