I once asked my friend what a Quaker person would say if the President, then Barack Obama, were to enter their meeting or otherwise encounter them. How would a Quaker address the President?
A Quaker would say (presuming he knew who he was), “Hello, friend Barack. Welcome.”
“Friend Barack.” Is this disrespectful? I am sure there are good reasons for the habit, perhaps not least the de-emphasis on individuality for which the Amish are well-known. I think with this custom the Quakers say all people are friends, fellow-travelers, neighbors in the sense of the great good Samaritan story. All have value and as such deserve the most basic and large human kindness when greeted.
“Hello friend.”
It should go without saying, but I will say it: this does not mean close friendship. How could it? It merely means the person is regarded as a fellow human being.
I take from this we can do better than “Crooked Joe Biden” or “Sleepy Joe,” “Crooked Hillary” or “Lyin' Kamala.” “Idiot Trump” or “War-Monger Bush” would be in the same category, though admittedly I can't think of catchy hateful monikers, though I know they are and were both hated.
If I had ever greeted the late Pol Pot could I say “friend Pol?” I do not know. But I am not sure the derisive names are better. Best, by grace of God, to give that grace to one another in every way possible, for as the Christian folks say, “All ground is level at the foot of the cross.”
Now to be a friend.
*FWIW, I am no fan of President Obama but think we should try to give respect to the office if not the person. And even then, we are all human, even the worst among us, whoever they may be. If I ever met him in a casual setting I hope I would have the spirit reflected in the expression, "Friend Barack."
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