How do you respond when you are the one who causes dissonance within your community? I ask this question because recently that person was me. I actually didn’t cause any dissonance within my tribe, but within my larger community I really did, this dissonance came from a sermon. I had read through James chapter 2 over many months, specifically verses 1-13 the ones that talk about favoritism or prejudice.
You see, as I was preparing the message I would read through the scripture in a few different translations, then try to think of a story, then prepare the message. Initially I had a pretty simple message, using the story of a man who I had never met. I was told the story and I felt that I could fit it in the sermon quite well, honestly if I would have chosen that route I would not have caused any dissonance, most people would have been glad for my words and left the sanctuary unchanged that day.
I wasn’t satisfied with it though, I read it over and practiced it twice before I scrapped it. I had two weeks left to figure something out, and I figured out where I was going to go. It was in the midst of one of the most politically charged times in our culture, during the border crisis of 2019. We had hundreds of people coming to America from Mexico and South America who were looking for refuge and hope.
There were many who were arriving the proper way, and many others who were trying to enter illegally, and because of this mass influx of people our border could not handle all of them. So one of the ways that we as a nation decided to respond while we figured out all of the details was to place them in cages and holding facilities for days and weeks at a time. It was inhumane in some cases, but other than just letting them all in without a check, at the time it was the only thing that our nation knew to do.
Now I am inspired to speak on this specific topic because of how I was watching our congregation interact online with all of this news, how so many people were outright hateful saying that we needed to send all of those “racist terms” home, or how if they wanted a better life how they should just work for it like we all did. Some are not against them coming as long as they did it the ‘right way.’
It was hard to watch so many of the people who were in my community treat these people online the way they did. I do believe though that the majority of the people in my community are not racist or xenophobic, but because they have the ‘anonymity’ online they feel like they have the power to say these things without consequence.
Sunday came and I was ready to preach. I was inspired the week prior by Pastor Will’s sermon on the parable of the good Samaritan, and how the religious leaders of the time followed their laws that were in place not to touch something that was dead even though the beaten man was not dead. So I opened with a joke like we do and went into the scripture, talking about how we are not evil or horrible people, how most of us actually do care but we don’t know what to do about it.
Because we don’t know what to do about it, we use our laws that are in place not to care. We look at those trying to come here for a better life for themselves or family and we say they deserve where they are now because they broke our law, yet when many of us break the law daily just by speeding on the highway or rolling through the stop sign.
I then finished my sermon by telling a story. I tried to get our people to empathize with the people who were just trying to find something better than where they were before. I told a story of what I thought the last week of the immigrant who died with his daughter trying to swim across the Rio Grande was like. It was vivid and for many too brutal, I pulled and broke the heart strings of so many people to a point where many thought I was calling them a sinner for simply being a republican.
Not five seconds after I walked off the stage I was yelled at by a man in the front row, as I walked down the aisle I had eyes of fury staring me down. I got to the exit and stood at the door ready to greet people as they made their way out the door and to their homes. I was not greeted with many good jobs or thanks, but rather was greeted by frustration and anger, many people telling me I do not understand the issue I spoke about and how I don’t deserve to be a pastor. Many told me they were leaving the church over this sermon and how I would understand where they were coming from when I was older.
I had never felt more hated in my life, which is a huge because I was a jerk growing up. I had so many hate emails and letters come my way, it was one of the worst weeks in my ministry up to that point. I needed to take a step back and really consider if what I said was truly wrong, or if the Holy Spirit was convicting the hearts of the people in my church.
What I came to understand was that even in the midst of dissonance, we can find peace, and that there cannot be true growth without this dissonance. Now I am not saying that everyone of you reading needs to go preach a sermon that makes your church and community mad. No, but what I am saying is that this difference in opinion is really important to your growth as a person and growth within your community.
One of the things that I was told to do from my pastor was apologize, not because I was necessarily wrong, but because people were hurt. If I am honest, it wasn’t my best sermon, though I still 100% believe the words I spoke I do understand that I hurt people with the power I had on stage that morning. And so, because I understood that I was willing to apologize. I never want to hurt people with my words or actions, I do understand that it will sometimes happen, but by no means do I want to stand on a stage or use a position of power to hurt or tear others down. I should be using that power and position to help bring peace and love into my community and world, and in this sermon specifically I went a bit too far, I hurt those within my community.
Now understanding that I have grown, I realize that the things I do and say have a lasting impact on my community, that people do respect my words and thoughts, even when I don’t see change happening. The other thing that I understand and have more clarity on, is the fact that you don’t have to agree with everything your community believes and vice versa.
Because at the end of the day when all of that sermon drama had passed, people still disagreed with my thoughts on immigration, and I didn’t see eye to eye with every person within my community on that issue, but we were still a part of the same community. Which meant that not only was my apology important, but my community needed to love and accept me even knowing we thought differently.
That is what is so incredible about community, the reality is if you find yourself a part of a community who agrees and believes everything that you are saying, you are not in the community, you are in an echo chamber. If we are really honest with ourselves, an echo chamber feels a lot better than a community. Because in an echo chamber you are only hearing the things you agree with, you are only being told things that you already understand, and the challenges you might face within that echo chamber will not help you grow to become a better person.
A community is a place where you can find peace and acceptance, but it is also a place that will help you grow. Similar to how a gym might work, when we go to the gym we are not there to sleep or eat a thanksgiving meal. When we go to the gym we are there to sweat and make our muscles burn. It cannot happen within a single visit either, when we decide to make a life change for the better we are committing to showing up weekly or more, we are committed to breaking that sweat and making our bodies burn, not because we necessarily enjoy the pain, but because the pain is a step towards making your body healthier.
What I hope you understand from this is not that I want you to go and disrupt the good things you have going on within your community simply to cause dissonance, but maybe go to your community and ask some tough questions. Do you agree with everything everyone says all the time? Or are there moments that you might think differently than the people in your circle? That is important, and it is more important to be able to discover and talk through those things together.
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