For a moment, forget…
That you may be from up north.
That you may be from down south.
That you may be from back east or out west.
That you may be black, white, yellow, brown or red.
That you may have immigrated from a different country.
That you may be affiliated with a political party.
That you may be Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim or any other of the thousand religious persuasions around the world.
For a moment, just remember: You are a human being. Every person around you is a human being. As humans, everyone is entitled to respect.
Labels divide people. If you are "this," you are not "that." And because you are "that," you are different. And different is considered bad. Humans tend to feel threatened by anything or anyone different. There is a tendency to want to eliminate anything or anyone different.
It seems as though because everyone wants to be correct about something — to be on the winning team, so to speak — they glom onto a particular aspect of life, tout it, and declare that anyone who thinks differently is wrong. As a result of the other being wrong, it means that person is fair game for ridicule and condemnation.
For most, there is not much willingness to want to understand someone or something different. It takes too much work. It takes too much personal involvement. It takes opening one's mind.
The apostle Paul declares, "There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus."
How will you respond to people around you?
The Rev. Mark Broadhead is pastor at Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church of Crestview.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: BROADHEAD: Label yourself a follower of Christ