Tag Archives: right

Have you ever felt like the only adult in a room of three year-olds?

01 Wednesday Feb 2017

Posted by in Church, Humanity, Politics, Society, Theology

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , ,

That’s how I feel right now when it comes to politics.  I’m just sick of it all.  Left, Right, you name it.

Buffalo Springfield had a great line in one of his songs that summarizes the situation:

There’s battle lines being drawn
Nobody’s right if everybody’s wrong

(Source:  Buffalo Springfield, For what it’s worth. Released Jan. 1967.)

I’m tired of the political maneuvering and distractions about things that don’t matter.  I’m tired of people pitching a fit over these things and not paying attention to things that do matter.  I’m tired of policy that divides people and appears to back up the claims of those who hate us.

I’m tired of people all of a sudden discovering the constitution and being opposed to executive orders when they had no problem with them just a couple of months ago.  I’m tired of people all of a sudden forgetting the constitution and being silent on the use of executive orders when they were vocally opposed to them just a couple of months ago.

The hypocrisy is getting to me.  The lack of respect in how we treat each of is getting to me. The finger-pointing, blaming, shaming, and demands for conformity of thought are getting to me.  I don’t know if I’m in a first grade lunch room with no lunch monitors or if I’ve been plunged into a psych ward where the patients are running the show.

Christians – I have some pointed questions for you.  Does what Christ calls us to be only impact the private part of our lives?  Does it go beyond that?  All the way to politics?  Or is there a wall a separation between our private lives and politics and partisanship? I’m not talking about whether we have a responsibility to oppose unjust policies.  I’m talking about the way we do that.  The same applies to those Christians who support these controversial orders – how are you interacting with opponents?

I’m starting to think that there are many Christians who have interpreted Christ’s call to love each other as only applying to those who think correctly – which happens to match up with their political ideology.  That’s not Christ’s teaching, that the Pharisee’s teaching.  We are called to love our enemies because they are children of God too.  That doesn’t mean you have to like them or what they stand for.  It doesn’t mean you have to agree with them.  You could very easily think they are completely wrong.  That’s not the point.  They, as a person, still deserve respect.  Forget about how they treat you.  Christ’s teaching isn’t about that.  Christ doesn’t teach karma, but rather grace.  It’s a call for each one of us to live what Christ teaches.  It’s not about going around and trying to change everyone else.  You can’t.  Take a look around at our political discourse, that’s proof enough isn’t it?

Do you honestly expect to change someone’s opinion on a religious or political matter?   How do you go about doing that?  Do you focus on being right?  Do you expect people to give up a belief about politics or religion and adopt your way of thinking on any given subject by approaching them as an enemy, attacking them with facts and figures like they are bullets and bombs, and then throwing insults at the person like hand grenades?  How well do you think that will work?  If this is your method, how well has it worked so far?  Made any converts?  Or maybe you’re just not interested in converting anyone – you just want to point out how wrong they are and assume they will figure out that you are right and come on over on their own.  This is insanity.

Imagine if I wanted to convince you, an apple eater, that oranges are better.  Using the above method, I’d probably throw around a few facts about vitamin C, about the benefits of citrus, etc.  I’d also probably then want to point out how terrible apples are and then throw a few insults at you for be such a Neanderthal for continuing to eat apples – I might even through a few dehumanizing labels at you for added effect along with a meme that has a snappy one liner that essentially claims that anyone who believes that apples are better is an idiot.  I wonder, would this be convincing to you?  Did I convert you?

Yet, this is the method that I see play out every single day – in conversations, on the radio, on social media, on TV, in churches, with sports, regarding politics, etc. We’re verbally hitting each other in the gut, over the head, in the face, and kneeing each other where it hurts and expecting the other person to just give up their beliefs and come to our side.  Why?  Who in their right mind would?  When did “might makes right” become a Christian virtue and teaching of Christ?  When we attack someone or make threats against them and their identity, their human nature to fight or flight kicks in.  There is not human natural reaction called “let’s sit down and talk about this like adults.”  That’s a learned behavior that apparently needs a great deal of work.

Yesterday I asked a question – do the ends justify the means?  If the ends justify the means, then you should have no problem with the attack approach and you should expect it from your opposition.  Never mind that there are people along the journey.  When our beliefs become most important, people are just check marks, or tools, or bumps in the road – objects to be dealt with.

