diversity

Your Humble Servant

/ JJS / 2 Comments

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 63; 149, Zechariah 14:12-21, Philippians 2:1-11, Luke 19:41-48

The media often portrays Christians as some sort of monolithic hive-mind, acting and reacting in unison. The truth is, we are all over the map on social and political issues, and understanding or representing anything deeper than a caricature of us takes more work and nuanced thought than the average broadcaster or viewer will invest.

The fault may be partially our own. We each have an assumption of what it means to be Christian, and by default tend to project it onto other Christians until they prove otherwise. Now that doesn’t mean we necessarily buy into the definition we are projecting; some of us assume other Christians will agree with us, and others assume we will be opposed on some issues. It can be tempting to say someone isn’t a “real” Christian if they think differently than we do, or to quickly make it clear we aren’t one of “those” Christians. Either way, too often we limit what it means to be Christian, making it that much easier to stereotype us.

In his letter to the Philippians, Paul advises them to “be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.” In our diversity, have we betrayed that advice? Is it any longer possible for the diverse universe of Christians to be in “full accord?” It is if we look at how Paul defined it:

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others.

There isn’t one word of dogma in there. No specific religious practice. It says to look out for others first. That means listening more than convincing. Learning more than preaching. Serving more than insisting. Loving more than condemning. If I’m putting you first, and you’re putting me first, we aren’t even agreeing on who is first – but we are acting in accord. Following Christ isn’t about insisting others believe exactly as we do, but on serving them exactly as we believe Christ would have us do.

Comfort: You can love and serve Christians who think differently than you do.

Challenge: You have to love and serve Christians who think differently than you do.

Prayer: Lord, teach me to be your humble servant to all people. Amen.

Discussion: Beyond accepting Jesus, do you think there is a minimum set of beliefs necessary to be a Christian?

Join the discussion! If you enjoyed this post, feel free to join an extended discussion as part of the C+C Facebook group or follow @comf_and_chall on Twitter. You’ll  have the opportunity to share your thoughts with some lovely people. Or feel free to comment here on WordPress, or even re-blog – the more the merrier!

A Table Long and Wide

/ JJS / 4 Comments

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 96; 147:1-11, Hosea 3:1-5, Acts 21:15-26, Luke 5:27-39

Inclusiveness is a challenging concept. When we say people are welcome in our community, do we mean we welcome them as they are, or that we invite them to become more like us? Each community has fundamental values that are central to its identity, so we can usually assume those values appeal to people who wish to join. However, new arrivals frequently challenge customs and traditions, and most communities work harder to maintain them than to discover if they are, in fact, essential. Because communities of faith are voluntary, inclusivity presents a particular challenge, as those who are uncomfortable with it are free to depart to form or join more comfortable (that is, homogeneous) groups, and leaders don’t like to lose members.

When Paul returned to Jerusalem, the Jewish Christians elders welcomed him and praised God for all he’d done among the Gentiles. After he told his story, the elders expressed concern about rumors that he’d been telling Jews abroad to forsake the laws of Moses. Though this wasn’t true, they insisted he undergo ritual purification to validate his Jewishness so other Jews would listen to him. They also sent a letter to the Gentile Christians telling them to abstain from certain foods and fornication. These early Christians struggled with inclusion – with deciding what behaviors were simply unacceptable for members of the community. Over time some expectations have changed and some have not, and still we wrestle with establishing essentials.

The Pharisees chastised Jesus and his companions for dining with tax collectors and other sinners. Jesus responded by saying “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners to repentance.” His inclusive table allows for the failings of humanity, but it is not degenerate; its essential characteristic is that Christ calls all who participate to repentance. What that repentance looks like in our individual lives is between us and our Lord. Inclusion is not a call to conform to the community, but a call for the community to see and share Christ’s table everywhere.

Comfort: There’s enough room at Christ’s table for everyone; new people are not taking food from your mouth.

Challenge: Visit a church that’s different from your own. Remember how you felt about it – good and bad – the next time you welcome someone to your own.

Prayer: God of abundance, thank you for all the voices and colors of the world. Amen.

Discussion: We generally talk about diversity in society and the workplace as an advantage to people in the “minority.” It actually benefits everyone. How have you found this to be true?

Join the discussion! If you enjoyed this post, feel free to join an extended discussion as part of the C+C Facebook group or follow @comf_and_chall on Twitter. You’ll  have the opportunity to share your thoughts with some lovely people. Or feel free to comment here on WordPress, or even re-blog – the more the merrier!

