thinking bible.

You asked

how do societal power structures create new 'walls' of division that need challenging?

The passage, plainly, with room to sit with it.

Ephesians 2:14

For he is our peace, who made both one, and broke down the middle wall of partition.

The Apostle Paul is writing to Gentile Christians in Ephesus, likely in the mid-first century CE, explaining how their inclusion in God's people through Christ means the previous divisions between Jew and Gentile are now overcome. He emphasizes that Christ brought peace and unity to groups once separated by law and custom.

What 'walls of partition' in our communities might we be called to recognize and dismantle today?

Keep thinking

Read alongside it

  • Galatians 3:28

    This verse states that in Christ there is 'neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is no male and female,' affirming unity despite social distinctions.

  • Isaiah 58:6-7

    The prophet calls for breaking the 'bonds of wickedness,' undoing heavy burdens, and letting the oppressed go free, addressing social injustice and systemic oppression.

  • Micah 6:8

    This prophet summarises God's call to 'do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God,' which challenges societal power imbalances.

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