Recently I attended the Society of Vineyard Scholars, a time rich in scholarship and fellowship. A paper entitled, The Three Orthos and Reconciliation caught my attention. Mary-Catherine Brown, the author, told us that right belief (orthodoxy) and right action (orthopraxy) are never enough to achieve peacemaking and reconciliation. What we also need are right affections (orthopathy). Thank you Mary-Catherine for this brilliant insight. (While I first heard it from Mary-Catherine, others are emphasizing the same thing. See reformedbaptistinstitute.org).

Yes, the heart of peacemaking is the heart!

To spread peace, we need to be in peace -- peace with God and peace within ourselves. But we have a problem. Our hearts are battle grounds, and life is full of peace robbers. The challenge for all of us is this: what is the state of my heart today? How can I be at peace with God and within myself? Let me share two practices that get to the heart of peacemaking and that help me keep the peace.

1. To live in peace, we rest in God’s love.

When I think of the condition of my heart and how it impacts my peacemaking, I recognize that I have to continually get in touch with God's heart. God's great peacemaking initiative in sending Jesus to reconcile us back to him and to others grew out of his love for us. The "heart" of peacemaking is God's heart (John 3:16; Romans 5:8-11). When I experience God’s love, I live in peace.

But resting in God’s love doesn’t come naturally to us.

I was talking about this with a friend recently. He said that when he was growing up, all of his life was like a scorecard. Just as basketball players track their rebounds, blocked shots, assists, and points per game, so too my friend felt like he needed to track his accomplishments. He wanted to win people’s approval. Acceptance depended on his performance. This describes my life too, except that I find out what’s a good score and then I am determined to exceed it! Not good.

But God’s love is greater than my perfectionism or drivenness … or yours!

“Keep yourselves in the love of God,” says Jude (Jude 1:21 NASB). What a precious command. If we are going to keep ourselves in the love of God, we need to think about those things that keep us from God’s love. Anxiety, busyness, pride, anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, and lack of prayer are just a few ways we block God’s love. What other things would you add to this list?

We keep ourselves in God’s love by spending time in God’s presence; by submitting our lives, our schedules, our relationships to him; by taking a quiet walk in the woods; by enjoying His good gifts; by making peace with others.

One of my favorite prayers is found in 2 Thessalonians 3:5: “May the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the steadfastness of Christ.” When I pray this I acknowledge that God must do something in my heart. I often repeat the prayer a number of times, inviting him to direct my heart, confessing that I need His love and Christ’s steadfastness.

I spend time pondering and praying through this verse. Then I silently sit before the Lord. I am not a very good mystic, but I have learned this: resting in God’s love is the opposite of performing for God’s approval. When I remind myself that God is love and that we love because He first loved us, all is well with my soul. I naturally walk in peace.

2. To live in peace, we walk by faith.

We often feel buffeted by life’s challenges. The daily grind of pressure to perform, family disputes, financial struggles, personal failures, and physical illness takes its toll. And we lose the peace.

The antidote? We pray. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Philippians 4:6). First, we say no to our anxieties (please note that this is a command). Next, we say yes to God by praying about the things that burden us. We turn our cares into prayers.

Finally, we thank God for the good things that come our way. We cultivate a heart of gratefulness. As we pray and as we trust, our anxieties melt away. The result: God does what only He can do: He gives us peace. “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7).

Orthopathy (right affections) may not be a word you will use in the future, but this term does put the spotlight on the heart of peacemaking!

Jeremy Courtney, executive director and cofounder of Preemptive Love Coalition, speaks about living as an American in Iraq and pursuing a lifestyle of preemptive love. He says, “violence unmakes the world,” but “preemptive love unmakes violence. Preemptive Love remakes the world through healing.” This philosophy of preemptive love has led Jeremy and the staff of Preemptive Love to work in partnership with Iraqis to eradicate the backlog of children who need heart surgery in Iraq. This video is filled with inspiring stories of peace, healing, and hope coming out of Iraq.

Reflection

• Can you think of a moment when you have used the method of a preemptive strike because you did not trust someone?
• How do you think preemptive love could be used in your own life to unmake conflict and violence?
• Take 30 seconds to imagine a world where everyone chose the path of “preemptive strike.” Now take 30 seconds to imagine a world where everyone chose the path of “preemptive love.”
• Is the idea of “preemptive love” or “preemptive strike” more consistent with the teaching and example of Jesus? Why?