Double Vision

/ JJS / 1 Comment

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 65; 147:1-11, Job 6:1, 7:1-21, Acts 10:1-16, John 7:1-13

Three-dimensional (stereoscopic) vision is pretty miraculous. In simple terms, each of your eyes sees the world from a slightly different perspective and your brain combines the two images to create a sense of depth and distance. When you wear 3-D movie glasses, two images are projected on the screen, and each lens is polarized so it can see only one. Without the lenses, the screen is a blurry mess. With one lens, it’s a clear but flat image. With both lenses, your brain sees amazing things.

Cornelius was a Gentile man who was devoted to the Lord. The Lord recognized his faithfulness and sent Cornelius a vision instructing him to send representatives to the city of Joppa, where they would find Simon Peter.

The next day, the Lord sent a vision to Peter, who was on the roof praying:

He saw the heaven opened and something like a large sheet coming down, being lowered to the ground by its four corners. In it were all kinds of four-footed creatures and reptiles and birds of the air. Then he heard a voice saying, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat.”

The vision made no sense to Peter, who faithfully clung to Jewish dietary restrictions. The Lord had to send the vision twice more before Peter accepted it.

Taken individually, neither of these visions made sense to the recipients. Soon though they would merge, Peter and Cornelius would meet, and a whole new picture of the Body of Christ – one encompassing both Jews and Gentiles – would be revealed.

Every believer brings a different perspective to the wholeness of the Body. We can settle for the two-dimensional faith of a single lens, but that leaves us thinking everyone who doesn’t line up with our viewpoint is an incomprehensible mess, and under the mistaken assumption that we are privy to the one true picture. Like Paul and Cornelius, until we form diverse community, our vision is incomplete. The less we insist on seeing the world through only our own personal, congregational, or denominational lens, the more complete is our vision of the Kingdom of God.

Comfort: You have a unique and valuable perspective to contribute.

Challenge: You have many unique and valuable perspectives to consider..

Prayer: Lord of all creation, teach me to approach the world with an open and humble mind. May I embrace the good and learn from the bad. Amen.

Discussion: When has someone else’s perspective really changed your own?

Join the discussion! If you enjoyed this post, feel free to join an extended discussion as part of the C+C Facebook group. You’ll be notified of new posts through FB, and have the opportunity to share your thoughts with some lovely people. Or feel free to comment here on WordPress, or even re-blog – the more the merrier!

Variety is the Spice of (Eternal) Life

/ JJS / Leave a comment

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 96; 147:1-11, Judges 7:19-8:12, Acts 3:12-26, John 1:29-42

According to John’s gospel, the first two disciples of Jesus were originally disciples of John the Baptist. One Jesus walked by the three of them, and John declared him the Lamb of God. The two disciples began to literally follow him, until he turned around and asked what they were looking for. Then they followed him home. One of them (Andrew) found his brother Simon to tell him they’d found the Messiah. When they met, Jesus told Simon his new name was Cephas (Aramaic for Rock, the same meaning as Peter).

Don’t Matthew, Mark, and Luke tell a much more interesting version of this story? In that one, Jesus goes down to the docks, starts recruiting, and promises to make any who follow him “fishers of men” – a sales pitch so good people drop their nets and follow him immediately.

In both versions, whether guided by a teacher or invited directly, Jesus’s disciples feel immediately drawn to follow him. In a way, these two paths reflect different ways we come to know Christ: we can be born into a faith passed on to us, or Jesus can come bursting into our lives from seemingly nowhere. Neither way is more correct than the other, but one makes a more exciting story. While this was not the point John’s gospel was trying to make, it may help us be more open to the variety of faith journeys we encounter.

If we have been born into a faith, dramatic conversion stories may seem more compelling than our own lifelong belief. We should let their enthusiasm reinvigorate our own faith and challenge us to look at it as if it were new to us. If we are converts, we have recently given much thought to what we believe and why, like immigrants who’ve studied to become citizens. Though it may seem others haven’t worked quite as hard for the privilege, we can rely on the grounded experience of lifelong citizens of faith to inform us of the rich traditions we share. No matter how we’ve come to know Christ, we have gifts to share.

Comfort: Whether your faith is new or lifelong, you are an equal member of the Body of Christ.

Challenge: Share your faith journey with someone, and invite them to share theirs with you.

Prayer: Gracious and loving God, thank you for providing many roads to relationship with you. Amen.

Discussion: Have you found anyone’s faith journey particularly inspiring?

Join the discussion! If you enjoyed this post, feel free to join an extended discussion as part of the C+C Facebook group. You’ll be notified of new posts through FB, and have the opportunity to share your thoughts with some lovely people. Or feel free to comment here on WordPress, or even re-blog – the more the merrier!