Editorial February 18, 1991 Issue

Bringing hostilities to an end

Michael D. Rissler

When Nathanael, an early follower of Christ Jesus, first heard of the Master, he asked, "Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?" Nathanael quickly learned that there certainly was came something or—more accurately—someone very good who came from Nazareth.

Nathanael was from Cana, a rival town only a few miles from Nazareth. Of course, Nathanael's pejorative outlook on his neighbors isn't limited to small towns that existed centuries ago. These feelings can spring up between nighbors whose homes lie only a few yards from each other. We had new neighbors once who thought our family was Jewish, I don't know why. But I remember how relieved they seemed when they learned we weren't. I was young at the time and didn't fully understand the nature of prejudice; I remember I didn't feel relieved by their relief.

It's an old story, the conflict that can spring up among people. No country or community is entirely free of such troubles. Thus it is that when spiritual love and brotherhood transcend individual and cultural differences, such an experience is healing.

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