PCI recognizes that thoughts and opinions expressed in this video do not necessarily reflect the views of PCI, nor is the speaker necessarily in full agreement with the views of PCI. 

Martin Brooks is our Midwest Regional Director, based in Louisville, KY. Today, his wife Susan tells a story...

One important part of what we do with Peace Catalyst is introducing Christians to Muslims so that they can build friendships and learn from each other. With this goal in mind, a couple of weeks ago, Martin and I met a group of Christian friends at a local mosque. We observed the prayer time and toured the facility. We enjoyed our visit; and as we were leaving, the leaders there invited us to a special event that would include a dinner, special speakers, and a Muslim comedian. We had no idea what that even meant—a Muslim comedian—at the mosque?? We were intrigued, so last Friday night we went to check it out.

The dinner was amazing—hummus and pita bread and salad, rice and roast beef and baklava—I love Middle Eastern food! During the dinner, some adorable school children sang “It’s a Small World After All” and performed skits and such. There was one cute skit about how it pleases God if we give our money to the poor and needy, rather than spending it on fancy cars and big houses. The people from this mosque had helped the tornado victims in Henryville, IN, just as many Christian groups had.

After dinner, there were two speakers and a fundraising drive. By the time the comedian got up to speak, it was nearly midnight. Though it was late and we were all exhausted, within a few minutes he had us all doubled over with laughter. We were so glad we had stayed to hear him. Azhar Usman was hilarious! He talked about how everyone thinks he’s a terrorist, which isn’t funny; but it was incredibly funny to hear him crack jokes about it. He did a great job of showing how we all stereotype people, and it was great to be able to laugh about it together and to hear it from a Muslim perspective.

At one point, Azhar started commenting on the diversity of the group in attendance that night. There were Egyptians, Syrians, Indians, Palestinians, Bosnians, and African Americans… and then he turned to us. I hadn’t realized before this point that we were smack-dab in the middle of the room. The comedian looked at us and said,

“Right in the middle of it all, there’s this random white family! What in the world are you guys doing here? Are you undercover Bosnians, did you convert to Islam, or what?”

I was trying to slide under the table. I hadn’t thought of us as the only white family there, but I was the only blonde in the crowd. My bold husband, however, was just happy for the opportunity, and he replied,

“No, we just love Muslims.”

Something profound happened in the room at that moment. Everyone turned to us and smiled, and Azhar seemed astounded! He thanked us and said that they love us too, and that they were so happy for us to be there.

“You just made our night! And please tell your Christian friends that we love Jesus too, and that the Quran says that Jesus was a highly esteemed prophet, and that he was born of a virgin.” Azhar the comedian was on a roll now.

“So are you guys real, hard-core, church-going Christians?” he asked, incredulous.

“Yes,” we said. (“Guilty as charged,” I was thinking to myself.)

Azhar went on, “Wow, you are brave! Your friends are going to say, ‘What!!! You went into the mosque?? Are you crazy?? Do you know what they DO in there!! They kill chickens, and then eat them!! Then they feed them to their children, and then they eat the children!!’”

He was merciless as he went on, “Now, what would make this night perfect—repeat after me…” He started into the Muslim profession of faith…

The whole place roared with laughter, and I was laughing so hard that I was crying.

Finally, Azhar became serious for a few minutes, and he led the whole crowd in a prayer of blessing and protection for us and our family. He also asked them to continue to pray for us. We were honored and touched. After the program we were overwhelmed with handshakes and invitations.

We had become part of the entertainment for the evening, but I was laughing so hard that I didn’t really mind. It was all in good fun. It is healing to be able to laugh together with those that we have imagined to be “the scary other”—to laugh about our irrational fears. It was a rare moment. Muslims and Christians were laughing together about the crazy things we think about each other based on TV programming and media stereotyping. We were face-to-face, seeing in the eyes of the other a person very much like ourselves, with similar fears, weaknesses, and—thank God—a similar sense of humor. I think Jesus was pleased and laughing with us.

Dr. Salim Munayer is the Director of Musalaha, an organization working on the process of reconciliation in Israel and Palestine. He speaks on the importance of having a robust theology of reconciliation instead of the incomplete theologies that lead to exclusive support of either Israel or Palestine. He identifies the tendency of fundamentalist Christians to support Israel, mainline Christians to support Palestine, and shows how a deep theology of reconciliation will lead to a desire for the flourishing of both communities.

