How can those who would follow Christ assume that they are more beloved of the Creator than any other part of His creation, when God created everything, and saw that it was good? And if God created man in His own image, male and female, than all, all of humankind is part of that image, known or unknown, served or betrayed, accepted or denied.
Madeleine L’Engle[1]
We are Christians in the business of reconciliation. We work to reconcile brothers and sisters in Christ who have been marginalized from the Church through a policy of exclusion. L’Engle’s quote, then, is easy for us as reconciling Christians to understand. What might be harder is the application of this idea to those Christians in the business of exclusion – those brothers and sisters in Christ who, in our understanding of divine love and acceptance, betray, deny, and hurt the very people we have worked to include in the body of Christ. In Romans 14 – 15:7, Paul offers good advice for dealing with divergent spiritual convictions within a community of faith. Pray today that we find a way to love also those brothers and sisters in Christ who don’t agree with our terms for reconciliation. “May God…give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus” (Romans 15:5).
Anastasia Hacopian
Former RMN Board Member
[1] L’Engle, Madeleine. And It Was Good: Reflections on Beginnings. Crosswicks, Ltd., 1993: 51 in L’Engle, Madeleine. Glimpses of Grace. Daily Thoughts and Reflections. Ed. Carole F. Chase. New York: Harper Collins, 1996: 32.
Reconciling Ministries Network mobilizes United Methodists of all sexual orientations and gender identities to transform our Church and world into the full expression of Christ’s inclusive love.
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