What if one side overcomes the other and renders the enemy helpless and slavish? What if the division becomes so deep that we have another civil war?

What if there is one heroic surge and half the people in the nation are blown out of power?

The tension is so great that men and women of reason and good will must now sit back and contemplate how this happened. The division was not created overnight.

Take these grievances back to the 1960s, when the citizens began talking about the environment, homosexuals, abortion, international peacekeeping, feminism and a host of issues that have pried open the wound a little at a time.

By the time the turbulence of the 1960s and 1970s cooled, men and women were left with a mandate to settle their battles in quieter and slower ways. Some thought the fighting was over. But others feared it would return and be hotter.

Here’s a story I have to tell because it illustrates the point so clearly. In a parish I served in the 1960s, the parishioners established a day-care center for small children. And since this was an old church building, it was deemed acceptable that both the little boys and the little girls would use the same bathroom. It was called a unisex bathroom, I think.

Suddenly the director of the center began receiving calls from an anonymous man who charged that those wee children — 2- and 3-year-olds — were being turned into homosexuals and sex addicts because they were coerced into using the same bathroom. The pastors of the church were also receiving phone calls and because children were involved, law enforcement was contacted.

The police had the culprit in a matter of hours. They tapped the day-care center’s phone and came to us with a name, address and telephone number.

We decided the perpetrator should not be arrested. Rather we confronted him — called him at home, told him we knew what he had been doing and asked him to come to the church within an hour. He was there on the dot.

He was a complete stranger, but his granddaughter was enrolled in the day-care center and he had discussed the bathroom situation with his daughter, the grandchild’s mother.

He sat white-faced and guilty before three clergy and a couple of officers. When we asked him to tell us why he launched his telephone campaign, he began to weep in a deep, sorrowful way and could not stop. Finally someone put an arm around the poor guy and asked him to pull his emotions together.

Then, in a cracking voice, he said, “I’ve never stood up for anything. I’ve always hung back and let others. I thought this was my chance.” I was a young man then, just beginning my career and I thought this was one of the saddest people I had ever seen. Now I think he is fairly normal.

By the way, he dropped out of our sight and we never received another call.

Now, I think we have a nation of men and women who look at their lives and say, over and over, “I never stood for anything.” Then they think of that old saying, “Those who stand for nothing will fall for anything.” And they worry about their ultimate fate.

But for some, the day comes when they see their call clearly. Suddenly they have a chance to ride into battle with the brave hearts, those who claim they are the champions of truth. The issue does not matter. It could be a doctrinal issue or abortion, homosexuality, the environment even a unisex bathroom. What matters is that a battle must be waged.

Let me tell you, men and women, it is not your fault that God has not called you as a warrior. This is simply one danger of living in a time of peace and affluence. The duty you have been asked to do has been different: raising a family, working for 40 years, keeping the lawn mowed, being a peaceful and productive citizen.

Further, the giant fault of our society is that organizations often believe it is their mission to shield people from real sacrifice and servanthood. So all the big, impressive missions are done for you. Someone else gets to blow up the bridges.

We thought that was one of the benefits of being affluent. Turns out, it might be one of dangers. The truth is, most of us have an inborn desire to contribute to the common good. But in these times, we’ll want to be sure the mission serves the right people.

Clark D. Morphew