Reflection 

• Is it easier for you to love Palestinians or Israelis? Why is this?
• How does your theology affect the way you interact with people from other religions or communities?
• What do you think is the difference between reconciliation and peacemaking?

More videos from the Popcorn Guide can be found here.

PCI recognizes that thoughts and opinions expressed in this video do not necessarily reflect the views of PCI, nor is the speaker necessarily in full agreement with the views of PCI.

Eboo Patel at the Global Faith Forum

Eboo Patel, an American Muslim and founder of the Interfaith Youth Core, addresses a group of Christians at the Global Faith Forum at Northwood Church. He talks about the increasing challenges of living in the U.S. as a Muslim and the need for people to protect and respect people from other faiths. Patel encourages people to promote peace, not in spite of their faith, but as a response to the robust peacemaking teaching found in their religious texts.

Reflection

• Imagine you were at a meeting where people were celebrating the burning of a local Mosque. What passages from scripture would you use to promote peace and discourage this unloving mentality?
• Go to biblegateway.com and do a search for the word “peace” in the New Testament. Can you think of any sermons or Christian books that have focused on those passages?
• The Interfaith Youth Core focuses on bringing together people from different faith backgrounds for community service? Would you be comfortable with this?
• Imagine you were given the task of organizing a community service project with people from other backgrounds. How would you go about initiating the relationships with the other faith communities? What type of activity would you do?

PCI recognizes that thoughts and opinions expressed in this video do not necessarily reflect the views of PCI, nor is the speaker necessarily in full agreement with the views of PCI. 

Men kept touching me. They have this way of reaching out in the middle of a crowd and brushing your body in inappropriate places without ever looking your way. Then you doubt yourself, because no one looks like they did it on purpose. But it’s too targeted and personal to be an accidental touch.

I had only been in Bahrain about a year, but I knew that none of my friends were having this problem with guys. I was doing everything I could to dress and behave modestly and appropriately. But it kept happening.

One night I was home alone and the doorbell rang. We had an intercom, like everyone else, but I couldn’t understand the person on the other end. I went out my front door and unlocked the gate to find a Pakistani man standing there. “Give chance. Give chance,” he said. I thought he wanted to wash my car.

After several attempts to communicate, he asked, “Russia?” “No…America,” I answered, puzzled. I closed the gate, and by the time I got inside it dawned on me—he thought I was a Russian prostitute. I was stunned, and also ashamed and nervous. Why would he think I was a prostitute? Was he watching the house to know that I was alone? Was I safe? Were there others?

Several days later he came back. I ran up to my roof to see over the wall and confirm that it was him again. I called my neighbor, a Bahraini man with several daughters who I knew would help. He called the police and came over and held onto the man until the police came. I was really shaken. And all the police questioning makes you feel like it’s your fault.

Funny, even writing this now, I wonder, will people think this was my fault? I felt that shame much more back then–because women often feel that way, because Middle Eastern culture tends to put responsibility on the woman in these kinds of incidents, and maybe mostly because I was trying so hard not to draw attention to myself, to be above reproach in that culture.

As these incidents added up, they started to weigh on me. I was nervous. My stomach would knot when I pulled up behind a truck full of Pakistani workers. The stares unnerved me. I felt jumpy dealing with men at shops or in the souq.

After a while, some ideas started to rise up inside of me. Two Bible verses became mantras to me, not just to say them, but to imagine them. One was “The name of the Lord is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.” (Proverbs 18:10) I would imagine God as a tower with strong walls all around me, and it helped me to feel safe. The other verse was “But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the one who lifts my head high.” (Psalm 3:3) In many ways the hijab, or veil, is a symbol of honor and protection for a woman.* But my physical coverings didn’t seem to be doing their job. So with this verse I actually pictured God wrapping a cloak around me that hid me from those who wanted to take advantage of me. The part about God being the lifter of my head helped me let go of some of the shame I had been feeling.

These practices, done consistently every time I felt uncomfortable or frightened helped me recover a feeling of safety and security. But that wasn’t enough. I wanted to move from feeling protected to actively loving. So there was another component to my practice. As is often the case, my fears had generalized to all men of similar ethnic origins. So it wasn’t just a handful of people who hurt me that I was now afraid of—it was lots of people. So every time I felt uncomfortable I would ask God to bless those people that I was afraid of—I would try to desire from my heart that God would do good things for them.

