Confession of Belhar (September 1986): https://www.pcusa.org/site_media/media/uploads/theologyandworship/pdfs/belhar.pdf.
We believe:
that this unity of the people of God must be manifested and be active in a variety of ways: in that we love one another; that we experience, practice and pursue community with one another; that we are obligated to give ourselves willingly and joyfully to be of benefit and blessing to one another; that we share one faith, have one calling, are of one soul and one mind; have one God and Father, are filled with one Spirit, are baptized with one baptism, eat of one bread and drink of one cup, confess one name, are obedient to one Lord, work for one cause, and share one hope; together come to know the height and the breadth and the depth of the love of Christ; together are built up to the stature of Christ, to the new humanity; together know and bear one another’s burdens, thereby fulfilling the law of Christ that we need one another and upbuild one another, admonishing and comforting one another; that we suffer with one another for the sake of righteousness; pray together; together serve God in this world; and together fight against all which may threaten or hinder this unity.
Reflection (partial) on Purple Churches from Emma Nickel, interim pastor at Beulah Presbyterian Church in Louisville, Kentucky.
I have been trying to remember that these purple churches of ours are a gift. I honestly can’t think of many other places that are left in our world where people who disagree (or who totally and completely disagree) about politics choose to spend time together every single week. Voluntarily, they come together. They sit next to each other in the pews. They hold hands during prayers. They discuss the Bible in Sunday school. They believe there is a cord of unity that holds us all together in the body of Christ. When, out in public, people say those who disagree with them are “un-American,” it’s a big deal that we maintain this purple space where we love and interact with those of different opinions.