But if the process and how we get to the end matters, then the people along the way matter.  And when people are involved, it’s going to be messy and take a greater amount of time, require forgiveness, reconciliation, listening, and understanding.  There’s no nice and easy straight path from point A to point B.

But I can hear the whining now – “But they started it.” Enough already.  When will this cycle end?  Waiting for someone else to take the first step?  Why can’t you?  Or is this whole Christianity thing a bit too much for you?  Maybe you’re starting to get an inkling of what Christ meant when he said “take up your cross and follow me.”  It’s not fun, it’s not easy.  It’s not feeling all righteous.  It’s not about being justified in responding to violence and hatred with hatred and violence – either verbal or physical.  It’s not an eye for an eye.  It’s an end to the way of death that all of that leads to.

If we treat people with respect, even and especially those who are our enemies, by listening, forgiving and asking for forgiveness, showing mercy, etc., the message you are sending is that you care very deeply about the person.  It’s also a huge risk.  Apparently a risk not enough Christians are willing to take.  You don’t have to agree on anything else, but I can tell you that over time, this method will work much better thank bashing other people.  It works because what really happens is we let go of believing that we have all the answers and instead we learn and we care and follow Christ’s self-emptying example.   We learn how issues are about people and are messy and that what we thought we knew for sure is just not that simple.  And so do those that interact with us.  And we move closer to the truth – which is what we’re really seeking isn’t it?  It’s just that so many would rather believe that they have the Truth already and they are not required to change ever – those other wrong-headed people need to change.  But that isn’t a recipe for life.  Things that are alive grow and change and adjust.  Things that are dead never need to grow – they just decompose and fall apart and are consumed and disappear and are forgotten.

I’m tired of feeling like the adult in a room full of sugared up three year-olds.  I’m tired of listening to the name calling, the insults, the power struggles, the drama, the power plays, the screwing with people’s lives, the anger, the fear, the mistrust and disrespect.  I’m tired of feeling anxious every time I open Facebook because I see the level of interaction getting worse and thinking about where that inevitably ends.  I’m tired of the demands for conformity of thought and belief.  I’m tired of the left vs. right.  I’m tired of trampling on people because they are different.  I’m tired of the spin and lies.  I’m tired.

Yet, I’m also called to be in this world, just like you are.  I can’t do this alone and neither can you.  We have to find a way to live in the same neighborhood.  The only way that I know of where people can live peacefully with differences is the way that Christ laid out.  The focus of his message wasn’t on badgering and beating people into submission – but to change the world by being different, thinking different, and as a result acting differently towards one another, ourselves, God, and the rest of creation. Can we just give it a try?  We’ve been trying this whole war/conflict model for a long time now and it doesn’t seem to be working.

I’m not going wait for your answer – I’m just going to start.  I hope you’ll join, but regardless, I’ll still listen, seek understanding, ask questions, attempt to show mercy, forgiveness, and love to you.  I may not agree with you – I may think you are wrong on any given subject.  That’s ok.  You probably think I’m wrong too.  Great.  Let’s talk like adults.  I still love you and want the best for you and your family.  I’ll pray for you – an honest prayer, not one that tries to manipulate God into changing you to be like me.  I’m going to screw up along the way, and I hope I have enough courage to ask for forgiveness.  This is what I understand Jesus’ call to be for my life.  And with the Spirit’s guidance and God’s help – I’ll respond.

The Super Bowl and the conventions

26 Tuesday Jul 2016

Posted by in Humor, Politics, Theology

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , , , ,

political football

Last week and this week are like the Super Bowl for politics and politicians – it’s the political party conventions here in the US.  There are like the Super Bowl in so many ways.  People watch the Super Bowl for the ads.  In the conventions, the speeches are the ads.  How else to explain all the wonderful words that will be spewed in favor of the nominee who the speaker hopes to get a job from in their administration.

The Super Bowl has a ton of analysis and speculation of what plays will be made and who will start and who will play the whole game and yada-yada-yada.  The conventions are filled with journalists and party hacks and spin doctors doing the same thing.  In politics the speculation is about what the speakers will say, who’s talked about for what position in the potential administration, yada-yada-yada.