Recently I have been thinking about how negative experiences with a few people can grow to become anger toward and fear of a whole group of people. It happens all over the world, but my heart particularly aches when I see this happen between Muslims and Christians.

Individual hurts have taken place when Americans have been affected by terrorism, when Muslims have been bullied or hurt by hate crimes, when people from each group try to convert each other in disrespectful ways, and when we assume the worst about each other. But those hurts that happen on an individual level, or on a small-group level become culturally ingrained fears, prejudices, and inability to love.

There is no magic formula for overcoming these hurts, because they affect us each individually in different ways. I shared my story as just one example. For me, the emotional touch points were fear and shame. It’s important for each person to invite healing into their lives in a way that is personally meaningful, in the way that your gut tells you you most need it, and then to turn around that healing toward the people who hurt you, even toward their whole ethnic or religious group.

My story ends with a dramatic, but not immediate transformation. I had to keep the practice up for a significant period of time before I noticed that I was settling into a feeling of safety and love again, but it was a big change from the fear and anxiety that I had been experiencing.

Do you have stories of seeing this kind of change happen in you? Do you have experiences that you would like to see turned around from hurt to love? Tell us about it in the comments.

*Note: Yes, there are ways the hijab can be used negatively as well—it is a mixed bag that is experienced differently by different women, but I think it’s important to understand that it can have positive connotations.

More from Christen can be found at her blog, Greener Grass.

PCI recognizes that thoughts and opinions expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the views of PCI, nor is the author necessarily in full agreement with the views of PCI.

So without further ado, on to today's video...

Mike Erre: Multi-faith Dialogue

How can someone engage in respectful dialogue without compromising their deeply held beliefs? Teaching pastor at Mariners Church in Mission Viejo, Mike Erre, speaks on the necessity of “multi-faith dialogue” as an alternative to “interfaith dialogue.” “Multi-faith dialogue” is a genuine meeting of individuals who may not share similar beliefs, values, and/or experiences but are willing to meet, share their lives, and work for the common good. Multifaith promotes love rather than just tolerance, conviction over compromise, and above all the rule of “love your neighbor as yourself.” Mike gave this talk at Lumen, an innovative conference of faith and culture, on the 10th anniversary of September 11th.

Reflection

• Who in your life may not share your beliefs, values, and/or experience?
• Mike Erre asserts that Christians should begin multifaith interaction with confession of sin. Are there ways that your sin has negatively affected people of other faith? What sin do you need to confess to God and your neighbor?
• Mike quotes several passages from the Bible. Which passage challenges you the most?
• What benefits can you foresee in using the “multi-faith dialogue” method over the “inter-faith” dialogue?

You can find the full collection of videos on our website here.

PCI recognizes that thoughts and opinions expressed in this video do not necessarily reflect the views of PCI, nor is the speaker necessarily in full agreement with the views of PCI.

In Peace Catalyst International, we aspire to launch a global movement of Jesus-centered peacemaking communities. To that end, our PCI team in Raleigh has helped to catalyze a significant movement of Muslims and Christians who are moving beyond unhelpful stereotypes and are building bridges of friendship and trust.

Back in the fall, however, things took a major twist for us. A well-respected local rabbi reached out, basically saying that he had heard about our work in bringing Muslims and Christians together and that he wanted his Jewish congregation in on the fun.

Now, we have a something really special brewing, and I wish to share a taste with you!

Getting to Know One Another, Studying Our Books

On March 11, at Apex Mosque near Raleigh, we had our first gathering of Multi-Faith Friends for the Homeless. Our group of 12, comprised of Muslims, Christians, and Jews, spent two hours getting to know one another, sharing our stories, and discussing what has compelled each of us to join people of other faith traditions in working for the common good. This was a solid start for our fledgling group.

Last Sunday afternoon, March 25, our cadre got together for the second time, this time at Fellowship of Christ, also near Raleigh. The plan was that each of the three delegations would share from their sacred writings what their respective traditions say about loving those who are less fortunate.

The Hebrew Scriptures

Opting for chronological order, I asked our Jewish friends to go first. As they began sharing from the Hebrew scriptures (the Old Testament for Christians), I felt the magnitude of the moment, and tears formed in my eyes. One of the verses they presented was Micah 6:8, and here it is in The Message:

"But he's already made it plain how to live, what to do, what God is looking for in men and women. It's quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love. And don't take yourself too seriously— take God seriously."

