WHY WE NEED ONE ANOTHER

Unless we have been living in a cave for the past year or so, we are quite aware of those factions who want to pull our church apart. This is nothing new. They have always been there, since the church began. I’ll spare us the details and the embarrassment. In the present instance taking sides and laying blame only exacerbates the whole issue. And it does no one any good. It only hurts the whole. For what we forget, what we always forget, is first, we will never agree on everything even in matters of faith. Never. Second and more importantly, we need one another not only to grow in our faith but simply – and more importantly – to live it out as well.

     Why is this so? Barbara Brown Taylor, writing in Christianity Today, says this: “We all need help seeing what we do not see, which is one reason why we practice faith in community. By giving us those who view scripture differently than we do, God delivers us from the worship of our own readings. By joining us with those who have been broken in different places than we have, God offers us guides who can spot danger where we may not. By seating us at table with those who see us differently than we see ourselves, God makes sure we have someone to tell us to XYZ [Examine Your Zipper].”

     We often spend so much time navel-gazing or XYZing to see if our flies are open – metaphorically, of course – that we see nothing else. We are blind to those around us who are different than us because our focus is so narrow. We fail to notice the beam overhead because our head is turned down and inward. As Taylor reminds, we need those who see differently than we do to help us see what we cannot or will not.

     Living in community can be a case of the blind leading the blind, especially if everyone in that community looks with the same eye. But, then, no one does. We do see differently. The temptation, of course, is to gather around us only those who seem to see as we see, think as we think. Doing so helps convince us that we are right and everyone who disagrees with us is wrong. But this is a mighty dangerous thing to do as no one has a lock on the truth.

     Even worse, if we are not open to the possibility that what we believe to be true may, in fact, be false, then when we are proved to be in error, we will have a great deal of difficulty admitting our erroneous belief. Living in community with those who have different life experiences enables us, at least vicariously, to experience what we have not and cannot and may not even wish to experience. It helps us understand why others think and see differently and thus broadens our own horizons.

     We need one another, you and I, perhaps now more than ever. We are being polarized by those who wish to control our thoughts and actions and then garner our support, our votes and even our money. I wish I had the answer, even an answer to the fractionating that is taking place in our church, our country and in our world. All I do know is that I am less without and made more with you, being part of you, even (especially?) when I may disagree with you or you with me.                                                               WJP