Thought for Today
Psalm 133:1 How very good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity!
Zechariah 11:7 So, on behalf of the sheep merchants, I became the shepherd of the flock doomed to slaughter. I took two staffs; one I named Favor, the other I named Unity, and I tended the sheep.
Ephesians 4:1 I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
“Unity doesn’t mean uniformity . . .In a polarized world, being knit together can feel like an impossible ask.” (These Days, January 21, 2026)
My mind this morning is filled with thoughts about the intersection of civil society and the Christian faith. Several different items have collided together in my mind to make those words above from today’s devotional starkly real and troublesome for me.
Many of us have read about and seen video clips from a recent episode in Minnesota of the disruption of a church’s worship service by demonstrators. The alleged proximate cause for that disruption was that one of the church’s pastors was bi-vocational, and his other vocation, outside of and unconnected to the church, was with a governmental entity of which the demonstrators disapproved.
I am not concerned with the particular congregation, nor with the denomination, although it is not my own, nor with the governmental entity, although I am very concerned with some of the activities of that governmental entity.
When did it become an acceptable practice to disrupt anyone’s worship service merely because of disapproval of any civil or governmental law, policy or procedure? How is disturbing the solemn worship of men, women and children legitimate exercise of our freedom of speech and or freedom of assembly? For me as a Christian, how is invading and disrupting a worship service even remotely acceptable, civilized behavior. Irrespective of one’s disapproval of any government or any government’s laws or policies, worship should be sacred and solemn.
The same portion of our Constitution which protects our freedom of speech also protects freedom of worship. “The First Amendment guarantees freedoms concerning religion, expression, assembly, and the right to petition. It forbids Congress from both promoting one religion over others and also restricting an individual’s religious practices. It guarantees freedom of expression by prohibiting Congress from restricting the press or the rights of individuals to speak freely. It also guarantees the right of citizens to assemble peaceably and to petition their government.” (www.law.cornell.edu)
Even the poorest student of the history of our country should have learned of the religious diversity of the original 13 colonies. Most of the 13 had their own faith tradition embedded in civil law. Here in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Congregational Church was the official religion. In Virginia, the Anglican Church was the official religion. Other colonies had other faith traditions. The First Amendment was added in order to make sure that we are all free to worship as we choose. It does guarantee that those demonstrators have the right to speak freely about their disapproval of that governmental agency. That freedom does not supersede the rights of those worshippers to freely worship.
Maybe more troubling for me is that those demonstrators obviously and presumably honestly felt that their right to speak and assemble (in the worshippers’ church) did supersede all other legal, ethical and moral rights. When did our civil society become so polarized that uncivil behavior could be considered morally and ethically acceptable? When did our polarization become so extreme that such behavior could be considered necessary and demanded of those demonstrators?
The issue for me is not my own agreement or disagreement with the demonstrators’ stand about that governmental agency. It is not about whether or not I agree or disagree with the faith tradition of those worshippers. It is not about anything other than the right of all in our great nation to worship in peace and freedom as they believe. I am shocked and disappointed that there seems to be little or no outrage about disrupting worship of God over any issue!
The devotional writer quoted above was truly correct, we are polarized. We have conflated unity and uniformity. We have lost sight of the ideals of our Founding Fathers. Are we about to realize the truth of Hosea’s words, “8:7 For they sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind?”
Stay safe, respect the freedoms of others, trust God,
Pastor Ray