A split?

This past week, I was at my (future) organization's annual conference. The first half of the week, I went through training. I wasn't sure what to expect since I have had a number of experiences overseas including a season in the Antarctic, two summers in East Africa, and a Peace Corps stint in Central Asia.

I was pleasantly surprised. The training challenged me in a number of ways and I enjoyed myself. I think it may be some time before I fully process everything I learned.

The second half of the week was the conference itself. I had attended last year's conference and had befriended a number of individuals I looked forward to seeing once again. One person in particular I looked forward to seeing was Meshach. Meshach is originally from Nigeria, was educated in the U.S., and has lived in Bangledesh of recent. Needless to say, he has a healthy world perspective.

He stood out last year as speaking for many in the group when one of the conference speakers suggested we should offer our allegiances to country, God, and family...in that order. This year, he spoke up when one of the speakers suggested we should confront Muslims militarily first, in dialogue second. For those who frequent this site, I doubt there is much question as to which side of the aisle I'm on.

This year, however, I noticed a bit of a rift...a split of sorts. Those attending the conference from abroad were, for the most part, siding with Meshach. For those who were Stateside attendees, most sided with the speaker.

My question is this...is this an accurate reflection of the Christian community? Is there a split developing?