As our Jewish friends commented on this and other passages, they explained that everything we have ultimately belongs to God, that He wants us to steward well and share well the resources He gives us, and that how we treat others says everything about our love (or lack of love) for God. I was deeply challenged and moved.

The New Testament

Next, I asked Neal Foster, my friend and colleague, to share from the New Testament. Neal wisely chose passages from the Gospels and from James’s epistle. At one point, Neal opted to read from the Sermon on the Mount. As he read aloud Jesus’ admonition to trust God for provision, to love God more than money, and to seek His Kingdom and His righteousness first and foremost, one dear Muslim sister began to weep, which of course led to more tears for me!

The Qur'an

As our Muslim friends began sharing from the perspective of the Qur’an, they noted Surah 9:60, which suggests that those with real faith will be the ones who use their resources to care for the poor and destitute, to free slaves, to help those in debt, to show hospitality and kindness to travelers in need, and to reconcile the hearts of people. Also, our friends reminded us of their traditional proverb, which in my paraphrase says,

"A fat bank account may work against you on the day of judgment, but a life poured out and spent for others will surely speak well of the condition of your heart before God."

Common Ground for the Common Good

Twelve Jews, Muslims, and Christians spent two and a half hours studying our books together, and we were greatly encouraged by what we found. On the issue of loving our neighbors and especially the poor among us, we discovered amazing, rich common ground.

After the meeting adjourned, a fellow Jesus-follower and I were approached by one of the Muslim couples, whom I have been getting to know for about six months. I have deep respect for them, as they are among the most genuine and kind people that I know. It has been my sense that we are developing a special heart connection. Apparently, they feel it, too. Because with tears in her eyes, this kind-hearted Muslim woman said, 

"At first, I came to the table because it was the right thing to do, but soon I started seeing you as my friends, and now you’re like my family."

And I got teary-eyed all over again!

So what's next? Our Multi-Faith Friends group plans to meet again in April at Beth Meyer Synagogue to discuss practical ways that we can stand together on this common ground to work for the common good.

The film was the brainchild of the Center’s Director, Robert Parham and presented an alternative approach to Christian-Muslim relations in contrast to the traditional and more confrontational avenue taken over the years by the Baptist denomination. Mr. Parham’s film sought to build upon recent positive Baptist reception to issues of Christian-Muslim relations, most summarily represented by the inclusive response to the “Common Word” initiative by the Baptist World Alliance (the “Common Word” initiative was an open letter to Christian clergy signed by Muslim leaders throughout the world seeking commonality between Christians and Muslims in the wake of Pope Benedict XIV’s inflammatory remarks concerning Islam in a 2006 speech in Regensburg, Germany).

According to Mr. Parham, “we believe the Bible calls us to love our neighbors, not as a means of conversion, but because it is the right thing to do. And the right thing for goodwill Baptists to do is to speak up for Muslims in our culture of anger and to reach out with a hand of partnership.” The film offers several poignant and moving examples of positive Christian-Muslim interaction, sometimes in the face of outright provocation such as the 2008 firebombing of the Islamic Center of Columbia, Tennessee by an extremist Christian organization (see a clip from this part of the documentary here). In Columbia, the pastor of a local Baptist church led his congregation in developing a loving and constructive relationship with the Center, reaching out under the mantra, “they will know we are Christians by our love, not by our statements.” The President of the Center, in turn, welcomed the Christian outreach, saying, “you more or less witnessed to us, about the love that’s within the church according to the teachings of Christ.”

“…the Bible calls us to love our neighbors…because it is the right thing to do.” A novel approach, isn’t it? And so often in the evangelical community we see interactions with other faith groups, and Muslims specifically, that are not grounded in this most important tenet of the Christian faith. Many evangelicals see Islam as a threat to Christianity, not just in the eschatological context of dispensationalism, but also due to the unfortunate actions of criminals proclaiming to act in the name of Islam. The violent end-times images associated with millennial dispensationalism juxtaposed against radical Islam wrongly prompts many evangelicals to, at best, disengage with Muslims and, at worst, vilify Islam and Muslims, contrary to the teachings of Jesus Christ.

Jesus identified love of neighbor as the most important commandment outside of loving God. Indeed, love of neighbor in the vein that Jesus meant is an expression of unequivocal love of God Himself. He offered no exceptions to this commandment and provided the strongest example of living out this principle by going to his death rather than attacking his persecutors.

