How immense God’s heart is! The divisions between peoples and nations, with their various languages and ethnic groups, simply do not exist for him. For him, we all are his children with equal dignity. Even the very first Christians of Jerusalem had a hard time understanding this mentality which is so open and universal. Being members of the same people, with the awareness of being the chosen people, they found it difficult to have a relationship of true brotherhood with people of other nations. And they were scandalized when they heard how Peter, at Caesarea, had entered the home of Cornelius, a Roman official, a foreigner. One should not socialize with foreigners! But for God, no one is a foreigner. He “makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust” (Mt 5:45). God loves everyone, without making any exceptions. This is what Peter had affirmed in front of the Roman soldier, thus overcoming all prejudices that kept him separated from people of other nations:

«God shows no partiality. Rather, in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him.»

If God acts in this way, then we his children ought to act as he does and open our hearts, break down the barriers, and free ourselves from every form of slavery.
Yes, because we are often slaves to divisions between rich and poor, between young and old, between people of different races, cultures, and nationalities. How many preconceived ideas circulate about immigrants, about foreigners in our midst. How many commonplace judgments fall on whomever is different from us. This gives rise to insecurities, to fear of losing one’s own identity, to intolerance.
Even more subtle barriers may exist: those erected between our own family and families nearby, between members of our own faith community and those of other convictions, between neighborhoods in a city, and between political parties and teams in sports. This gives rise to distrust, silent but deep grudges, and deep-rooted antagonisms.
With a God who does not discriminate among people, how can we not have universal brotherhood at heart? As children of the same Father we are able to discover a brother and a sister in every man and woman we meet.

«God shows no partiality. Rather, in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him.»

If we are all brothers and sisters, we ought to love everyone, beginning with whoever is next to us, without holding back. Then our love will not be merely platonic and abstract, but concrete and made to serve others.
It is a love that enables us to go out to meet others, to begin a dialogue, to make ourselves one with others’ difficulties, and to take on their burdens and their worries. As a result other people feel welcome with all their differences and free to express all the riches they possess.
This type of love keeps relationships alive and vibrant among people of the most diverse backgrounds. It is based on the “Golden Rule” – “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” – which is present in all sacred books and written in the human conscience.
It is a love that moves our hearts to the point of sharing possessions of all kinds and of loving another's country as our own. It is a love that builds new structures, with the hope that it is possible to end wars, terrorism, conflicts, hunger and the thousands of evils in the world.

«God shows no partiality. Rather, in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him.»

This is the experience one of my first companions from Rome named Fiore had with a youth from Guatemala named Moira. Moira was a Catholic, a descendent of the Maya Kacjchichel, and the eldest of 11 children. The indigenous people of her country are often discriminated against. As a result, they often feel inferior when face to face with people of mixed color and especially with white people.
I would like to quote what Moira said about her meeting with Fiore, whom she saw as a person free of prejudice, a person who spoke right to the hearts of the people, dissolving every barrier: “I will never forget the warm welcome that Fiore gave me. Her love towards me was a reflection of the love of God.
“My indigenous culture and upbringing instilled in me a rather closed stern outlook and I often distanced myself from those around me. Fiore became a teacher, a guide and a model for me. She helped me to come out of my shell and reach out with confidence towards others.
She also urged me to go back to school to finish my studies. Then she supported and encouraged me when I was tempted to give up because of the difficulties of a different culture and method of study. With her help I was then able to attain my diploma as a business secretary.
Above all, Fiore instilled in me a sense of my human dignity. She helped me to overcome that sense of inferiority I harbored as a native person, as though I had been branded. Since I was a young girl, I dreamed of fighting to win back my people’s rightful dignity, but I understood from Fiore that I had to begin by changing myself. I had to become ‘a new person’ if I wanted to see a ‘new people’ come to life.”
By loving in the way of the ideal of unity, with a God who shows no preferences among people, we can have new dreams as Moira did and say with her: “Through my ‘yes’ to God, I understood that I could open up a new road for the ideal of unity to reach my people. I can now already see it in part come true within my family.”

Chiara Lubich