By Nancy Canon, from Frogs and other Soul Friends: Reflections from the Forest
You ask my ancestry?
German, maybe Irish,
I don’t know, but
This I do know.
I am part deer! Continue reading “Deer- Mentors”
Dialoguing Race and Police Brutality
From equity and racial justice expert and consultant Jyarland Daniels, MBA, JD, President & Founder, Better World Branding Solutions & Consulting (right: with son Malcolm), in the wake of continued police brutality (if you want to receive a copy of the entire 8-page resource, click on the Harriet Speaks website or email Jyarland at betterworldbrandsolutions@gmail.com):
WHAT IF THEY SAY? (Frequently Made Comments)
When talking about race, racism, and police brutality, a few comments often come up. Many of us don’t engage in these discussions because we don’t know how to respond if questioned. First of all, you might consider responding to an individual via inbox (or privately) if that makes you feel more comfortable. Often times this will eliminate embarrassment and make the recipient more open to the point you are trying to convey. But following are the comments along with responses you might consider.
1. But if X had just done what police suggested then this would not have happened. Continue reading “Dialoguing Race and Police Brutality”
How Can You Be Objective?
From Chris Hedges in The World As It Is: Dispatches on the Myth of Human Progress (2013):
I have never sought to be objective. How can you be objective about death squads in El Salvador, massacres in Iraq, or Serbian sniper fire that gunned down unarmed civilians, including children, in Sarajevo? How can you be neutral about the masters and profiteers of war who lie and dissemble to hide the crimes they commit and the profits they make? How can you be objective about human pain? And finally, how can you be objective about those responsible for this suffering? I am not neutral about rape, torture, or murder. I am not neutral about rapists, torturers, or murderers. I am not neutral about George W. Bush or Barack Obama, who under international law are war criminals. And if you had to see the butchery of war up close, as I did for nearly two decades, you would not be neutral either.
Communion
The universe is composed of subjects to be communed with, not objects to be exploited. Everything has its own voice. Thunder and lighting and stars and planets, flowers, birds, animals, trees- all these have voices, and they constitute a community of existence that is profoundly related. – Thomas Berry
Mary and Martha
By Laurel Dykstra
Luke 10. 38-42
I don’t like the story of Mary and Martha.
Most of us already know if we are more like Mary, who sits at Jesus’ feet, or more like Martha, who is distracted by her many tasks. And it seems to me that no matter how nice they try to be about it, most of the sermons and commentaries on this passage seem to say, “Yay Mary and Boo Martha” Continue reading “Mary and Martha”
Embracing the Personalist Approach
By Wes Howard-Brook and Sue Ferguson Johnson
“Some people are Marys, and some are Marthas.”
Uh, no.
The little story of Mary and Martha in Luke’s Gospel is one that we regularly hear interpreted as a choice between two lifestyles, the “active” and the “contemplative.” Read in context, though, Luke’s message is not that at all. Let’s try to listen to this familiar story with fresh ears. Continue reading “Embracing the Personalist Approach”
THIS IS WHAT IT WILL TAKE
By Ric Hudgens
My eighty-year old neighbor,
a man of deep, abiding faith,
now frail and bent with age,
who marched
when marching made a difference,
once upon a time
late at night
heard a yell
from our alley. Continue reading “THIS IS WHAT IT WILL TAKE”
Guns
By Joyce Hollyday
I learned about the power of guns when I was nine years old. I had a red felt cowgirl hat that tightened with a white cord under my chin, a holster made of stamped fake leather, and two toy metal six-shooters. When I waved them around shouting “Bang, bang!” I imagined myself out in The Wild West among the saloon owners and cattle rustlers I saw on TV—someplace like Texas. Continue reading “Guns”
Reign of a Human Race
By Paul Laraque (right)
you say democracy
and we know that it’s tin from Bolivia,
copper from Chile,
petroleum from Venezuela,
sugar from Cuba,
raw material and profits.
you say democracy
and it’s the annexation of Texas
the hold-up of the Panama Canal
the occupation of Haiti
the colonization of Puerto Rico Continue reading “Reign of a Human Race”
