Rev. Dr. Derrick Elliott, Pastor, Sun Lakes United Church of Christ
January pushes us to take stock of our lives and our faith. As the calendar turns, we set goals, reflect on the past, and look toward a hopeful future. Christianity shapes many of those hopes. It teaches love, forgiveness, and justice. Yet we must acknowledge a hard truth: Christianity harms when people use it in ways that stray from the life and teachings of Jesus.
Harm occurs when Christians use faith to control others instead of offering freedom. People have quoted Scripture to restrict dignity, exclude communities, justify segregation, and silence questions. Churches have demanded forgiveness without seeking accountability or have confused unity with uniformity. Harm also takes quiet forms. Gossip hides behind prayer requests. Social divides hide behind tradition. Silence hides behind politeness when someone needs support or safety.
Scripture does not ignore these realities. God continually calls people to confront harmful religion. Isaiah challenges worship that ignores justice. Amos declares that songs mean little when people experiencing poverty suffer. Jesus rebukes leaders who prize rules more than compassion. In every age, God urges the faithful to examine how they practice their beliefs.
Many people adopt a single word to guide their year. One word that speaks with honesty and hope is repair. Repair requires us to listen with humility, lament with sincerity, learn with openness, and change with courage. It invites us to take responsibility when the church has caused pain. It pushes us to rebuild trust rather than demand it. Repair honors the voices of those who have been harmed and believes their stories.
In this new year, commit to repair. Look at how your faith community welcomes others, leads, talks about differences, and responds to those who name past wounds. Repair calls us to act, not dismiss the concerns. It asks us to say, “We hear you,” before we say, “We are sorry,” and then say, “We will do better,” and do it.
Practicing repair reflects the heart of Jesus. He restores the broken, lifts the burdened, and calls his followers to do the same. If Christianity has caused harm, Christians can become instruments of healing. As we enter this year with honesty, may we listen deeply, love boldly, and work faithfully to repair what is broken. In doing so, we don’t weaken the gospel. We strengthen its witness. We embody its hope. We reflect its love.