For decades, scientists have been searching for life “somewhere out there.” The earnest expectation of many is to find complex life beyond humanity, and at the same time, discredit the creation story once and for all. This ongoing effort has involved a huge investment of time and cost billions of dollars.

How many people long for a place to call home? How many people globally do have a place they call home? According to a new United Nations study, “One person [is] forced to flee their home every three seconds by war and violence” (The Guardian, June 19, 2017). This translates into over 65 million displaced persons in 2016!

A writer for the BBC recently made a sobering assessment of two nations that have led the Western World. Noting the “uncertainty in Westminster” and “something nearing chaos in Washington” he wrote, “Neither Britain nor America can boast strong and stable governments. Neither have the look of global exemplars. In the six weeks since Theresa May called her snap election, the global tectonic plates have shifted fast, leaving Britain and America increasingly adrift” (BBC, June 9, 2017).

News articles discuss the deep divides in societies the world over. Whether the division occurs in politics, education, religion, or culture, every side has strong proponents and equally strong opponents. Why are people so deeply divided? And is there a solution?

Divisions are as old as mankind. Disagreements about who the leader should be, who has water and grazing rights, on whose property is the well, where the property boundary line is, and which god should be worshipped, all go back to antiquity.