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Good morning.

Disagreement is surely part of life. Later today I expect to be reminded of this as I head to the latest meeting of the Church of England’s General Synod. Once again, its agenda will be dominated by sexuality. The arguments will focus on the timescale for introducing blessings for gay relationships and whether LGBT clergy can enter same-sex marriages. Battle lines are drawn, and it looks like few will change their minds.

In both church and political life, how we disagree agreeably surely matters. The Church of England itself has proposed six principles to aid a deepening of mutual understanding. These principles suggest that good disagreement can happen when we work together to acknowledge prejudice and cast out fear; when we pay attention to power, address ignorance, and admit hypocrisy.

At the heart of these principles is a commitment to finding ways to widen the conversation, to help opponents come to appreciate differing views, and allow fresh and often unheard voices to make a contribution. They are not designed to remove disagreement but open up respectful space where those who are convinced of their views do not dominate. At their best, they want to allow a range of voices, not just the loudest, to contribute to a solution that has yet to emerge.

The importance of having space to think, breath, and allow new voices and ideas to emerge is deeply biblical. A Hebrew word for salvation, Yasha, means wideness or spaciousness. It is contrasted with Sara, meaning narrowness. In the bible, to be saved is to be in a place of spaciousness where there is room to breathe and dream and live. Where there is space there is God and it grants people the opportunity to think and live freely.

Places like synod or the Houses of Parliament are by their natures shaped around debate and the free exchange of ideas. We expect our public life to display a range of opinions that are debated with passion. Yet when positions become polarised, I fear that the disagreement closes down rather than opens up space not only for those who are still working out what they think, but for opportunities to find new ways ahead.

The Christian social activist Dorothy Day said, ‘life itself is a haphazard, untidy and messy affair.’ Day also said that ‘We cannot love God unless we love each other, and to love we must know each other.’ I sense that many public disagreements would be better conducted if we, like Day, acknowledged life’s complexities. Making space and taking time, might enable us not only to know one another, but even to cherish each other’s differences.

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