WHO AM I NOW?

WHO AM I NOW?

Last Sunday night Martha and I along with eight of our church friends attended an Iftar dinner at the San Antonio Raindrop Turkish House.  Their invitation followed our invitation for them share their Islamic beliefs with our Bible study class.  It was also a part of their emphasis on hospitality.  For us it was a unique opportunity to converse with some people who, because of their religion, are much misunderstood in our culture.   This misunderstanding is strange since they are philosophically and ideologically close to the Judaic-Christian religions.  Their story begins where ours begins--the book of Genesis--and their philosophy was greatly influenced by the Greeks as ours was.  The estrangement goes back for centuries and was further complicated on September 11, 2001 when some radicals bearing the Islamic name viciously attacked helpless civilians  in our country.  We, in turn, complicated the relationship by returning violence for violence and we are still paying for that.  (And still haven’t caught the bad guys.)  

Jesus announced the generosity of God announcing that the time has come when the religion you are called by and where you go to worship will not matter.  Instead it is who you are and the way you live that counts before God.  (Peterson  in The Message, John 4.) God is sheer Being--Spirit--and those who worship God must do it out of their own being, their spirits, their true selves.

The least we can do is sit down with our fellow beings, communicate face to face and enjoy their food and hospitality.  A very good night.