Matthew Russell: “Solomon, who was often noted as the wisest man in the world, said: ``A soft answer turns away wrath, but grievous words…”

“Solomon, who was often noted as the wisest man in the world, said: ``A soft answer turns away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger.'' If you were to ask the average American citizen would they like their elected officials to come to Washington and to work together, they would all say: Of course. They should. That is what we elect them for. Yet, often in our history, we see emotions override the mouth and we raise our voices, distrust builds, isolation results, we don't get to know each other, we don't get to work with one another. As we isolate, then a distrust builds, and with distrust, then we don't want to hear what either side has to say. Ultimately, when we can no longer exchange ideas with a deliberateness, then we fall short. Solomon also said in Ecclesiastes: ``Two are better than one, for they have a good reward for their labor, for if the one fall, the other will lift up,'' and ``A three-fold cord is not quickly broken.'' As we look at our mottoes and our institutions, we have a phrase: ``Out of many, one.'' That phrase is not: Out of one idea, let's create many. It is just the opposite. One thing that I learned in my time as a soldier in negotiating and dealing with people groups that literally could not agree, to the point that they were shelling and killing each other and each other's women and children in their villages as they burned, that even in situations like that, they could find some overlapping circles and some common ground in between.…”