Quiet Time: Interfaith Dialogue

Dear God of Justice and Mercy,

The prophet Amos stood in the marketplace at Bethel, surrounded by people who kept every religious festival on the calendar yet ignored the widow begging at the temple gate. Into that self-satisfied silence, he thundered your words: "Let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream." Not a trickle. Not a decorative fountain. A river — untamed, unstoppable, carving new channels through hard ground.

The Anabaptist tradition has always understood that following Jesus means walking across boundaries others refuse to cross. When Menno Simons sheltered refugees that no one else would take in, he didn't first ask them to pass a theological exam. He saw the image of God — the imago Dei — bruised and hungry, and he opened the door.

Lord, give me that same courage when I sit across the table from someone whose prayers sound different from mine. Help me listen before I speak. Help me find the current of your justice flowing beneath conversations that make me uncomfortable. Teach me that dialogue is not compromise — it is the holy work of recognizing your fingerprints on lives I do not yet understand.