As we watch the rise of nationalism and white supremacy in this country, these words from Howard Thurman gives us much to consider as we work for equality and true freedom.
The opposition to those who work for social change does not come only from those who are the guarantors of the status quo. Again and again it has been demonstrated that the lines are held by those whose hold on security is sure only as long as the status quo remains intact. If a man is convinced that he is safe only as long as he uses his power to give others a sense of insecurity, then the measure of their security is in his hands. If security or insecurity is at the mercy of a single individual or group, then control of behavior becomes routine. All imperialism functions in this way. — Howard Thurman
Jesus and the Disinherited (pp. 24-25)
Verse of the day
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
– Romans 12:21
Voice of the day
Let us be enraged about injustice, but let us not be destroyed by it.
– Bayard Rustin
Prayer of the day
Lord, let us channel our rage into productive conversations and actions for justice and goodness.
Verse of the day
“Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven.”
– Matthew 18:10
Voice of the day
The children are always ours, every single one of them, all over the globe; and I am beginning to suspect that whoever is incapable of recognizing this may be incapable of morality.
– James Baldwin, “Notes on the House of Bondage”
Prayer of the day
God, we cry out for the children killed by violent hands. We mourn for those children who have been despised, and we long for a world where all will see that children are always ours, every single one of them, all over the globe.
Life is a gift. Each one of us is unique, known by name, and loved by the One who fashioned us. Unfortunately, there is a very loud, consistent, and powerful message coming to us from our world that leads us to believe that we must prove our belovedness by how we look, by what we have, and by what we can accomplish. We become preoccupied with “making it” in this life, and we are very slow to grasp the liberating truth of our origins and our finality. We need to hear the message announced and the message emboldened over and over again. Only then do we find the courage to claim it and live from it.
Verse of the day
Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.
– Romans 15:7
Voice of the day
It’s okay to distance yourself from spaces that demand a version of you that no longer is true. Belonging shouldn’t depend on an illusion.
– Cole Arthur Riley
Prayer of the day
May we welcome our whole selves into the world. Show us the places where we can be the true versions of ourselves.
“We believe that peace is more powerful than violence, that restitution is more healing than retribution, and that mutual respect is the foundation for human holiness.”—Fr. Rusty Smith
“There is no greater block to world peace or inner peace than fear. . . and through negative concentration we tend to attract the things we fear. If we fear nothing and radiate love, we can expect good things to come.”—Peace Pilgrim
“But we should be helping one another — let’s put it in simpler words — to love. We help one another to love more, and you help people to love, not by saying ‘love’ but by loving. That’s the justification of our life: if there is love, it’s justified, and it should a little in-growing love. It should be a love that reaches out to everybody.” — Thomas Merton
From a newly published book edited by David M. Odorisio—Thomas Merton in California: The Redwood Conferences & Letters (p. 52)
“Because men* with hard faces do violent things,
Because fanaticism seizes and shrinks minds,
Is no reason for the rest of us to abandon our songs,
Maybe we need to sing louder.”—Naomi Shihab Nye, Palestinian-American poet
“It may be true that morality cannot be legislated, but behavior can be regulated. It may be true that the law cannot change the heart, but it can restrain the heartless.”—Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
