Column: During divisive times turn to Jesus, not politics

Despite the UNC administration’s urges to avoid the protests in McCorkle Place, I've attended nearly every Silent Sam demonstration this year. I have not gone to advocate for one side or the other but to wrap my mind around the historical events that are taking place on our campus. 

I have been replaying the rallies over and over again in my head. There is one woman that I cannot forget. 

Her name is Alex, and she was full of joy.  

It took me aback at first — to see someone smiling at the rally. But, I was even more surprised to see her handing out cookies. I thought that she may have been lost. 

The tension in the air was suffocating, but it did not seem to have an effect on this woman. She walked up to people with purpose, disarming them with her gentle and kind demeanor. 

Back and forth she went between groups proudly holding Confederate flags and groups gripping “Tear it Down” posters. 

I lost her in the crowd and shifted my focus to interviewing protesters. I tried to see the issue from every point of view, listening to the different arguments. Surely someone had to have a solution. 

But I could not come up with an answer. I walked around the grassy area and came across a poster that someone had left on the ground.

“What Would the Prince of Peace Have Us Do?”

It hit me. 

I have spent so long idolizing my political beliefs that I instinctively looked to them for answers. Somewhere along the way, I let my identity become intertwined with my party platform. 

I want to see the world and the people in it through Jesus’ eyes. 

The people present at the rally — the conservatives, the liberals, the students, the professors, the community members, the police officers — all have one thing in common: They are dearly loved by the creator of the universe. 

What would Jesus have done if he were at those rallies? 

I think that he would have interacted with people in a similar way as Alex — not picking a side but loving people.

The Bible commands you to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” Matthew 5:44. 

It does not make sense. The world tells us something different. But, God’s love is radical and illogical. 

My fellow Christ-followers at UNC — we are the hands and feet of God and are called to go and make disciples of all nations.

Let’s pray for the person on the other side of the debate and see them the way that Jesus sees them. Let’s not fall into the trap of argument and discord. Let’s be concerned with the eternal things rather than the here and now. 

Let people see us and know that we are different.