"Red and Blue Make Purple: Kindness"

First Congregational Church of Lake Worth

"Red and Blue Make Purple: Kindness"

October 6, 2024

Today we begin a bold and brave worship series in which we face the spiritual consequences of the divisions in our society. I want to ask you a mind-blowing question: Did you know that more than 99% of our DNA is the same from one human to another? This surely makes us kin. The word “kindness” originally developed from a root word that meant “family” or “with the feeling of relatives for each other.” We begin this series considering the implications of spending so much of our time feeling estranged from, and resentful toward, those whose less than 1% DNA moves them in a different direction from us. And we begin to dream of finding a “purple space” in which to exchange goodness.

The Polarization Within: Compassion

October 13, 2024

Today, we continue our worship series that invites us to consider the qualities that will help us navigate the divisions we are experiencing in our world. This week, we consider compassion. Why do we need this quality more than ever now? Because we are complex beings living in a complex world. We sometimes deal with conflict within us in addition to the conflict between us. Research tells us that because we humans are desperate for a sense of cohesion and belonging in these confusing times, we are hanging onto ideological generalities instead of treating ourselves and each other with the compassion required to alleviate despair. Compassion grows when we are able to know ourselves and one another on a deeper level and act out of understanding.