Faith Journey
Sad Divisions Among God's People
Created by God, united in Jesus Christ, indwelt by God's Spirit,
sadly, God's people find many ways to differentiate, separate and compete.
race and ethnicity: dominant, subservient, exclusive,
language: even within families, native tongues compete with adopted,
forms of governance in Christian traditions: Episcopal, congregational, Presbyterian, etc.
faith experience: conversionists versus justice advocates versus charismatics, etc.
economics: wealthy versus simple lifestyle versus poor,
location or geography: urban suburban, ex-urban or rural
citizenship: nationalists versus counter-cultural versus revolutionaries,
denominational loyalty: Baptist, Catholic, Episcopal, Independent, Reformed, etc.
ageism: including generational divides within congregational education and liturgy,
worship: ancient, blended, historic, traditional, contemporary.
In spite of what we hold in common:
"one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one Father of us all" (Ephesians 4:4-6) and Jesus' prayer for unity (John 17:20-26) and the witness of the early church loving one another (John 13:34-35), we continue to choose to exclude, demean and avoid other faith family members. Do we remind Jesus of why he grieved over the "sheep without a Shepherd?" (Matthew 9:36)
Lord God, forgive my selfish spiritual pride, and my criticism of other believers. Help me connect with, appreciate, learn from and affirm my brothers and sisters in the various streams and traditions of the faith who seek to honor you, follow Jesus and serve in the Spirit.
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