Through the writings of Howard Thurman, I have learned what I have always known. The religion of Jesus has always been about desiring a more equitable and just society, which begins first in the soul of the individual.
My working definition of minimalism is a focus on the aspects of life that matter most and intentionally removing everything else. What, then, are the aspects of life that matter most?
Perhaps the lesson of Easter still stands: no stone, no guards, no jeering crowds, no pious bureaucracy, no political compromise will ever hold back, or even begin to contain the living Truth.
With each tearful testimony, I think of what happened on that street in Minneapolis, as regular people watched heartless authorities while a man died unjustly. And I remember what happened on a street in Jerusalem two millennia ago.
Are you angry? Are you resentful and bitter over the past? Are there those whom you cannot or will not forgive? Maewyn Succat would tell us that with God's help, there is a Saint Patrick within, waiting to be released.
When I’m tempted to judge someone or a situation, I’m being invited to ask myself, Why do I think what I’m thinking? What am I feeling? How do I act when I think this way? What is the truth here? Jesus constantly invites us into a more expansive way of being.
Jesus doesn't bundle salvation or healing. He touches individuals. He speaks to the particular pain of each person. He restores the soul of the singular that then speaks to the wounds of the collective. He saves people, not countries.
There is no use pointing fingers. That is not them. That is us. We dragged Jesus—the one who died for us—into our tryst with Trump, while the church sat by with a nod and a shrug.
We must still raise our voices to denounce Christian pursuit of power and boldly denounce cycles of violence perpetuated in the name of Jesus. We also seek that justice be given to those involved in last week’s events. Nevertheless, we can still own and apologize to a watching world the sins that our fellow siblings have committed.