Mr. Parham’s film documents several similar interactions, some initiated by Christians, some by Muslims. The common denominator in each of the film’s examples is love of neighbor, a value that is at the theological forefront of both true Christianity and true Islam. The examples throughout the documentary of Baptists and Muslims putting their faith into action, without prejudice or the motivation of conversion, illustrate the alternative approaches some Baptists are undertaking to relate to Muslims peacefully and respectfully.

Grayson Robertson is a 2011 graduate of Georgetown University’s Islam and Muslim/Christian Relations Master’s program and lives with is wife and twin daughters in the Washington, DC area.

PCI recognizes that blogs posted on the PCI website do not necessarily reflect the views of PCI, nor does it mean that the author is in full agreement with the views of PCI.

This past weekend, Iraqi-American Muslim mother of five, Shaima Alawadi was being buried in Iraq after being murdered near San Diego. During this same weekend, Rick Love came to Crossroads Christian Church in Vacaville, California to lead a Peacemaking Seminar to help promote peace with Muslims. Fear of people who are different than us has often led to hate which turns violent, and this weekend was a great time to help followers of Jesus grow in a love that drives out fear (1 John 4:18). 

During the weekend seminar, over 60 people from the neighboring communities took time to look at Jesus's ways as he modeled reconciliation and love of neighbor, and what that means for us as we relate to our Muslim neighbors. Rick then spoke to hundreds during three Sunday morning services about how following Jesus in our location and vocation has a global impact. 

Jesus lived in a time when there was intense conflict between political powers and religious institutions. Those attending the seminar were again amazed at how the attitude, words and actions of someone who lived 2000 years ago can greatly help us in our modern-day conflicts - in our families, in our neighborhoods and in the world.

Jesus shocked people with how he broke with tradition. He viewed people without stereotypes or prejudice. He wasn't a "peace-faker," ignoring the issues that divided people, and he also wasn't naive. Jesus was a peacemaker. He called peacemakers blessed - those who boldly head into conflict to do what they can to restore harmony. 

For instance, the relationship between the Jews and Samaritans of Jesus's day is very similar to the one between Christians and Muslims today. Jesus's interaction with the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:9) is one example. This woman was so surprised that Jesus was speaking to her, because "Jews refused to have anything to do with Samaritans." This was especially true of Jewish men and Samaritan women. Yet, he showed humility and concern. He engaged in life-changing dialogue with her.

All of us at this weekend's seminar were challenged by Jesus's example and motivated to love Muslims enough to engage with them.

Here are a few more highlights from the weekend:

• A Christian schoolteacher and her husband were so excited to catch the overarching vision of peacemaking as it relates to Muslims. Their grown daughter who graduated from a Christian school has made trips with her Jewish supervisor to do life-changing surgeries for children living in Palestinian refugee camps. She is loving her role as a peacemaker as she follows Jesus.
• Key leaders from a local Armenian church attended the seminar, and they left with a renewed energy to pursue Jesus’s way of reconciliation. There are huge historical divisions between Muslims and the Armenian people.
• One pastor's wife told me how her heart was being transformed during the seminar from fear to genuine love because of Jesus's example, not only for Muslims, but also for others who are different from her.
• One university student said he would like to help tutor Muslim students in math as a way to serve the Muslim community. Another engineer volunteered to do airport pick-ups for Muslim international students or scholars coming to study in Davis.
• People realized that relating well with those who are different from us isn’t watering down our faith but practicing its core message of loving our neighbor.
• Many attendees of the seminar told how they see more clearly the difference between the vast majority of Muslims and those terrorists who use Islam as an excuse for murder. The role of the church is to love Muslims, and the role of the government is to deal with murderers.
• One Christian school teacher wrote how the seminar helped him realize how his views about Muslims sometimes have been influenced by being “overly” patriotic. “What Peace Catalyst International is doing is critical for us believers who are affected by our American culture.” Another teacher said how helpful it was to remember how God is in control of our nation’s future, because it helps eliminate fear.

Because of the weekend Peacemaking seminar, I am hopeful our generation won’t pass on this opportunity of pursuing peaceful relations with Muslims. With the example of Jesus, we hope to sow peace where there is so much fear and even hatred (James 3:18).

We hope to be among those who are blessed as peacemakers - true children of God, who act like their Father in heaven (Matt. 5:9).