Tonight, my wife and I hosted two very group friends originally from Cuba and Peru. It was a cross-cultural conversation that made us better people.

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breath free, the wretched  refuse of your teeming shore." Those words are at the base of the Statue of  Liberty- words came from a sonnet called the 'The new colossus" written Emma Lazarus in 1883.

Yesterday evening, my wife and I hosted good friends of ours that she has known since her college days. Friends we try to keep in touch with despite our busy schedules.  Rolando immigrated to the United States from Cuba. He was the last remaining family member to do so on the account that Fidel wanted all younger men to serve in the Cuban military.  When he did arrive in the United States, he joined the family in the upper midwest where his father ran a successful small business. He chose not to join this business and decided to pursue teaching by completing his college degree. It was while at college that my wife became part of a group that tutored him in the English language. He met a beautiful lady at college who was from Peru.  

For several years, we would get invited to their Christmas celebrations with their Hispanic friends. Every year those celebrations left us with smiles on our faces with a deeper connection for the Hispanic race.  

Our friend shared a story of being on vacation in Florida with his two children when  standing in knee-deep water, accidentally backing into a group of white 10-year-olds when one shouted out to them, "where the f*k did you come from?" He learned there was a white supremacist group visiting the area that day.  In his wisdom, he knew that 10-year-olds do not normally talk that way and what they learned came from their parents.  Rolando grabbed both of his kids and ran as quickly from the water away from imminent danger. He said the horror of that encounter forever soured his experiences with the ocean.

As he described that story, I was crying on the inside.  My mind drifted back to my boyhood years living in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, the home to the largest group of Jewish holocaust survivors and seeing the mistreatment of our Jewish neighbors.

'No one deserves to be treated this way', I thought. Yet, there is a cross-section of America who believes that whites are superior to all other races.  Margaret Sanger, the founder of what is now called planned parenthood laid the groundwork for this hate with her filthy trash talk about the poor. If you don't believe me then I urge you to watch this well-done documentary Marfa 21 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6XfU8KVkzI that sheds a light on the evil of this organization

As the evening wound down, I once again appreciated these cross-cultural gatherings because it made me realize that despite our different skin colors we all have similar goals and aspirations in life. White Supremacy is a sin in the eyes of God and like any sin must be repented.  

As I reflect on my faith, I thank God that He sent his Son, Jesus Christ to die for all of us regardless of our cultural background.  

Jesus Christ makes racial reconciliation possible.