Commonalities and Tribalism

The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, take a stick of wood and write on it, ‘Belonging to Judah and the Israelites associated with him.’ Then take another stick of wood, and write on it, ‘Belonging to Joseph (that is, to Ephraim) and all the Israelites associated with him.’ Join them together into one stick so that they will become one in your hand. “When your people ask you, ‘Won’t you tell us what you mean by this?’ say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am going to take the stick of Joseph—which is in Ephraim’s hand—and of the Israelite tribes associated with him, and join it to Judah’s stick. I will make them into a single stick of wood, and they will become one in my hand.’ (Ezekiel 37:15-19) 
 
As humans, we gravitate towards people who are like us. We surround ourselves with people who look like us, talk like us, think like us, and believe like us. And while there is value in commonality when it comes to our friendships and relationships, issues can arise when you begin to view yourself and your community as superior to those who are different from you. 
 
The names of the tribes experiencing tension were written on the sticks discussed in this passage. These symbolic sticks existed to make a point that the issue was not the establishment of tribes (being a part of a tribe was and still is about the celebration of one’s culture, history, language, and experience). The issue also was not the tension between the Israelites being a part of a different tribe.  
 
The problem came from tribalism—a kind of nativist, parochial mindset that says my tribe is superior to your tribe. In popular culture and in politics, tribalism says that you have to be loyal to your own tribe regardless of what they do. 
 
But God was calling them then and us now to repair the breach and to unite by rising above the tribalist tendencies that can set in. Rather than viewing another through the prism of their ethnic, political, and religious differences, God wanted them to view themselves through the prism of love, collaboration, and a search for the common good. 
 
As believers, we have the greatest commonality that will ever exist: a relationship with Jesus Christ. What would happen if we chose to focus on that above all else?