The Super Bowl has a lot of glitz and glitter – There is plenty of trash to clean up from conventions too.  Sometimes the trash comes in the form of some of the speeches at conventions.  You know, clean up from a poor or dull speech, or when there are issues with a speech.  Oh, I don’t know, maybe something like plagiarism – but that’s just a crazy example.  Who would do such a thing?

The Super Bowl usually ends up being predictable.  You know who is going to be nominated at the conventions.

The Super Bowl features the two teams who were able to pull off wins during the playoffs – not necessarily the best or the strongest teams.  The convention features candidates who did the same thing during the primaries.

The Super Bowl is watched by a lot of people who don’t care about the teams playing, they do it because, well, because…everyone else is watching and I guess you are supposed to.  Oh yeah, it’s “fun” watching teams you don’t care about play in the year’s biggest game – wishing your team was there and saying to your friends: yeah, well, there’s always next year.  Lots of fun.  Or, maybe it’s the social aspect of getting together with people, some of them die hard fans who would support the team even if Satan were the quarterback.  It gives you an excuse to drink in public, pretend you care about the game, but in fact you’re really just there to eat all the food other people brought.

The conventions…oh hell, there’s the same thing.  Be honest.

I usually watch the Super Bowl – although not always.  Sometime I even have a team to cheer for.  I used to be a fan of NFL football.  I even had a team that I cheered for.  I was passionate about the team. I stuck with them through thick and thin.  But then I saw past all of that and saw the reality – the NFL is a money making machine that doesn’t have a lot of concern for the players and really only cares about them and the fans so far as they can make a buck (or millions) from them.  The NFL is a non-profit, yet is extremely profitable.

I used to watch the conventions.  I even had a party that I cheered for.  I was loyal to the party – worked my butt off for the party and the candidates.  I was passionate about the party.  I stuck with them through thick and thin.  But then I opened my eyes and acknowledged reality – the political parties are power grabbing and power maintenance machines that don’t have a lot of concern for the people of the country and really only care about them so far as they can get a vote or donation from them.

Yet, like the Super Bowl, you have die hards:  People who drink the cool-aid.  They will rationalize away all the negatives and insanity.  They do it in the name of being right.  Because being right is important for humans.  Being right means that someone else is wrong. And we all know that in the US, there are only these two options.  So we set up systems that allow us to think we are right and the other side is wrong.  And we sit by happily in our rightness.  We use language that softens what we really think or what we want to do, or what we do to our opponents and enemies.  We talk about defeating our opponents and/or enemies.  That’s so quaint isn’t it?  It’s like we’re playing a game.

The problem though is, this isn’t a game.  This is life and there are consequences.

Being right isn’t just about having the facts on your side.  It’s an attitude I’m talking about here.  It’s a you’d-better-get-on-board-or-else attitude.  An attitude of egotism.  And attitude of I’m-right-and-you’re-wrong-you-idiot.

Being right, being really committed to a specific set of beliefs, to the point of not questioning them and seeing anyone who does as the enemy, has some real consequences.  When being right aligns with political party or politician, that can start to be dangerous.  When being right takes priority over governing and leading all people – even those you disagree with – the results are devastating.

Being right has brought more death, destruction, and lives ruined than anything else. Being right in the name of God, country, party, demagogue, politician, ideology, patriotism, etc. ends up being wrong in history.  It doesn’t matter how right you were in terms of facts when your concern with being right leads to destruction and death.  If your ideas and beliefs about what is right can’t stand on their own, can’t handle questions and criticisms, but requires force and compliance – then they are weak and ultimately wrong.

 

Let’s be and live rightly instead.  Living rightly doesn’t force itself onto anyone.  Lives are changed when that happens – yours and those that you touch.  Living rightly doesn’t require force or compliance.  Living rightly leaves you open to others and their beliefs about the world.  Living rightly has it’s foundation in belief, but it’s a different belief.  It’s a belief that claims to know the truth – or at least a part of it, but is open to questioning and doubt and examination.  And leaves you open to the possibility that you are wrong.  Living rightly is based in humility and accepting the idea that we don’t know everything.  Living rightly is based on the idea that we are called to be Christ-like – not believe that we are all-knowing.

So, watch the Super Bowl and the conventions if you want to.  Just be careful of what you drink.  Don’t drink the cool-aid.  It’ll make you sick.

