My thanks to @nalecorg for this beautiful prayer and their powerful “God’s Household” campaign, which “invites the Church to embody Christ’s peace through prayer, presence, and gospel-shaped solidarity with and for immigrant communities.”
As Christians walk from palm fronds to the cross, I encourage all of us to join hands with our immigrant neighbors and loved ones. If you’re in Central Florida, join me and @cfmicahmvmt for a time of prayer, praise, and lament on Holy Saturday.
#faithfulwitness
Check out “Grietas,” a new short doc that I got to make with Josh this year following his pilgrimage to Buenos Aires. It’s a powerful, poetic piece that was a real privilege to create. We premiered at UrbanFest on Sunday but it’s streaming all week for free as part of Global Peace Film Festival. You’ve got until Sept 28th to view, so don’t miss it! Link in bio
“There are three kinds of patriots, two bad, one good. The bad are the uncritical lovers and loveless critics. Good patriots carry on a lover’s quarrel with their country.”
— William Sloane Coffin
What do I love about America?
I haven’t been much of a patriot in my adult life, more a “loveless critic.” That said, the last few years have shown me that I care about something slipping away, namely democracy. Viewing the scars of civil war in Belfast, studying white Christian nationalism, and simply existing as an observant citizen in this frayed moment have indicated how treacherous the years ahead will be. For the long haul, we had better ground ourselves in what we love and what we hope for.
Remembering Vincent Harding, I love America’s song—its possibilities, never fully realized, for diverse communities to share the work of justice and offer dignity to friends and strangers alike. I am indebted to what Harding called the “revolutionary river,” which Valarie Kaur paraphrases “a current flowing through the centuries streaked with the blood of people who gave their lives to movements for civil rights.”
Finally, I love these lands, beautiful to behold, which somehow retain an elegance and brilliance even after all the horrors they have seen and continue to witness. And I’m grateful to all of the incredible, creative, and courageous people that I share this land with. This is our America, and our democracy, if we can keep it.
No Kings
No white Afrikaner refugees
No Gaza resorts
No military parades
No domestic deployment
No immigration quotas
No lying about riots
No lying about autism
No censuring education
No Pride disinvestment
No trans erasure
No more reckless men in charge
No Kings
This one ❤️ Who doesn’t like spotlights or big celebrations, but always finds creative ways to show how much she cares. Our lives are so much richer because of your love.
Happy Mother’s Day @breannewitwer !
A public prayer service and footwashing held at the doors of Orlando's Immigration Court. Organized by the Faith Leader Network of the Immigrants Are Welcomed Here Coalition.
We invite you to join this solidarity and advocacy movement by signing on to "A Call to Love Our Neighbors." Link in bio.
📢 CALL TO SOLIDARITY ⛪️
Join me and other Orlando faith leaders in a footwashing 🦶🏽🦶🏾service outside of the Immigration Court downtown. This is centered on humility, dignity, and encouragement in a time of reckless targeting of our immigrant neighbors.
Proud to also share a sign-on letter that I was honored to collaborate on. Two small but beautiful ways to put love in action in this Lenten season. Link in bio.
PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF YOU PLAN TO JOIN ON HOLY THURSDAY AS DETAILS MAY CHANGE.
Stay curious and courageous, y’all ❤️
Why am I here?
In Caste, Isabel Wilkerson defines caste as “an artificial construction, a fixed and embedded ranking of human value.” Caste can be hard to notice from inside, at least from within dominant or privileged stratifications, but apocalyptic moments like our current political theater can bring things into stark relief. We’ve seen images of nameless men in Latin American prisons, while hearing about revenue from “Gold Card” citizenship fees. We’ve heard about forced relocation for Palestinians in Gaza, while invitations are made to South African white nationalists to seek refuge in the United States.
Sometimes, it’s clear who counts in our society.
But it’s not just dehumanization that requires urgent and loud denunciation. It’s also dictatorship. Freedom of speech—especially political dissidence—is a cornerstone of democracy. Intellectual freedom of universities is another. Diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts to dismantle our caste system and increase participation in public life are necessary for democracy. Democracy is necessary, while not sufficient, for American society to be a place where all can live lives of dignity and creativity.
So why am I here? My faith demands it.
I read Caste at church. I’ve organized for inclusion at church. I’ve convened conversations across difference at church. Through it all I’ve learned the stories of radical non-conformists in Scripture, especially Jesus himself who was executed for empowering the poor and threatening the powerful. And I’ve learned to listen closely to the Spirit, who is always well ahead of us human beings, calling us to get with the picture and start caring about what God cares about.
We are God’s beloved.
God came down to set us free.
