As we celebrate Juneteenth, I wonder how we ground ourselves in the work that we need to do to build the realm of God where all people are loved as God loves each of us. I wonder how those of us who are identified as white would have responded to the news that slavery was no longer the law of the land and that life as we knew it would shift dramatically. Would we have rolled up our sleeves and gotten to work to build a new south where the talents of former slaves and former slave owners would be used to rebuild a community racked by war and economic devastation? Would we have stepped into the unknown with love, curiosity, and hope? Or would we have found ways to return to what we knew and worked to end reconstruction?

Howard Thurman, the grandson of slaves, a scholar, a mystic, a liberation theologian, and in many ways the architect of the theology of the non-violent civil rights movement remains relevant today.

Below is a link to an hour long PBS documentary about Thurman’s life and influence. I love Thurman’s commitment to creation, silence, arts, prayer, and justice. It features many leaders in the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s as well as Rev Otis Moss, whose work I shared a few weeks ago. May this video challenge, nurture and inspire you.

https://www.pbs.org/video/backs-against-the-wall-the-howard-thurman-story-cgv9gi/

Dear God,
Open our eyes and our hearts to the injustice we do and live without even realizing it.
Open our eyes and hearts to the deep hurts within ourselves and between ourselves and our neighbors.
Help us to accept your love for us, for others of all races and faiths, and for all of creation.
May we be your loving and faithful people. Amen.