Doing the wrong thing right

19 Tuesday Jul 2016

Posted by in Church, Humanity, Organizational theory, Politics, Theology

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , ,

Management-is-doing-things-right-leadership-is-doing-the-right-things.-Peter-F.-Drucker

Are we doing things right?  Are we more concerned with doing what we are doing the right way, or with doing the right things?

Will Richardson wrote a great piece that explored this subject when it comes to education.  He offers some thought provoking ideas and questions about how we do (or don’t do) education in the US.

Here’s just one question from the very beginning of the article:

Do we do the things we do because they’re better for kids or because they are easier for us? For instance: separating kids by age in school. Is that something we do because kids learn better that way? Or do we do it because it’s just an easier way organizing our work? I think all of us know the answer to that.

He’s got plenty more questions like this.  Questions we’d be asking if we really wanted to improve our education system, instead of just rearrange the deck chairs while we fight about who’s in charge of the ship.

What about other areas of life though?  How about in your family?  Are you more focused on doing things right, rather than on doing the right things?  Do you even know what that means when it comes to your family?  One example – a general question.  Are you spending time together as a family?  There’s a way to do this right and a right way to do this.  Doing this right means that you all happen to be in the same room together for hours, but you either ignore each other or miss the opportunity to grow in relationship because all you really care about is the entertainment that is being shown on some screen in front of you.  The right way to do it would be to pay attention to each other, do things together, talk, listen, etc.

This can be applied to so many areas of life.  A book could be written on this concept as it relates to politics.  Politics is an area that excels in doing things right, rather than doing the right thing.

And we could apply it to church too.  Unfortunately, there are plenty of churches that focus on doing things right as opposed to doing the right thing.

The reality is that doing things right is much safer.  It doesn’t require us to rethink what we are doing.  It allows us to think that what we are doing is right.  We’re in control, we only need to tweak what we are doing.  Focusing on doing things right means we get to point at people who have new ideas and say that they are only interested in rocking the boat.  We can blame people for wanting to create chaos.  We can say that we actually changing because we are doing what we have always done, but just a bit differently – better actually.  Focusing on doing things right is more concerned with being right.

When we focus on doing the right things, we approach life differently.  We are open to the possibility that what we are doing is less than ideal, maybe even wrong or dangerous or divisive.  We let go of the desire to control everything.  We open ourselves to new ideas and new people.  We become vulnerable.  It can be scary – everything we knew to be true might not be true anymore.  We are open to change and seeing possibilities.  We are open to thriving and life.  We are open to the possibility that more change will be required.  We are open to the possibility that our vision might actually become reality.  That can be scary too.  Doing the right thing means letting go of being right.  That might sound contradictory, but it’s actually pretty accurate.

So, what are you focused on – doing things right or doing the right thing?  Or is it something else?  Because we all know, life isn’t as simple as just two choices.  And it’s never just that clear and easy.  Life is complicated.  And you know what – that’s ok.  Even if you are thinking about this question, you’re moving in the right direction.  Focus on what matters in life.  And I’ll tell you from personal experience – it’s not being right or having the right answers.  It’s knowing that you don’t, yet still moving forward in love, patience, forgiveness, mercy, and grace.

Is being right most important?

11 Monday Jul 2016

Posted by in Humanity, Society, Theology

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , ,

Is being right the most important thing in the world?

Our pursuit of being right over living rightly has been costly.  We have had wars, revolts, killings, terror, and devastation as a result of being right.  Being right has ended numerous relationships.

The fruit of making being right an idol is division, anger, conflict, belittling, dehumanizing, and insulting.

Being right is what props up the Just War Theology – you can kill your enemy in order to save them.

Being right allows you to impose heavy burdens and demand compliance with the letter of the law.

Being right means we can label those who won’t see the truth as we see it.

Being right means there are people on our side and then there is the other side.  Those people aren’t just wrong, they are stubborn for not hearing the truth.  Let’s damn them.  Let’s label them.  Let’s call down fire or missiles from the sky and destroy them.  They deserve it.  We’re right and their are so clearly wrong.  They are evil.

And then we’re confronted with a story:

But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’ Jesus replied, ‘A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, “Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.” Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?’ He said, ‘The one who showed him mercy.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do likewise.’

