I was flipping through my social media accounts and saw a plethora of articles that boil down to differences. Difference of opinion, belief, whatever. I started thinking about a Twitter conversation I had with a follower about God, religion and beliefs in general.
This person is an atheist, I'm a Christian. I'm a very open minded Christian who doesn't feel threatened by people with other views. What ensued was an intelligent conversation about what we each believe in and why, and what we agree and disagree on, and mutual respect for each of our views. (Po-TA-toe/po-tah-toe...) Neither of us felt threatened. Neither of us felt pressured to convert.
I sincerely wish everyone could apply this principle to situations concerning religion, sexual orientation, race, and the millions of other points of contention in our world. Is this a Pollyannistic wish? Maybe. Would it be nice? You betcha.
Tolerance. Acceptance. Understanding. Coexistence. Love.
I very much enjoy those kinds of encounters myself and feel as though I've really connected when I've engaged with someone whose world view differs from my own. Approaching one another with respect, articulating a view point, finding some common ground and accepting one another - they are such valuable things even if they aren't so tangible.
ReplyDeleteWell said, Dean. People get so consumed with being "right", that they forget how valuable respect and acceptance are. Thank you for reading and for your comments. I apologize for the delay in responding. Peace and joy!
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