Come Sit at the Table

Hebrews 12 reminds us that we are called to pursue peace with others:
14 Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:
15 looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled...

In this culture today, which is so characterized by polarization, we can be challenged to be the people of peace.  That doesn't mean everyone is going to see eye to eye, but it does mean that God would have us to seek to build relationships that are based on mutual understanding, so that even when we disagree, we can maintain communication, work toward the resolution of any conflict that may arise, and share our Biblically-informed views in a manner that is coated with compassion.

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In Romans 12, we read about how we are called, as believers in Christ, to promote peace:
18 If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.
19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord.
20 Therefore "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head."
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

The coverage that I am seeing from the Democratic National Convention this week, and even from the Republicans last week, illustrates that we are living in a polarized country.   This week, Democratic speakers, who claim America is great, even took aim at the Republican nominee, who wants to "Make America Great Again." 

Michael Brown pointed out on my radio show recently the polarization that has taken place between the African-American community and law enforcement.  Black Lives Matter vs. Blue Lives Matter. And, people take sides so quickly.  Understanding and communication are necessary elements in the healing of relationships.  Instead of human beings as our enemies, perhaps we need to identify the enemies that threaten our culture and band together to try to reach effective solutions, even when we disagree over the methodology.

The pervasiveness of misunderstanding was on display recently in Johnson City, Tennessee.  There was a group that had organized a Black Lives Matter protest outside, of all place, a Chick-Fil-A restaurant.  Why?  Because a Chick-Fil-A in Houston had taken part in a "Back the Blue" effort.

Only, that never happened.

According to News Channel 11, restaurant owner Darrell Fowler said, “There is no blue lives matter originated by Chick-Fil-A, the back the blue was a campaign out of Houston, Texas for a high school football team." Rally organizer Michelle Fowler said, ,”He actually let us know what back the blue was with Chick-Fil-A, and it actually had nothing to do with police officers, so we did kind of have to change our tone a little bit. We still stand by you know what we are talking about with the police officers not being held accountable for the things that they do, but as far as our understanding with the owner of this Chick-Fil-A in particular, everything is squashed, we are good."  The mood was friendly, and the restaurant handed out lemonade to protestors.   

And, there's this story from Action News 4, which reports on an incident in a Pennsylvania restaurant. A group of policemen went to an Eat N' Park restaurant. Server Jesse Meyers relates the story: "A table goes to sit down and the guy looks over at one of the police officers and was like, 'Nah I don’t want to sit here.' So they got moved completely opposite, away from the police officers."

One of the officers, Chuck Thomas, said that it was obvious the man and woman didn't want to anything to do with the police officers. He is quoted as saying, "I looked over and said, 'It's okay sir. You won't have to worry about it, we won't hurt you," adding, "He looked at me hard again and said he’s not sitting here and walked away." Thomas related that he and another officer thought they should pay the couple's bill and asked Meyers to bring the check.  The total was $28.50, plus a $10 tip.

The officer said, "Essentially the whole goal of it was to let him know that we’re not here to hurt you, we’re not here for that," adding, "We’re here for you. We work for the public. And we just want to better the relationship between the community and the police."

And, there's the report out of Phenix City, AL, where a cashier refused to served two sheriff's deputies at a Taco Bell there.  According to WTVM Television, the wife of another deputy posted about the incident on Facebook. The cashier was terminated and the company who owns the restaurant contacted the Lee County Sheriff's Department to apologize.

The deputy's wife, Tammy Bush Mayo, posted: "This really disturbs me that people have started treating law enforcement professionals in this manner when these same law enforcement professionals put their lives on the line everyday to protect all people, including this woman with a very bad attitude at Taco Bell..."

Three incidents, three flashpoints, all at restaurants.  These are three instances where people have squared off against police.  Where we should regard law enforcement as our friends and allies, because of some events that have produced and exacerbated pain and misunderstanding, polarization has taken place.   When you have people that will avoid each other and not sit down together, I think of the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from the "I Have a Dream" speech, as he spoke about the "table of brotherhood."

In light of recent incidents that have caused us to think more deeply about matters of race and how we treat one another, perhaps like never before, we can relate to that image of sitting down together, from a variety of backgrounds, possessing a diversity of opinions, and working for the betterment of our culture.  The Bible, I believe, speaks to how we can exist in a civil society that upholds justice, that brings people out of bondage into freedom, that strengthens families and human relationships, that promotes understanding.  But, Christians have to have a place at the table, too.  

Black Lives do matter.  So do Blue Lives.  And, when you dissect those slogans, you can also recognize what has contributed to the adoption of them.   We should want justice for those who believe that they are not receiving it, and we can understand the actions and attitudes that have contributed to a sense of injustice.  We should also affirm those who put their lives on the line daily to protect and serve the public - are there officers who have behaved inappropriately?  Absolutely.  But that should not discredit our respect for all who serve in that capacity.

I believe that it would be pleasing to the Lord for His people to lead the way in inviting people to come to the table of understanding, a place where our views are tolerated and accepted, and where we also seek to come to agreement about how our communities can thrive and move forward.