– Luke 10:29-37

Making being right an idol means asking the question – who is my neighbor?  Who is on my side and who is on the other side?  Who is with us and who is against us?

Being a neighbor is different.  It’s costly.  It looks past the labels.  It doesn’t see enemies but rather people of God’s creation.  It costs control over your own schedule and plans.  It costs you time, money, and energy.  It costs you when your friends and family and countrymen see you being a neighbor to the one they taught you was an enemy since you were young.

And it’s what we are called to be.

Being right is important.  Wandering through life without a foundation or a rudder to direct you is not what we are called to.  And there are limits to it.  Being right at the expense of living right is not being right at all.  Belief that is not carried out is empty.  Faith that has no follow-up is worthless.

But I get it.  It’s so much easier and you can feel so much more self-righteous when you post a meme on social media declaring how right you are and belittling those who disagree with you.  I get it.  It feels so much better to hold the right beliefs and keep them pure, rather then risk getting messy with someone who is lost.  Much better to either avoid them or criticize them.  You wouldn’t want to open yourself to their story and the possibility that you would see the world differently.  It might cause you to change what you see as right.  Wouldn’t want that, would we?

Being right and being a neighbor are both costly.  Being right costs other people a great deal.  Being a neighbor costs you a great deal.  And it gives life to the one who you were a neighbor to.

Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?’ He said, ‘The one who showed him mercy.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do likewise.’

-Luke 10:36-37

How do you talk with a fundamentalist?

19 Friday Jun 2015

Posted by in Humanity, Theology

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , , , , ,

Last night I had an interesting and sad experience.  One I’ve had before, but not recently.  Someone followed my tweets and as is my custom, I go check out their profile and thank them through a direct message.  Maybe I want to follow them to.  The person I thanked immediately started asking questions.  This should have been my first clue.  I’m not talking about questions that show an interest in a person or topic, but questions about whether I have the right beliefs.  Questions like “Do you believe the bible is 100% right?”  Whoa.  Talk about jumping into the deep end.  My response was – “It depends on what you mean by that.”  I don’t know who this person is or where they are coming from.  I don’t know the intent of the question.  I realized some time ago that holding a deep theological discussion in 140 character increments is not only inconvenient, but really impossible.

The conversation just went downhill from there.  The person decided to bury me with Scripture verse after verse “proving” their wacky beliefs.  I ended up telling the person that I was ending the “conversation” and blocking them.  I don’t like to block people, but I determined that if I didn’t, this person would never stop.

Here’s what I learned:

1. Listen to the first things coming from someone.  What are they interested in?  If they are only interested in being right, then run away – fast before you get sucked in and think you can have a rational conversation with this person.

2. I don’t like feeling trapped.  That’s how I felt throughout this.  I knew exactly where the conversation was heading early on.  This person was throwing so many verses at me at once that I had no time to consider them or to think about a response.

3. Life and God are not either/or – the world and God are not that simple.  Don’t insult God by simplifying God that much.  If I get backed into a corner and you come at me with something like “you are either with me or you are against me” don’t be surprised if I respond that I’m against you.  But realize that you pushed me to that answer.

4. I appreciate it when someone knows Scripture.  I am also aware that Satan was very good at quoting Scripture too.  Throwing verse after verse after verse makes me shift from the first thought to the second pretty quickly – especially when the person doesn’t really care to hear a response but only to show they are right.

Final conclusion – the answer to the question “How do you talk with a fundamentalist?”  You can’t.  You can only be talked to because their world is black and white and any other possibility cannot be entertained or else their entire world will fall down like a house of cards.  Fundamentalism is a person’s response to the fact that we are not in control of our lives.  It is a person’s attempt to control their life through absolutes.  If absolutes are the only thing – either yes or no, with or against – then realize that any response that falls outside of their foundation is considered to be in error.  Context doesn’t matter to them.  The person they are talking with doesn’t matter really.  This may sound harsh, but it is the reality.

So how do you talk with a fundamentalist?  I don’t know the best answer.  Here’s what I did – As with anyone, I remained respectful of the person.  I did not respond with anger or accusations.  When I could see that the conversation only had one possible conclusion – to agree with the person – I politely ended the conversation and wished them well.  When they persisted, I then responded in a manner they could hear since they weren’t listening to my words – I blocked them.

