The five-week pre-election series begins Sunday, October 6th and concludes on Sunday, November 3rd.
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Week 1 – Luke 6:31-36 (Movie Recommendation: Wonder)
“Blue and Red Make Purple: Kindness” Did you know that over 99% of our DNA is the same from one human to another? This surely makes us kin. The word kindness originally developed from a root word that meant “family” or “with the feeling of relatives for each other.” We begin this series considering the implications of spending so much of our time feeling estranged from, and resentful toward, those whose less than 1% moves them in a different direction from us. And we begin to dream of finding a “purple space” in which to exchange goodness.
Week 2 – Isaiah 11: 6-9 (Movie Recommendation: Ferdinand)
“The Polarization Within: Compassion” Because we are complex beings living in a complex world, we sometimes deal with conflict within us in addition to the conflict between us. Research tells us that because we humans are desperate for a sense of cohesion and belonging in these confusing times, we are hanging onto ideological generalities instead of treating ourselves and each other with the compass ion required to alleviate despair. Compassion grows when we are able to know ourselves and one another on a deeper level and act out of understanding.
Week 3 – Ephesians 4: 1-6 (Movie Recommendation: Mr. Holland's Opus)
“Listen More, Speak Less: Humility” The root of the word “human” is the same as the word “humility.” It all means literally “on the ground.” From dust we came, and to dust we shall return. When we hear each other’s fears, anxieties, and pain, we can return to the ground of hope… that we are all experiencing the pains of being human. This week we remember to look first at our neighbor as a person, not a position. Beginning conversations this way may help us to stay human and “on the ground” with one another rather than needing to come out “on top.”
Week 4 – 1 Corinthians 12: 1-26 (Movie Recommendation: RESPECT)
“Living Together on Uncommon Ground: Respect” “R.E.S.P.E.C.T., find out what it means to me,” so sang Aretha Franklin. And she convinced us that it means a lot. Sometimes we think having respect means to agree or be the same. But that is not actually the depth of what respect is about. It comes from the Latin respectus which means “the act of looking at one often, to consider, to observe.” We are called to respect by tending to one another–regarding each other, considering each other–early and often. As we live on uncommon ground (because the reality is that common ground is sometimes not possible), what can we do to keep tending to one another as “kin” worthy of respect despite our differences?
Week 5 – Matthew 22: 34-40 (Movies: The Iron Giant)
“Malice Toward None: Love” As this series draws to a close, we may feel more or less resolved in our openness to each other. Loving our neighbors–including relatives, coworkers, acquaintances, strangers–as ourselves is no simple task. We need God. We need the love of God to show us mercy and strength to love as God loves. We need the story of Jesus–the one who loved across the lines that had been drawn in the society of his day but who also stood up for the least and the lost. We need faith that no matter the strain of differing positions, policies, and politics, we will move forward in love. Disagreeing need not be antithetical to love and grace. And indeed, our world depends on all of us working for a better world filled with more kindness, compassion, humility, respect, and love.
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