Why Can’t We All Just Get Along? Jesus says, “Be Reconciled”
July 23rd, 2022
“You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder’; and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool,’ you will be liable to the hell of fire. So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.” (Matthew 5: 21-24 NRSV)
Jesus sets the bar high for Christians when it comes to anger, name-calling and conflict. In this passage, part of his “Sermon on the Mount”, he offers his followers guidelines and suggests harsh punishment for those who don’t measure up. He tells us anger will get us judgement, while insulting another person leads to appearing before the council and/or the hell of fire. He instructs that before we offer our gifts to God, we should first be reconciled with our brother and sisters.
What I’m wondering today is how Christians read this passage. Particularly, I’m thinking about the two-party system in the United States. Our political scene has reduced many Christian people to anger, name-calling and ongoing conflict with those in the other party. Whether you are a Democrat or a Republican, I encourage you to ask yourself and your leaders whether you are following in the footsteps of Jesus in this regard.
I think that the polarization that has occurred is judgment unfolding in our modern times, even as I write. The anger and insults in our political process are leading to a colossal logjam in our federal governing process. Neither party seems able to cooperate enough with the other to get the needed business done.
Most of us are aware of this problem. Most of us also throw our hands up in despair, believing that there is nothing to be done to stop the problem. We stay comfortable in our own political perspective, which we know is correct, while the other perspective is dead wrong. Many churches solidify this kind of thinking when they promote one or the other political party.
One of the principles on which our country was founded is religious freedom. To maintain this freedom, there must be a separation between church and state. Yet in many cases, churches have become rubber stamps for some politicians. As nonprofit organizations, churches must maintain a high standard of not endorsing political candidates.
In some churches, membership in one political party or the other is expected. I’m aware of friends who prefer evangelical churches where their Democratic party membership is not accepted. Likewise, more progressive churches may frown on Republican party membership.
Do you think that when we maintain a posture of anger, name-calling and entrenched conflict with members of a differing political party, we are refusing to follow in the way of Jesus? If so, what would it look like to be reconciled with those in a differing political party before we offer our gits to God?
One of the issues that deeply concerns me is climate change. As I write this, in Ohio, where I live, we are currently experiencing the warmest December on record. Christmas Day brought downpours instead of our dreams of a white Christmas. Two weeks earlier, Kentucky experienced the most destructive storm in their history when a tornado, over 200 miles wide, destroyed buildings and houses in its path. During 2021, wildfires burned in the west, decimating forests and buildings in California, Oregon and Washington. I could go on, but the reality of our changing climate is wreaking havoc with our planet, making it increasingly unfriendly for humans and other living beings.
Sometimes, I see this as a form of judgment on all of us. God gifted us with an incredible planet, a miraculous place that evolved over billions of years. And now, in just a few hundred years since the industrial revolution, we are quickly on a collision course with God’s creation. Human activity creates the changing climate. 99% of scientists are in agreement about this and most of us also know this now.
For the past 10 years, I’ve been a member of Citizens’ Climate Lobby, a group working to influence our government to address climate change. The one thing they know is that this must be a bipartisan solution. With our divided political system, a solution recommended by only one side or the other is doomed to fail. Anger, name-calling and insults will not solve the problem. No, the only way we will solve this problem is if we can be reconciled with one another, across party lines, and work together.
The clock is ticking on climate change. In the United States, I think that God is calling us to follow Jesus and be reconciled with our brothers and sisters so that we can address this problem together.
I wrote my book, Revelation in the Roots: Emerald Isle, with the need for this reconciliation in mind. The story ends at a peace center in Northern Ireland where the characters find common ground and reconciliation with each other, despite their differing political views.
I’m praying that we Americans will come together