HINTON, West Virginia – Last month, we invited the community to come together to discuss division and reconciliation. It was a pleasure to see the room full of people who were eager to bridge the gap. While Jesus openly claimed that he came to cause division, I do not believe he meant red vs. blue. You may have heard the phrase “addition by subtraction,” which refers to progress by eliminating obstacles. I believe Jesus was encouraging us to remove everything that separated us from our brothers and sisters, including social status, biases, pride, and conditions imposed by ourselves and society. He was and is calling us to a higher level of forgiveness, acceptance, and love. God’s love is limitless, but humans tend to limit their feelings. Jesus showed us numerous examples of how to do this. He takes away all labels, whether good or bad. Jew or gentile, citizen or tax collector, woman or adulterer–and reminds us that we are all the same underneath.
We hope you can join us for Inaugurating Reconciliation II on Saturday, March 8, from 2-4 p.m. This session will be slightly different. Instead of responding to pre-determined questions, speakers will present ideas, concepts, and questions to spark meaningful discussion about ethics, choices, rights, responsibility, government, and resistance efforts when change is required. Refreshments and small group discussions will follow before the meeting concludes in prayer.
