A Story of ROM
Author:
Mark Casey
Director of Education and Programs
Speaker at Renewing Our Minds Gathering 2009
I’ve just returned from a 10-day speaking engagement in
Croatia. The event is called ROM which stands for 'Renewing Our Minds.' It was
a young leadership event that focuses primarily on the Balkan countries, but
draws from around the world. There were 15 countries represented in the
eclectic gathering representing diverse religious backgrounds ranging from
Catholic, Orthodox, Evangelical, Atheist and Muslim.
I felt privileged to share with this group of sharp emerging leaders that included those who lost family members in the Balkan wars, children of elected officials and ambassadors, Palestinians, a gypsy and even a Member of Parliament for a Balkan state. Everyone who attended the gathering knew we were going to discuss reconciliation and leadership based on the example of Jesus of Nazareth. I was blown away by the interaction particularly in our small groups.
After I taught in one of the main sessions on how Jesus is represented in both the Bible and the Qur’an, it stirred up some interesting discussion. I looked across on the sofa at three women sitting side-by-side in my small group as they shared their stories. The first was a Turkish Muslim woman who had to flee Turkey because of death threats on her mother’s life after a brief political career. She lives her faith out visibly by the way she dresses and covers, and these are outward symbols of a deep conviction that she lives out daily through devotion to prayer and modesty. The next woman on the couch was an Irish Protestant who dated a Pakistani Muslim seriously for seven years before calling it off because of religious differences. She spoke graciously of the man, but felt deep in her heart that they were in very different places with their respective faiths and the relationship could not continue. The third woman was a Bosnian Christian who told the story of how she grew up in a Muslim family. At a young age she was drawn to the person of Jesus and so she began learning from an older lady who spoke beautifully of Jesus. Though her father died during the war, she told a happy story of how her whole family now follows Jesus.
Here were three different ladies from three different parts of the world who were as different as they could be, but at this moment in time as they shared their heartfelt stories they were relating to each other around the person of Jesus Christ. They did not all share the same views, but they were talking and they loved each other despite their differences. What amazing Kingdom work God allowed me to be a part of in the beautiful country of Croatia.
I felt privileged to share with this group of sharp emerging leaders that included those who lost family members in the Balkan wars, children of elected officials and ambassadors, Palestinians, a gypsy and even a Member of Parliament for a Balkan state. Everyone who attended the gathering knew we were going to discuss reconciliation and leadership based on the example of Jesus of Nazareth. I was blown away by the interaction particularly in our small groups.
After I taught in one of the main sessions on how Jesus is represented in both the Bible and the Qur’an, it stirred up some interesting discussion. I looked across on the sofa at three women sitting side-by-side in my small group as they shared their stories. The first was a Turkish Muslim woman who had to flee Turkey because of death threats on her mother’s life after a brief political career. She lives her faith out visibly by the way she dresses and covers, and these are outward symbols of a deep conviction that she lives out daily through devotion to prayer and modesty. The next woman on the couch was an Irish Protestant who dated a Pakistani Muslim seriously for seven years before calling it off because of religious differences. She spoke graciously of the man, but felt deep in her heart that they were in very different places with their respective faiths and the relationship could not continue. The third woman was a Bosnian Christian who told the story of how she grew up in a Muslim family. At a young age she was drawn to the person of Jesus and so she began learning from an older lady who spoke beautifully of Jesus. Though her father died during the war, she told a happy story of how her whole family now follows Jesus.
Here were three different ladies from three different parts of the world who were as different as they could be, but at this moment in time as they shared their heartfelt stories they were relating to each other around the person of Jesus Christ. They did not all share the same views, but they were talking and they loved each other despite their differences. What amazing Kingdom work God allowed me to be a part of in the beautiful country of Croatia.
Mark
Casey, USA, Director of Education and Programs, Trac5 – A Bold Path to Peace
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