Jesus of Nazareth teaches, “So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go.
"First be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.”
Notice that teaching's direction? It is not if you have something against a brother or sister; it is if they have something against you.
My article last week regarding an ordinance being considered by the Crestview City Council — one that would not allow any new churches nor the expansion of existing churches in the downtown district — stirred quite a firestorm.
Meetings this past week regarding this ordinance were quite enlightening. I am grateful to City Council President Shannon Hayes, City Councilman JB Whitten, and Director of Growth Management Teresa Gaillard for information shared, and misunderstandings/misinformation clarified.
Some history: The Local Planning Agency and City Council discussed this matter in early 2014 during public hearings. Appropriate notices were sent out and published. Apparently, no one from the community went to those meetings to speak against the matter. Myself included.
I didn’t understand.
Because there were no negative reactions from the community, the re-designation of the downtown district was voted into place. These regulations were enacted in April of this year.
I apologize for not paying closer attention to the published notices regarding those public hearings; for not paying closer attention to the form letter received announcing discussions on this matter; and to my sisters and brothers in the faith who are currently in the downtown district and must endure the restrictions now levied upon them. I believe each of us that remained silent owes an apology.
I do not apologize, however, for raising the issue. By raising the concern, a few shortcomings in the documents were discovered. For this, I am grateful.
When life provides painful lessons, what does one do? The best thing to do is to learn from them, and then encourage others to learn from them so they don’t go through the same painful process.
A painful lesson learned is this: pay attention to proposed actions by any government agency so the proposal may be looked at and discussed before action is taken on it. Otherwise, it may be too late.
Remember, silence implies consent.
The Rev. Mark Broadhead is Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church of Crestview's pastor.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: BROADHEAD: Silence about Crestview churches implies consent; loss results from neglect