As I write this resource, the United States is currently in the final stretch of yet another eventful presidential election. Such election seasons tend to raise the social temperature, as campaign rhetoric, horse race journalism, and social media algorithms combine to drive American citizens to both polls and poles. And while votes are cast on a single day, the effects of election season polarization endure. Within the past fifteen years, polarization of American society in general and American politics in particular has reached critical levels.
Such is the context of Christian discipleship in the United States of the twenty first century. God has called us into community with one another, placing us in families, communities, and congregations where polarization is both a present reality and a persistent threat. We live, work, and worship in a world filled with messages of hatred and fear of others, whether at political rallies or in the palms of our hands. How can we hope to navigate the challenges of this season while keeping our churches, our workplaces, and our homes intact?
Unity, not Uniformity
The theme of this post is Unity in the Spirit. Now, unity is not the same thing as uniformity. Differences of opinion will abound in any church, whether the differences are about theology, politics, sport teams, or pot luck dishes. Such diversity should be appreciated as the result of God’s bringing together a people out of all the nations. But where these differences go awry is when they become the center of our identities and begin to threaten the unity to which Christ calls us.
“Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you but that you be knit together in the same mind and the same purpose”
1 Corinthians 1:10
Although the circumstances were quite different, a parallel to our present day can be found in the first century churches of Corinth, where factionalism took root and brought in disunity and quarreling. Writing to these churches, the apostle Paul called for them to be “knit together” or “established” (in the Greek, καταρτίζω/katartizo) with a shared mind and a single goal that transcended their factions and was rooted in their shared love for the Lord Jesus Christ.
To pursue such unity required a shift in their thinking. And as is often the case in the Scriptures, this shift in thinking was best achieved by a change in the imagery with which they described themselves. At some point these churches had embraced the image of factions: being of Paul, of Peter, or of Apollos. Such images placed unity within the bounds of shared opinion rather than Christian devotion.
In place of factions Paul challenged his readers to embrace the image of the church community as a temple: “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple” (1 Corinthians 3:16-17). It is not enough to think of the church community as a place where individuals gather once a week. The church community is a local manifestation of God’s temple-people, together a dwelling place for his Holy Spirit. Like the bricks of an ancient temple, we can be united within the scope of our differences and withstand each of the trials that come our way. Or we can embrace the division that the world seeks to impose on us, and so fall into ruin.
A Model for Conflict Resolution
We are called to unity. But what are some practical steps that we can take to pursue unity when the political culture frames so much of our lives along dramatic and even violent lines? We are blessed with a helpful model for navigating high-stakes issues in the fifteenth chapter of the book of Acts. At the famous Jerusalem Council the earliest Christian leaders assembled to address a most contentious issue: does God demand that the Gentiles embrace circumcision and food laws? This debate was undoubtedly more heated than the single chapter summary of Acts suggests. At stake in it was a sincere question about identity. Who are God’s people, and who is God, if he does not demand obedience to certain commands? It is no wonder that opposing camps lined up and were even chasing each other across the Near East.
From the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15) we learn a model for conflict resolution themed around Conversation, Prayer, and Spirit-Led Consensus. The Council allowed members to share their experiences and their concerns, reflect on the Scriptures, and together to seek the Spirit’s leading through recent events. After such seeking, they moved forward together in unity.
Such a model can be helpful in our own context as we explore unity in a polarized world. As church communities, we should commit to postures of conversation, prayer, and Spirit-led consensus. Through such postures we can create space for healthy conflict resolution within the bounds of committed fellowship.
Additional Resources
Peaceful Practices: A Guide to Healthy Communication in Conflict
With this 9-session Small Group Study from Mennonite Central Committee U.S., your church will learn tools for healthy conversation & conflict resolution. Practice skills in empathetic listening, debate moderation, and more with this helpful resource. Available (for free) at: https://mcc.org/resources/peaceful-practices-guidehealthy-communication-conflict
Stuck Together: The Hope of Christian Witness in a Polarized World (J. Nelson Kraybill, 2023)
In this book, J. Nelson Kraybill, former president of the Mennonite World Conference and Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, writes about the good news that God aims to “bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ” (Ephesians 1:8-10). This message, coupled with stories from Scripture and Kraybill’s own ministry contexts, is designed to help churches pursue reconciliation together - for the healing of their own communities and for the wider world. Available for purchase at: https://www.mennomedia.org/9781513810645/stuck-together/
Shalom! A Journal for the Practice of Reconciliation, vol. 40.1 (Winter 2020): Making Peace When We Disagree
The essays in this journal explore approaches to constructive conversations and conflict resolution within the Brethren in Christ U.S. (my denominational context). Available upon request at: https://bicus.org/resources/ publications/shalom