“BIRTHRIGHT, BLESSING, AND COEXISTENCE”
Genesis 33:1-17
The Rev. Ms. Laurie A. McNeill
Montclair, New Jersey
July 24, 2005
Fifty years ago, a person with a Montclair address, in all likelihood, would have been a
Christian. The homogeneity of Montclair residents was as predictable as the gender of Supreme Court
justices. While Christians remain the majority religion, our community now is shared by people of other
faiths. Montclair has 50 houses of worship: 47 churches, 2 synagogues, and 1 mosque. Drive a few
miles beyond our city limits and Hindu, Jain, Sikh, Buddhist, and B’hai religious communities may be
found.
The presence of other faiths has yet to undermine Christianity’s place as the majority religion;
nevertheless, our identity as a people who are distinctively Christian has changed. We live in a
religiously pluralistic society, and we co-exist in a multi-cultural, secular society. A culture that is Christ-
considerate no longer exists in Montclair. Secular considerations are prioritized above religious
concerns.
Shops and stores conduct commerce on the Lord’s Day. Children and youth have athletic
competitions scheduled on Sundays. Friends host social gatherings on the Christian sabbath with little
regard for church schedules. Non-religious demands tempt us away from a disciplined practice of our
faith. We have ceded the rhythm of Christian discipleship.
The presence of other religions is not to be blamed for the displacement of Christian dominance.
Christians live as neighbors with people of other faiths in a town whose calendar is shaped by its local
government, school system, and civic organizations. The challenge to our religious dominance has come
from the secular community that is compelled to be neutral with regard to religion.
We have witnessed and continue to observe the way our status as a majority religion no longer
affects the order of the community in which we live. The changes we recognize in Montclair are taking
place in towns and cities across the country.
As significantly, majority religions and cultures around the world are struggling with the presence
of minority faiths and people. Montclair is but a microcosm of our changing world. People in other
nations are coping with the loss of familiarity of their previously homogeneous cultures.
Indian theologian R. S. Sugirtharajah notes the challenges that arise in religiously pluralistic
societies. He writes:
When one is exposed to others who profess a different faith,
speak a different language and draw inspiration from different
texts, one realizes one’s own provincialism and limitations.
One is faced with new realities. One such reality is that the
communities we belong to and live in are no longer groups
of people with shared concerns but people with competing
interests who try to accommodate each other’s concern and
endeavour to arrive at amity and accord.
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