Chapter Two, pages 57-64

Exclusion

Volf now begins to explain the second half of his thesis, exclusion. As he rightly points out, "the chapter, however, is not so much about 'them out there' as about 'us right here' wherever we may be, not so much about the other as about the self."

Of course, this is easier said than done, and Volf acknowledges that there is significant inner tension in the "typically modern narrative of inclusion, a narrative which serves as a backdrop for much of the contemporary critique of exclusion."

The Dubious Triumph of Inclusion

What has been your reaction to the countries and peoples who have been caught up in the horrors of ethnic cleansing? One reaction, which we may not even be aware of consciously, is the thought that such a thing couldn't happen here, because we're civilized. It could only happen over "there" with "those people."

This is an act of exclusion, of separating our human nature from the human nature of others around the world. Instead of recognizing the fear and hate we hold towards those who are different from ourselves, we pride ourselves and our society on its inclusive nature. No matter that our inclusiveness is still functionally small exclusive communities living in the same areas (Chinatown, the ghetto, etc.). At least all have a place to call their own and we're not going around wiping other ethnicities and cultures out.

We tell ourselves this myth of inclusion in order to keep ourselves safe from confronting the realities of a world-wide economy and society. The truth is our inclusion is a brutal from of exclusion, because those who are outside our "sacred grounds" or who we feel don't belong within our boundaries, are lesser than us, and not worth our attention or care.

Only by facing this dichotomy honestly can we begin to break down the walls that keep our inclusion safe, and maintain a constant practice of exclusion. By understanding that we have adopted an "us vs. them" ideology, we can begin to trade that ideology for one that embraces the other as part of us.

The witness of the cross bears this reality out. The exclusion, through crucifixion, of Christ was done by those who were inside, who had the power, who had the voice of the people. Their sense of what it meant to be included led to the most dramatic moments of exclusion in our faith history.

Volf ends this first section of his examination of exclusion by setting out the tension he is going to address. "A consistent pursuit of inclusion places one before the impossible choice between a chaos without boundaries and oppression with them." The question of how to include without allowing those things which should truly be excluded, like robbery being a virtue, is the object of the next section.