violence that kills community

Wednesday March 28th, John 12: 20 There were some Greeks in town who had come up to worship at the Feast. 21 They approached Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee: "Sir, we want to see Jesus. The Greeks refers not just to those from Greece, but to all from outside the Jewish faith. This new thing that Jesus was ushering into the world, it is not just for a few, it is not just for the frozen chosen, it is not just for those who have the correct knowledge or understanding, it was and is for all. This new thing is that all inclusive love that is the essence and attraction to a God of love who calls us to love one another. They will find out what being a part of the community of God entails soon enough. For now they simply want to see Jesus. Our job as the children of God is to help people see Jesus and announce that the kingdom is near. Often their first glimpse of Jesus is the actions and acceptance by the ones who claim to follow this Jesus. Soon, they, the ones who want to see Jesus, as we, the ones who think we know what Jesus is like but still have a lot to learn, will work out what this new community, with these new people, is, and how it operates. Soon we will discover together the dynamics of this community’s expression of God’s love, forgiveness and calling. That is when change happens again and we get to discover anew the new and ever changing dynamics of community living in the lap of God’s love. When that ceases to happen, when we cease living in the lap of God’s love, community dies. Remember, violence is inviting someone into a situation that must remain unchanged. It is the kind of violence that kills community.