We live in a time of pain and division. Hatred, anger, and bitterness are growing daily in the world and church. It is harder to live at peace with each other, to be calm, and to not alienate someone just by breathing the same air. There is so much wound and division around. Women’s issues, poverty and social justice, abortion, sexual morality, questions of leadership and authority, issues of war and peace, and styles of living and ministry are touching deep wounds and setting people bitterly against each other. That is on top of traditional tension creators: personality conflicts, jealousy, greed, and sin, which habitually divide. The above comments are taken from Fr. Ron Rolheiser’s article on how we are “Closed to Love and Open to Hate.” This is never more evident in the issue of social justice. Daily, I witness the verbal anger and tension around immigrants at our borders within the walls of our work establishments, homes, and even churches. How do we avoid joining our voices to these divisive issues? The pathways offered are not ones in which love is practiced or compromise a part of either side’s argument. Since nothing else is possible, save for the bitterness this creates, which, if we are walking in the light and the love of the Lord must be rejected, the answer lies in maintaining a fidelity that accepts suffering. Fr. Rolheiser says to be “faithful today means to live in pain, tension, frustration, and seeming compromise, often hated by both sides. Our call today is to reconcile by feeling the pain of all sides and letting our pain and helplessness be a buffer that heals the blood that helps wash the wound. As a simple start, we can test how open-minded we are on these issues by seeing how much pain we are in. Not to be in pain is not to be open-minded. It is a time of pain for the church when we will all feel some hatred and when, above all, we must keep our peace of mind, our inner calm of spirit, and our outer charity. Most of all, it is time to resist bitterness and that hardness of spirit which dampens the Holy Spirit.”