Mega-church pastor and author Rick Warren and I do not often agree on a number of issues. But I recently rediscovered something he said in his bestselling self-help book The Purpose Driven Life which I found most helpful. He writes: "Christians often have legitimate, honest disagreements and differing opinions, but we can disagree without being disagreeable . . . . God expects unity, not uniformity, and we can walk arm-in-arm without seeing eye-to-eye on every issue." (The Purpose Driven Life, 158)
I would broaden that out even further. I would suggest people of faith in general can walk arm-in-arm without always seeing eye-to-eye. Indeed, there are times when we can do that with people of no faith as well. It is, whether Warren realizes it or not, a basic premise, so I understand , of community organizing. We come together around particular issues, and work with those who share the common goal.
Sometimes, I've discovered over my six plus decades, just walking arm-in-arm with someone helps me better understand their point of view when it comes to those different opinions. Indeed, sometimes, I have changed my opinion, my understanding, as a result. And sometimes others have changed their views. But here's the trick, so to speak. We walk arm-in-arm not to change others, but rather to live out the mandate to truly love and respect our neighbors.
"This doesn't mean you give up on finding a solution [to your disagreements]," writes Warren, You may need to continue discussing and even debating--but you do it in a spirit of harmony." (Ibid)
Well said.
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