I continue to ponder the story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman and its implications for these perilous times in which we live. Yes, today is election day, and that is a day of both anxiety and excitement across the country. I am looking for those who can help us to move beyond division and the "Divided States of America" to the "United States of America." Vitriol is found on the left and the right. Violence and threats of violence are actually nothing new in our country. All we have to do is study our history and it is right there in our faces. We have had voter obstruction from the very beginning, so that is nothing knew. We all yearn for a better America, yet we have varying views as to what that looks like and sounds like.
The Man from Nazareth has some things to say to us about reaching across gender and racial lines, engaging those who have been "othered" by society, and longing for a better way. His apostles' faces looked a whole lot like our faces when they saw Him talking to her. Maybe we, too, will be puzzled when we find folks who can rise above the roar of the crowd and take us with them into a space and place of respect across various isles of life and politics.
I long for a world in which people ask questions rather than making loud and obnoxious assertions based on limited sources. I long for an engagement that situates us all as learners and less as those with megaphones screaming above the noisy throngs.
I yearn for civility and respect, compassion for those sitting on the curbs of our society, and a vision of a future that is respectful of all of us, one that calls us to service and good will.
I'll still linger in John 4 to see what she and He can teach this old heart of mine. Anyone want to join me there?
