Moses Mendelssohn, one of the 18^th century’s gifted thinkers and the grandfather of the great composer, Felix Mendelssohn, was an outspoken advocate of religious tolerance.  He loved to tell stories to communicate what he meant.  One of the stories attributed to him goes like this:

     “A woman once asked the Teacher, ‘Which is the true religion?’  The Teacher replied, ‘Once upon a time there was a magic ring that gave its wearer the gifts of grace, kindness, and generosity.  When the owner of the ring was on his deathbed, each of his three sons came separately to the father and asked to be given the ring.  The owner of the ring promised each, in turn, that he would be the new owner of the magic ring. 

     After each of the sons had come and gone, the father sent for the best jeweler in the land and paid him to make two additional rings just like the original.  The jeweler, being a master craftsman, made two rings indistinguishable from the original.  Just before he died the owner gave each son a ring without telling him about the other two rings.  In a short time, the three sons discovered that each had a ring.  They went to a wise judge to enlist his help in determining who owned the genuine ring that gave the wearer the gifts of grace, kindness, and generosity.  The judge examined the rings and found them to be identical.  The judge said, ‘I will not render my decision now.  Come back to see me in ten years and I will give you my verdict then.’

     The three brothers went away and led lives that were characterized by grace, kindness, and generosity.  They never did come back to the wise judge to hear his decision, since at the end of ten years it would not have mattered.

     The Teacher went on to say, ‘Religions are like the three brothers in the story.  The very time their members stop striving for justice and love, the moment their lives stop demonstrating grace, kindness, and generosity is the moment you will know that their religion is not the one God gave to the world.’”

     How very strange that the Prince of Peace continues to have his name invoked by those who would kill others just because they have a different belief system.  For anyone to say, especially someone who claims to be a man of God, “kill ‘em all in the name of the Lord,” is blasphemous.  How odd that the One whose name literally oozes Love should be used to justify the most hate-filled actions against those whose skin is a different color, who are poor and homeless, those who are very young or very old, those who come from different cultures or who have a different ethnic identity.  How misguided and dangerous that the One who has set us free from the bondage of sin and death should be used, through intolerance and ignorance, to make the chains and bonds more restricting on those for whom the Messiah remains a concept and not a reality.

     Perhaps the time has come for those of us who are called Christians to ask ourselves whether our lives are characterized by a striving after justice and love.  Do we demonstrate by our actions that grace, kindness, and generosity are guiding principles in our lives? 

     It has been said that before the Good News can comfort, it must first offend.  Does the Incarnation offend you by the very necessity of it?  I remind us all; the only way the Incarnation can comfort us is by our admission of the desperate need to be comforted.  Otherwise, as uncomfortable men and women, we will continue to offend others.  Moses Mendelssohn was right.  It is as we are comforted, restored, renewed, and set free by this Good News that our lives can be filled with grace, kindness, and generosity.  And we just might notice a new ring on our finger.

                                                                      Peace,