Building Kinship

"There is no us and them, there is only us".  These insightful words come from Father Greg Boyle, a Jesuit priest that has dedicated his life to working with gangs in East L.A. .  He spoke yesterday as a part of the Faith and Life lecture series at St. Philip the Deacon Lutheran Church in Plymouth, MN.

Father Boyle shared many touching and humorous stories of relationships fostered between gang members, who once were arch enemies, as they worked side by side with Homeboy Industries.  His primary message was encouraging us to live by a simple mission shared by Jesus "That you may be one". He noted that we enter the Kingdom of God as we form relationships and help others to recognize that they are exactly what God had in mind when God made them.  Working with many who have been disenfranchised, Father Boyle is about creating a community of kinship such that God might recognize it.

An interview with Father Greg Boyle, aka "G Dog" is available from Minnesota Public Radio.