I have towed a very interesting line in my adult life. It’s often not a comfortable place. My political and personal views on many things, tend to be liberal leaning but I’m also a Christian and attend a very conservative church. For example, I really believe in feeding the poor
“Mark 10:21 ESV And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” Or we could go Old Testament: “Deuteronomy 15:11 ESV / For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, ‘You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.’”.
So, I believe in helping starving children. I believe in loving the people around me.
Jesus said in John 13:34 “"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” So, I take that edict from Jesus, as “Love the people who don’t think like you. Love the people who don’t look like you. Love the people you don’t like. Love the people you don’t understand. Love people Hannah.” 1 Peter 1:22 “Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart.”
I believe these things, yes, my political and personal views are liberal. Odd, considering the Evangelical conservative church I attend and was raised in. I often find myself on a different side of things. By Christians I’ve been told some interesting and sometimes outright terrible things. “You’re going to hell.” (That was at me very passive aggressively and I found it funny). “Lukewarm Christians get spat out for it is better to be hot or cold.” Or people just suddenly stop talking to me or greeting me when they see me in the church I’ve attended for 20 years. I get a few whispers behind my back, people I’ve probably shared too much with, trusting them when I shouldn’t have. I get it, I do. There are things very fundamentally different, when you believe certain things, so wholeheartedly, and someone else doesn’t- it’s easy to talk to about them or reject them. I’m not mad about it, I get it.
Let me clear something up. I go to an Evangelical church, I’m challenged there by the sermons, and there are life-giving people who I love very much. I go to church to purposefully spend time with God and learn. So, the people there who don’t like me, don’t matter in relation to why I go to church. I however, support the rights of others, I think the Bible is a powerful book and positive tool but not infallible (that one makes people angry and want to send me to hell), and I don’t worry about deciding who’s going to hell or not. Jesus told me to love people. So, that’s where I’m at.
ALL of that said, I don’t fit in too well with my more liberal minded friends either. I have been condescended to and belittled because I believe in God period. That my spirituality makes me unintelligent. That I should be ashamed of it and how useless it is to pray. That my belief in a higher power certainly makes me less “cool”, less “enlightened”, and less. *eye roll*
The rude people are spread around in both places. So, I don’t fit in well. That’s okay but it can make a person feel isolated. In the end, I love those people who don’t talk to me, condemn me, or think I’m stupid. I get sad when I see Christians say nasty things about people who are gay or Muslim. Those make me so heartbroken. We can’t love people when we’re so full of hatred. No matter what you believe about the Bible, it makes it clear that hatred and prejudice aren’t part of the deal. I get sad when I see derogatory or terrible statements about Christ- because I think people should be able to co-exist.
I’m bound to offend someone, no matter what I say or do. I don’t set out too but it happens. I wish people could be more willing to have a dialogue or more willing to be less offend. (Really, I’m going to hell guise? Really, you’re mad I said I’d pray for you? Geesh). In the end, I’m just here, somewhere in between- praying for everyone and trying to love people.
Peace out!