With Jesus' ascension and the new rule in place, Brueggemann suggests three urgent issues where we may take into account this regime change. Here is #2:
Jesus has given a new commandment, that we love one another... And Jesus when to great length to identify "sister and brother" as everyone, including those most unlike us, those who do not fit, those who upset us and make us uncomfortable.
What a gospel word in a society that is increasingly given over to exclusion, to hate, and to vengeance! There is an ideology at work among us that wants to make the world very small, in order to make it safe for us, and to exclude and eliminate everyone who is not like us.
It is this expansiveness of this invitation to "love one another" that becomes such a heated point even within the bounds of the "church." I know I am very willing to draw that line between here and there. That is a part of how I participate in our brokenness. But we are given a commandment that is meant to break the bonds of that slavery to limits and partial love (that is...no love at all) that builds to the point of infection. The infection is that we let hate and vengeance and exclusion turn the peace of the body into a sickly being unable to live within the abundance we noted yesterday. To be quite honest, I find it so hard to live within this gospel word when I want to take sides and be able to distance myself from others. But the gospel keeps standing its ground and inserting its word of hopefulness and renewal into every day. This will continue...forever....because this love that is to be among us...never ends...and cannot be shut down.
Connection: I know we can each use someone (some others) to help us note when our lives appear to be unhealthy - infected - overcome by the elements of life that are contrary to this love we are to share. Let's share the love and not the dis-ease.
Healing Lord, it is by your grace that we continue to move through the many walls that attempt to separate us and even become warring powers against others. Make us instruments of your shalom and a community enriched by your love. Amen.
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