I am a person of strong conviction and intense moral righteousness. I have a lot of ideas about how I think a “true Christian” should live in this world, and none of them is fainthearted. I don’t think Christians should make much money, so they can ally with the marginalized. I believe we must live very simply to care for the earth—leave fossil fuels behind, grow our food, try not to produce trash. I don’t think we should perpetuate war, and I feel racism and the love of money are major demons in this world. By now you get what I mean. Maybe you don’t want to meet me at a party.
God’s little joke is that many of the beautiful Christians I love deeply don’t share any of these convictions. They may never talk about economic disparity or race, but they do care about cultural attitudes toward sexuality and reproduction, whether people are giving the Bible enough authority, or about people who are not Christian. They have a rosier picture of the legacy of my country, the United States, than I do. Never have we united around a political platform.
Then there are the people I struggle to love because they have done harmful or brutal things. And there are the people with whom I go round and round, never sure how they can think the way they do! (They return the favor.)
This litany is a prayer for divided times. It begins in silence and listening. It reminds us of all we do not know and what we must learn from one another.
Dee Dee Risher is a writer, editor, worship leader, and activist.
This reflection and a downloadable litany are offered as a practical way to pray with and listen to each other in divided times. Adapted from Rally: Communal Prayers for Lovers of Jesus and Justice (Fresh Air Books, 2020).
What convictions do you hold so tightly that you struggle to hear someone who sees the world differently?
What might you need to empty from your heart to make room for something God wants to teach you?
Who is hardest for you to listen to right now? What makes listening to that person so difficult?
How might God be speaking through someone whose convictions challenge your own?
What is one small act of listening you can offer someone across a dividing line?
Share your responses with others in the comments below!
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