Shredding the Bride's Gown

Today I read yet another statement from a religious group who claimed to know how to identify a false religion. Then they proceeded to list all that differed from their particular flavor. That alone stirred something very deep within me that wants to weep and rave and shout all at once!

The enemy doesn't have to fight against those who stand for God. We fight each other and the enemy just stands on the sidelines LAUGHING at us!!! Why can no one see this????

Why do so many continue to stand up and claim that their belief is the one true belief and all that follows another are doomed? Can they not see that by claiming this they expose one of the REAL ways they fail?

Those that are true to the calling:

• Teach that we should reach out to one another in Love - ALL people, including those who do not believe as we believe and even those who hate and persecute us.

• Do not ostracize, do not play favorites, do not hold themselves or their religion above others.

• Encourage people to reach out and help one another, to work collectively toward a greater good, to be the example.

• Do not do any work, good deed or act for their own benefit or the benefit of their group, but understands that ideally one performs this unseen or as unknown as possible and lets the good of that stand on its own with no name attached.

• Does not threaten, bully, scare, or use terror tactics, but reaches out with an open hand and an open heart, unafraid to listen to another to see how many more similarities there exists than differences ~ to connect the bridges, not build the walls.
  

• Does not count how many people they convert or teaches its followers to associate ONLY with those that believe as they do; that "groupthink" is how many are lead astray collectively.
  

Please, stop the fighting, both inter-denominational and inter-religious. A force divided can not stand as strong. Humanity was granted a very special gift that together we can do far more than the sum of our individual efforts.

Can you not see, what our fighting is doing? We are failing to realize that gift - that potential! And in the meantime we, ourselves, are bringing about our own defeat.

Please stop
Open our eyes
Open our ears

-ESA