The killing of Dr. George Tiller in his church in Wichita last Sunday was a horrifying and utterly unjustifiable act. I did not and do not approve of the late-term abortion procedures which Tiller performed. Were it up to me such procedures would, in general, be illegal. But the fact of the matter is that whether legal or not, morally acceptable or not, his medical practice did not justify his cold-blooded killing.

While, at the time I am writing this, we do not yet know whether his killer was motivated by some distorted form of religious or moral zealotry, Tiller’s death is no victory for anyone. Indeed, the death of George Tiller is and will always be a national tragedy. It is a tragedy not because Tiller was a great figure or that he led an admirable life; these are matters of opinion. Tiller’s death is a tragedy because it signals our inability as a nation to find nonviolent means to resolve differences.

It is a tragedy for Kansas because it will only hold us up to national criticism and suspicion. And, of course, it is a tragedy for Tiller’s family, who cannot be held responsible for his acts, and for his fellow congregants, whose church was violated by this act of violence.

It is difficult for me not to wonder whether Tiller’s killing would have occurred if our nation were not so divided over politics and religion. One hundred and fifty years ago Kansas was the site of violence and killing over the slavery issue. What followed then was a civil war. One must hope that a similar progression from individual to group violence does not await us now. Whether one feels that slavery and abortion are of comparable moral concern, there can be little question that many Americans feel that abortion is an issue of great moral and religious significance.

Certainly, the intensity of feeling over abortion and other issues has greatly increased in recent years. One hundred and fifty years ago the nation was divided into free states and slave states. In recent years our nation has again been divided, this time into red states and blue states. Predominant opinions on abortion are clearly a major factor in deciding whether a state is properly categorized as red or blue. The gap between the political and social views of the majority of the voters in red and blue states seems to have widened enormously. I think that current fears and uncertainty over the economy and national security have simply magnified these disagreements over religious and moral issues.

As terrible as Tiller’s killing is, it is still possible that some good might come of it. If his killing on Sunday makes people realize that violence is not and cannot be an answer even to the most profound religious, moral and political differences, then, perhaps, people on both sides of the abortion issue — and of all of the other contentious issues which divide us — can come together and begin a dialogue.

My fear is that if we cannot at least talk about our differences, then we will never be able to come to any compromises about or any resolution to these differences. I fear that in such a case the angry rhetoric will only increase, hatred will replace tolerance and understanding, and more misguided souls will see violence as the only path to follow. That, truly, would be the greatest tragedy of all.