Inclusion - under the mantle of grace

Have you ever felt yourself to be under the mantle of grace? We may think of this in other-worldly terms, as something waiting for us in the future, but it can happen right here, right now. But have you ever been in the presence of people who help each other, who serve each other, who don't engage in behaviors like gossiping and competition? They are able to be around each other without rancor. Dissension is handled quickly and fairly.

I have. And one thing I learned is that, far too often, all it takes to ruin that kind of spiritual synchronicity is the presence of one person who starts to make trouble. Sometimes it seems that he or she just can't stand that everyone is getting along. So she starts a rumor. Or picks on a trait someone has. Let's face it. To one person, perseverance is admirable and to another, it can be stubbornness! If we look closely enough, we can find fault with anyone.

Differences aside, we all have things in common and we are all here to help each other. Being negative toward each other, emphasizing our differences rather than our commonality, only serves to create rifts. The good news is that, however, it takes more than one person to ruin community in this way. If no one went along with the negativity, the gossip, etc, it would fall flat on its face. We all have choices to make when we encounter this kind of behavior.

Being under the mantle of grace is not something we create without effort on our part. We have to try to be better than, have to work toward going past tolerating our differences, even those things that genuinely bug us about each other. I also think that when we treat each other with more care and love, there is a grace that grows among us which makes positive choices easier to see.

It is up to all of us to create communities that are accepting of others, rather than exclusionary. And when we are tempted to be the one who finds fault, we need to ask ourselves "Is this for the good of the community? Am I questioning this for the good of the whole, or is it a personal dislike?" and search our own souls to see if we are creating disharmony that outweighs the eventual good. Are we seeing only differences, rather than commonalities? Are we overly impressed with someone's wealth or perceived status, yet think others aren't worth our time? Do we treat people differently depending on what we think we can "get" from them? How do we spend our time in community? Do we build it up- or tear it down? And how do we encourage others in positive ways- or do we?

Yes, I've been in communities where I've been cloaked in the mantle of grace. They were communities where newcomers were welcomed, where people were treated equally, where snide remarks and sarcasm were discouraged and building each other up was encouraged, where helping was a way of life, not a rarity. Sometimes they were very fleeting and lasted just a short while. And yet I feel blessed to know that it can happen - and does - every day when we remember what inclusion is about.