I wrote the following statement in the middle of the night from Greece back in July after learning of the assassination attempt on the life of one of our candidates for president. This week, there was another assassination attempt, violence has been directed toward Haitian immigrants because of unequivocally false political rhetoric, and division seems to be more present than ever.

I believe the church has a duty to be agents of peace. The following words remain true in my heart today. Christians are called to unequivocally condemn violence. The political climate of our nation has reached a fever pitch that many of us have never seen in our lifetimes. The bubbling cauldron of active violence doesn’t begin with violent action. It begins with words of hate, acceptance of villainization, and a decision to rob someone of the image of God within them by turning them into “the other.” Christians have a duty to care about their local, state, national leadership and to engage civically so that we might seek the welfare of the places we live. We must, however, resist the temptation to fall into the trap of demonization and hatred. This is not the way of Christ.

When I was young, my grandmother taught me to place a wooden spoon over a pot of boiling water to keep it from boiling over. The spoon was not magic, but it did help the bubbles stay within the pot where they used their energy to cook the meal, rather than to spill over and cause injury. May we stop and pray for us, followers of the Prince of Peace, to be used to bring a presence of calm into a world that burns with a temptation toward violence. May we not fall into the trap of violent rhetoric that leads to violent action. May we be used in this time and this place for change.