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UNRESOLVEll.
resolve personal and national disputes.
Another important element in
the equation was brought out in
The Christian Science Monitor.
Richard J . Cattani wrote: " The big
issue our society hasn't faced is the
spiritual deprivation
in relation–
ships.... At the deepest level is the
question: 'What are we doing
together in the universe?' " (J anu–
ary 18, 1979.) These observat ions
were made in a marriage context,
but they apply just as well to
behavioral problems in general.
The Bible pu ts both of these ele–
ments together. The Bible has
existed for 2,000 years as a poten–
tia( problem solver, notwithstand–
ing the fact that men very rarely
open its pages in the face of their
many conflicts. The Bible also g ives
spiritua/
as well as practica! sol u–
tions. lts solutions exemplify the
ul t imate spiritual purpose of why
human beings exist on earth in the
fi rst place.
Jesus as Pro blem Solver
Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace!
He carne to this earth 2,000 years
ago with solutions to human behav–
ioral problems. In life he gave us
the principies to resolve problems
between ou rselves. And in his
death he resolved the
one basic
conflict
between rebellious humans
and the Creator.
But Jesus' act of reconciliation
did not stop there. The apostle
J ohn understood that there is an
inextricable interrelationship be–
tween loving God and loving one's
neighbor and the irony of claiming
to do one while omitting the other.
He wrote: " [f any one says, '1 !ove
June/ July 1982
God,' and bates his brother, he is a
liar; for he who does not !ove his
brother whom he has seen,
cannot
/ove God
whom he has not seen.
And tbis commandment we have
from him, that he who !oves God
should !ove his brother also"
(1 J ohn 4:20-21, RSY). We must,
therefore, reconcile conflicts with
our neighbors as well.
Lawyer Roger F isher observed,
also when writing in the
Monitor:
"My general theme is that conflict
is natural and inevitable, but we
have methods of dealing with it."
This is a statement of basic truth
about all ages. Strife seems to be
common to all human beings. J esus
said that offenses are bound to
occur (Matt. 18:7). But
he
also had
methods of dealing with the prob–
lem. He gave us a simple formula
for reconciling our differences.
This particular set of principies was
primarily intended to resolve mis–
understandings between Church
brethren, but these principies also
have wider implications for all of
humanity.
Especially is this true in the mal–
ter of
proper procedure.
Mr. Cat–
tani wrote in the article previously
quoted : "Most people overlook the
importance of procedure in a d is–
pute. They want to consid er only
the substance"
(CSM,
op. cit.).
Here is the s imple formula just
as J esus gave it to his disciples.
Notice the first principie. "More–
over if thy brother shall trespass
against t hee, go and tell him his
fault
between thee and him alone:
if he shall hear thee, thou hast
gained thy brother" (Matt.
18: 15).
Faithfully following this one princi–
pie alone would eliminate much of
human conflict. But no, when con–
flict does arise, we go to friends,
relatives, fellow employees–
everyone
except
the concerned par–
ty. This is a fundamental proce–
dural matter. We violate it at our
peril!
Now when should a third party
be brought into the proceedings?
Notice J esus' instruction: "But if
he will not hear thee, then take
with thee one or two more, that in
the mouth of two or three witnesses
évery word may be establ ished"
(verse 16). Occasionally the one–
on-one approach may not be suffi–
cient to defuse a particularly stub–
born disagreement. Love is an art
that must be learned. A third party
may have to mediate in the spirit of
the Sermon on the Mount.
But le t us take the time to prop–
erly ingest this important instruc–
tion. Notice that J esus gives us the
option of one or two mediators–
not one or two accusers. Obviously
the correct choice would depend on
the nature of the conflict, the per–
sonality of the principals and other
factors. We would need wisdom to
make an intelligent decision. R elia–
ble, dispassionate persons should be
sought!
Finally, note the last phrase:
"every word may be established."
A third party can often separate
fact frorn opinion. He or she may
be able to clearly define the exact
nature of the dispute by disposing
of a lot of red herrings. The facts
would be clearly established mak–
ing it easier for both principals to
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