Should differing cultures, communities and groupings find a way to recognise the individual nuances of their own identity AND those of others rather than trying to change all cultures, communities or groups to be the same?

This has been the real trouble in our troubles: each side wants to win; each side wants the power; each side wants the majority. If anything the past 10 years have shown that each 'side' can have their cultural identity cake and eat it too, without all the bloodshed. Here is where recognition works better than reconciliation. (Reconciliation in these terms is where two opposing sides lay down their differences and morph into something acceptable to both)

Whilst each side has had to give up certain demands, both sides have been able to retain their culture, community and identity by recognising the validity of the other.

How well does church and it's outreach initiatives fair?

Typically, the church's mission has been to make as many people become like them as possible - 'you too can live my life, if you follow my God' or worse: 'if you believe what I believe, then you too can look/act/be me!  It may not be a conscious thought, but churchy people are more comfortable with new Christians who conform to their own protocol of Christian observance and type of holiness.

What if churchy people could recognise the culture, community and groupings of new believers without feeling the need to reconcile each young Christian into their preconceived pattern of Godly living; that is accepting anothers faith as genuine on the grounds of their own standards or experience?

What if churchy people could allow God to do the sanctification thing in His own time, recognise that differences will arise, cultural reference points are going to be very different and that a new generation of 21st century believers have something to give?

God is the God of reconciliation: His type of reconciliation makes it easier for humans to become who they were destined to be; our type of reconciliation, I wonder, might make human destiny that little bit harder as we try to make everybody be us, instead of allowing God allowing His creation to become itself.

The next time I'm tempted to try and encourage a new believer to be like me instead of being more like Jesus, I hope to recognise their differences and celebrate them.