Disunity in Christ is a very interesting book. I like how Christena Cleveland points out the faults in herself seemingly right away.
In chapter one she talks primarily about right vs. wrong Christians. I found this idea very influential because I myself often look down on others who do not do things exactly as I think they should. In my head I sometimes put them down and think they cannot be true Christians for acting or believing in the way that they do. However, Cleveland does a good job here of showing that there is no perfect way to be a Christian. We can all be Christians simply by believing in God but the day to day processes we do are not for us to judge or worry about. There is no saying who is doing it perfectly right. We need to be more accepting of people with different back grounds and that is something I have been working on since arriving at Dordt.
In Chapter two, Cleveland talks about the importance of being in diverse groups. She said that these different members all bring different perspectives that help the group see from a different point of view. It almost works as a sort of checks and balances. Cleveland is pushing us to get out of our comfort zones and immerse ourselves in different ethnic groups. This is something I have personally been getting better at. This summer I took a week long summer class at Dordt with other students from around the midwest. Everyone was extremely diverse and this is part of what made the experience so rewarding. We were able to see thing from different points of view and use the different perspectives to reach a compromise and good solution.
Disunity in Christ is bringing up points that can be very challenging for us as Christians to face however it is essential we do our best to meet them head on and not shy away from them.

Comments

  1. AnikaSeptember 16, 2019 at 11:32 AM

    I had not thought of appreciating Christina's humility. Thank you for highlighting that. It's true that she could have approached this subject with a mindset that said, "Why are you this way? Fix yourself," but she did not. She used herself as an example of the mistakes that she is talking about. I would love to hear more about your summer class sometime. It sounds like it was a really good experience. Since it sounds like this is a topic you've been thinking about for a while, do you have any advice to people like me who are just beginning to consider this topic? Like how do I find people who are not like me here at Dordt, where it doesn't seem like we have a lot of diversity?

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  2. Tara BoerOctober 7, 2019 at 10:58 AM

    Yes, I think this is where Christena can arguably become a little "post modern" in her thinking and writing. Although certainly we have an obligation to avoid judgement and seek out the best in people, we also have an obligation to live in truth. I'm glad you're learning to navigate through these complex issues and challenging yourself as you mature here at Dordt.

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