America needs shalom - spiritual wholeness and right relationships - to heal its fragmented society
Source: Peter Wehner. "A Word for Our Troubled Times - The Atlantic." March 8, 2026. www.theatlantic.com
The Gist
America is deeply divided and people are suffering from loneliness and mental health crises. The author argues we need 'shalom' - a biblical concept meaning not just peace, but wholeness, justice, and right relationships between people and with God. When people find this inner peace, they become healers in society.
Conclusion
America's current social fragmentation and individual suffering can be addressed by embracing the concept of shalom - a biblical understanding of peace that encompasses wholeness, justice, right relationships, and human flourishing
Premises
- America is experiencing unprecedented division, with 80% believing Americans are divided on core values and nearly half expecting civil war
- Individual Americans are suffering from an epidemic of loneliness, with doubled depression rates and 37% increase in suicide since 2000
- Shalom represents a fuller concept of peace than mere absence of conflict - it means wholeness, justice, right relationships, and human flourishing
- Historical examples like Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela show that pursuing shalom can heal deeply divided societies
- Many Christians are contributing to division rather than healing because they lack inner peace and have weaponized faith for conflict
- True Christian faith should enlarge and enrich lives, creating peacemakers who repair societal breaches through inner transformation
Assumptions
- Biblical concepts like shalom have practical relevance for contemporary secular society
- Individual inner transformation can lead to broader social healing
- Religious faith, properly understood, is a positive force for social cohesion
- America's current problems are fundamentally spiritual/relational rather than purely political or economic
- Historical religious examples of reconciliation are applicable to modern American context