Viral Faith

  And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’ “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life. ”  Mt 25:45–46 NLT In controversial topics, we are taught that in order to be civil in the communities in which we participate, that it is polite and respectful to "agree to disagree".  This is often used to de-escalate a disagreement that has emotion attached.  Devoted Coca-Cola drinkers will rarely agree that Pepsi products have more flavor, and so thanksgiving gatherings will often agree to disagree when a guest breaches generations of etiquette by bringing a two-liter bottle of Pepsi to a Coke family gathering. The point is that when the topic is trivial and no one has the potential of being harmed, it is appropriate to go the "lets agree to disagree" route. However, what if someone at the same thanksgiving meal made a statement...

  Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem Nativity Scene When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying: 3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  4 "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  5 "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.  6 "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  7 "Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.  8 "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.  9 "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.  10 "Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Matthew 5:1-10 NRSV It is hard to celebrate the birth of Jesus, when the birthplace of Jesus is experiencing the ravages of war.  I wrote elsewhere about the Israel-Hamas...