This was my question when I learned about Sen. Cory Booker’s marathon, record-setting speech on the Senate floor this week. Is a powerful 25-hour oration enough to steer our politically-pummeled country toward its constitutional dream of a “more perfect union?”

While obviously quite an accomplishment for Sen. Booker and an energy boost to the sagging Democratic contingent in our country, I would contend that no speech – no matter the length or the content – on any legislative floor will be enough. It’s neither politics nor any governmental structure that’s going to lead us out of this painful, vitriolic and degenerative mess of a situation in which our country finds itself.

While the manipulation of our two-party political system could very well be what has landed us here, it is most certainly not going to be what pulls us out. Instead, I would offer that the answer lies with you and me and all of us. It’s you and I who are going to need to be the change agents in our nation’s story. You and I are going to have to come together and push up our sleeves. You and I must do the hardest work of all. That’s not speechmaking; it’s building relationships. It’s forming and reforming community. It’s building bridges from the rubble of our own unwillingness to listen. We must humble ourselves, come together and listen to one another in order to forge a path forward.

This is the bread and butter of what I do all day long as a Christian minister in one of the largest Protestant denominations, the United Methodist Church. I do the painstakingly slow, mostly invisible and totally unglamorous work of building community. Please trust me when I say that there is nothing like leading a faith community to offer someone a crash course on managing heightened human emotion; hearing all sides to a particular issue; and trying to foster peace. In the church, we are called to welcome all people, whether we agree, disagree or abstain from sharing an opinion at all. Often that means I facilitate communities to carve out some common ground, or at least, a starting point. While my desire is always to bring people together to listen to and learn from one another, I will admit that is not always what happens.

What I have learned in the messy work of community building is that one must listen more than speak. When we humble ourselves enough to stop talking at people, to stop insisting that our way is the right way, and instead place ourselves in a listening posture, we build relationships. Then, it is those relationships that offer us a way forward when we are stymied by the inevitable disagreement and conflict that will arise.

You may wonder why a liberal clergywoman from California is calling into question a prominent Democratic US Senator’s notable speech. I appreciate Sen. Booker’s noteworthy career serving our country, and I applaud his ongoing work. I would likely vote for him in an electoral race, and knock on doors for his campaign. I do not take umbrage with (in fact, I support) his stance and position on our nation’s driving issues. However, while speeches, debate, and discourse are important parts of a healthy democracy, it is our personal and professional relationships that will bring about the change we need today.

I have never known someone who has changed their mind on an issue, or come to the negotiations table, based on a well-researched or lengthy speech. However, I have known many to consider a different idea or opinion because of a friend’s personal experience. Our former ways of bridging differences and bringing people across the aisle are clearly no longer working. We are in an unprecedented era of public shaming and unquestioned power grabbing, and we must focus our work on building relationships of understanding and acceptance. This requires a lot more of showing up in arenas with people who challenge us; engaging in discourse and dialogue.

We have to talk with and listen deeply to one another. Cory Bookers’ 25-hour speech is noteworthy and powerful. But we are well past the place for powerful monologues as the sole answer. Politics and grandstanding will not save us, regardless of how many records are set, or whose attention it grabs.

25 hours of one person talking at us is definitely not enough. We deserve so much more. We are capable of so much more. Perhaps, we could start with an hour of conversation and respectful dialogue?