President George W. Bush says that "the war" is over — but we are still living in wartime. The world has just begun to assess the consequences of the war on Iraq, and many experts predict that the war on terrorism will intensify, not abate, as a result of the invasion and occupation. And that's just overseas.

On the homefront, another kind of war has been taking place right in our living rooms, courtesy of the spate of "reality shows" on television. For several seasons now, but especially during this year of the buildup to the Iraq war, Americans have distracted themselves by watching people deride, demean, and judge each other. This gives "you are either for us or against us" a whole other cast.

Survivor, Joe Millionaire, The Bachelor, The Bachelorette, and Mr. Personality have individuals deciding whose company they want to keep, and the more dirt and negativity they can dish out explaining their picks, the better. Star Search, American Idol, All American Girl, Married by America, Are You Hot? The Search for America's Sexiest People, and America's Most Talented Kid ask the audience to join the game by voting for their favorites. Celebrity judges are on hand to coach us on how to attack, humiliate, and shame the contestants. Although they claim to be looking for talent and excellence, negative comments get the most response.

American entertainment in the twenty-first century has become a gladiator sport. And millions are tuning in for the chance to give a thumbs up or thumbs down.

What does this mean for those trying to live a spiritual life in these times? First, we need to recognize this for what it is -- and we've found some readings on this aspect of our cultural landscape. Second, we can balance the societal trend by doing practices of nonjudgment.

Readings

Deborah Tanner on America's Adversarial Culture
In The Argument Culture: Stopping America's War of Words, Deborah Tanner contends that our spirits are being corroded by living in "an atmosphere of unrelenting contention." The tone of today's reality shows is not surprising in a society where war metaphors pervade our talk and shape our thinking. Opposition has become our automatic first response, and the implications of this are troubling.

Steven L. Carter on Civility and Good Manners
These habits of the heart can function as healing balms in an adversarial culture. Face to face with another, we should respond not with criticism but with awe — for we are looking at a part of God's creation.

Practices

The spiritual practice of nonjudging is an antidote to the epidemic of criticism in our gladiator culture. Here are commentaries and suggestions for practice from the Desert Fathers of early Christianity and a contemporary Zen Buddhist teacher.

The Desert Fathers on Hospitality in Relationships
Although they were hermits, these Christians of the fourth and fifth centuries were often asked for their advice about very common conflict situations and pressures. Their teachings on handling complaints against others, not comparing, and not criticizing others are as apt today as they were in their times.

Charlotte Joko Beck on Not Judging
This Buddhist teacher, author of Everyday Zen and Nothing Special, has a very down-to-earth teaching style. Commenting on a verse from the Dhammapada — "Let none find fault in others" — she encourages us to make it a regular practice to catch ourselves in the act of judging others.

Finally, a note about the future of this e-course. Some of you have asked whether we will continue after Iraq. As we said in the beginning, we define "wartime" very broadly, and so, yes, we intend to continue sending out missives with spiritually literate readings of our times. In some of the future emails we will meditate upon the separations evident all around us; in others, we will hold up signs of hope and inspiring visions.

Although we, like many other people, are tired of talking about conflict and war, the truth is, our world is still characterized by heightened separations. The political and economic conditions, the cultural attitudes, and the atmosphere of distrust, fear, and hate that led to the American invasion and before that, the terrorist attacks, are unchanged. If anything, the roots of division have grown deeper.

But we have hope, trust, and faith that those roots of division will eventually reach the deep river of healing that runs through all the world's religious and spiritual traditions. So we will continue to dig wells and keep you posted on what we find.

Salaam, Shalom, Peace,

Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat