Mennonite Weekly Review

I was recently reminded of the tension that hangs around some churches. I had asked a couple of people for feedback on an article I was writing for the local paper. They pointed to the “L” word as potentially problematic. I had forgotten that “liberal” can be a loaded word.

Jane Yoder-Short lives in Kalona, Iowa.

The liberal-conservative divide, or a variation of it, is nothing new. In the early church it was the “U” word, “uncircumcised,” that caused turbulence.

Paul tells the story of Peter hanging out with the liberal crowd — well, they weren’t called liberal back then. They were the crowd that was playing loose with circumcision and traditional table protocol.

When the conservatives — well, those who were stricter in their approach to circumcision — arrived, Peter changed crowds. (Gal. 2:11-12). Peter seemed to go out of his way to avoid being labeled liberal or pro-uncircumcision.

The church in Galatia was facing the hard question of how a diverse group becomes a community of believers. The Gentile converts needed to find ways of living with fellow believers who were deeply grounded in the Mosaic Law. The Jewish believers needed to sort out the cleansing of hearts that was taking place among Gentiles.

The liberal-conservative thread winds its way through history in assorted forms. Today’s Mennonite churches are no exception. In some congregations, liberals (or progressives, as they may prefer) find themselves on the fringes. In other congregations, conservatives are in the minority. Both sides can be exclusive and smug.

Paul reminded the church in Galatia that divisions fade as people join the body of believers. He says, “For all of you who were united in Christ in baptism have been clothed with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female” (Gal. 3:27-28) In our day Paul might have included liberal and conservative.

Look around at Sunday- morning coffee time. Most of us end up chatting with those who are most like us. Too often, instead of crossing barriers, we avoid conversations with particular people.

Fear seems to hold us hostage. Some of us fear that the church will succumb to a flavorless, any-thing-goes liberalism. Other fear we will end up starving on some frozen-in-time leftover conservatism.

We all read the Bible with blurry eyes. We hear its message with muffled ears. The Anabaptists were big on the Holy Spirit leading the community together. Are we willing to listen to those who see issues differently than we do? Are we willing to move beyond the fears that keep us from conversing across dividing lines?