Sometimes we encounter people who live in a world with blinders on.  We desperately want to reach these people.  We want to have a rational conversation.  We want to engage.  But we can’t and we need to recognize this truth – you can’t engage with someone who doesn’t want to engage with you but only show how right they are.  When you come across someone like this – it is best ultimately to shake the dust off your feet and move on and pray for the person.  Life doesn’t always have a happy ending.

Groupthink

20 Monday Apr 2015

Posted by in Church, Humanity, Politics, Society, Theology

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The term groupthink refers to a term from the novel “1984.”  If you have never read the book, it’s disturbing, but well worth reading.

I used the term as the title of this post because of an article I read – “Social Justice Bullies: The Authoritarianism of Millennial Social Justice” published on Medium.com.

The author tackles quite a range of thoughts and confronts something that he is observing – those that push social justice are not very tolerant of opposing viewpoints.  The author takes this to the point of claiming that social justice advocates require a new orthodoxy in thinking and that any disagreement with the new orthodoxy is cause for labeling and ostracize those that disagree with the groupthink.

The author takes on some touchy subjects.

An example of this is the so-called gender pay gap where the popular statistic is that women earn around 70% of what men earn.  The author uses information, articles in well-respected publications, and employment data to show that this gap doesn’t really exist.  But his point is not the statistics, but that the reaction to such data is one where labels are attached to a person who goes against the orthodoxy of supporting the idea of the gender pay gap, regardless of the data.  He essentially is saying – where is there room for debate?

As you read this post, I imagine there are a few reactions to this.  You might agree with what the author of the article I highlighted was saying.  You might disagree.  You might claim that the author is sexist or put on another kind of label to the author.  You might throw a label onto me for posting the article too.

The last one is the most interesting response because when you re-read my post, you’ll see that I never said what I believe about the article or the ideas within it.

Where am I going with this?  The church is no different from the rest of society because the church is made up of people.  People have a certain set of beliefs about what is orthodox and what is heretical and how to deal with those that are viewed as “heretical” or believe differently than ourselves.

The church has spent a great portion of its past denouncing those that don’t toe the line, to the point of excommunicating people, or worse, killing some.  Denominations have formed from other denominations because of the thirst to be “right” and be the holders of “right” thinking and be able to point the finger (or give the finger) to those what are deemed “heretical.”

Injustice comes in many forms – the popular forms are easy to spot.  Think racism, sexism, and anything else that you can attach -ism to.  Part of the issue is defining these terms because in many cases almost anything can become an -ism.  Which actually dilutes injustices that are occurring.  If there is injustice everywhere and all around constantly, then severe injustice is lumped in with far lesser injustices.  It becomes like a mortgage document – it discloses so much information that you never read it, and the information in it becomes worthless to the point that you sign it in the hope that you aren’t getting screwed over.

But injustice also comes in harder to spot forms as well – like when we go around labeling people who disagree with us on any number of topics and try to silence people.  We become Pharisees who see ourselves as more enlightened, more in tune with justice (however we are defining it), and better than “those” people who just don’t get it, or “those” evil people who want to bring about the destruction of the country/church/planet/etc.

I certainly don’t claim to be great at this.  I’ve sinned in this area plenty of times in my life – I have a background in politics and have done my fair share of labeling people and believing that “those” people who I disagree with are evil and trying to bring about the destruction of the country/church/etc.

But here is the Good News – We can’t stop doing this on our own.  Why is this good news?  Our human quest for orthodoxy and being right has been going on for probably as long as humans have been able to communicate with one another.  It comes down to wanting to be in control.  The first sin in the Bible was about humanity’s thirst for control.  We aren’t about to change this thirst any time soon.

But God helps us.  God doesn’t just wipe out this thirst in us because, well, how loving would that be?  Love involves freedom and error and all sorts of things, yet loving all the same.

We humans thirst for control and we find out time and time again that we don’t have it.  Only God has control – however loosely you might want to define it.  Because of God’s love for us, we can surrender the need for control.  It’s not easy, but it is possible.  We might struggle with this, but really our struggle is our own action, not God’s.

God’s love is unconditional.  We can take comfort in this.  If we still insist on labeling people, how about we label people differently – maybe something like this – Child of God.  It gives us a different perspective on how to look at people.