Thank you so much for your kind words and warm wishes! I'm grateful the article resonated with you, and I hope it serves as a meaningful reminder during this season. Wishing you and your loved ones a joyous and peaceful Christmas as well!
Thank you for this focus on hope. The messes you described are why Jesus came. As I read your piece, I was reminded of the experience 18 years ago when, right before Christmas, we visited the site of one on the major massacres of the Rwandan genocide. At Gikongoro, the people exhumed the bodies of those who had been buried in a mass grave and preserved them. The signs of how all died, including infants was visible. As I looked at the horror and heard from a survivor, all I could think was "this is why we needed Jesus to come" . My work in elevating the marginalized is predicated on that knowledge.
Thank you for all of your writings. I have read your books and followed you for several years, and am grateful to be able to be a paid subscriber to support what you do to educatethe rest of us.
Visiting Gikongoro and witnessing the aftermath of such horror must have been an incredibly sobering experience. You’re so right—this is exactly why we needed Jesus to come, to bring hope and healing to a broken world. Thank you for your kind words, your support, and for being a paid subscriber—it truly means the world to me. Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas filled with hope and peace!
"... And the government will be on His shoulders." "Fear not", sisters and brothers, He is not concerned w the out ome of elections; only the condition of peoples' hearts. Therefore, "Let not your hearts be troubled..." That's an order from Our Commander. Peace to you all!
Thank for another encouraging article. Your writings are truly helpful in times like these. I hope as we enter 2025 you stay inspired and keep using your pen, which is mightier than the sword.
What a beautiful reminder that we can hold the tension between hope and our reality even in the most difficult of times and still dream the dream - thank you!
Merry Christmas, and thanks for sharing such thoughtful reflections! Your theme, 'Shine Bright,' pulls together so many powerful ideas—from VP Harris’s words to the wise men’s journey and their refusal to follow Herod. Let’s keep shining bright with esperanza ahora! Wishing you a joyful and hope-filled Christmas!
Thank you! (I took action on a suggestion from the Dec Office Hour (very helpful), but I mixed up my Substack settings in the process. My comments were deleted & I'm starting anew for the new year.) Happy New Year with hope & joy!
Everyone's living & flourishing are interconnected. Hope in the expression of Christmas. Dr. Jemar Tisby's Christmastime post inspires me with the life & legacy of Rev Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
I think of my Advent & Christmas theme this year, "Shine Bright & Flight to Egypt," with my Christmas & Advent readings:
"Gift from Creator Tells the Good Story" (Matt 2:12-18, First Nations Version NT)
The FNVNT passage includes "Sheep Woman (Rachel)" in verse 18's lamenting Herod's genocide of children & babies. My faith community and its pro-baby focus fits many descriptions in Dr. Kristin Kobes DuMez' book, "Jesus and John Wayne." In my youth, I helped care for my family's sheep in farm country. Yet I didn't note a shepherdess in the Bible or Nativity until reading Beth Allison Barr's post:
"Reading through the Gospels and a pattern emerges: Pharisees tested Jesus on orthodoxy because they wanted power and certainty. Jesus tested people’s faith because he wanted authenticity and relationship." https://substack.com/@jemartisby/note/c-81705328
I think of the lives & legacies of folks who followed Jesus of Nazareth, our cloud of witnesses, including Rev Dr Martin Luther King Jr. & many folks described in Dr. Tisby's "The Spirit of Justice." Let's shine bright with esperanza ahora
Thank you for your clarity of inspiration and timely reminder. Wishing you and your family a joyous Christmas.
Thank you for reading! 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾Merry Christmas!
Thank you so much for your kind words and warm wishes! I'm grateful the article resonated with you, and I hope it serves as a meaningful reminder during this season. Wishing you and your loved ones a joyous and peaceful Christmas as well!
Thanks for sharing these insights and content from Dr. King's Christmas sermon!
Thank you for taking the time to read and engage with the article! I'm glad you found the insights meaningful!
Thank you for this focus on hope. The messes you described are why Jesus came. As I read your piece, I was reminded of the experience 18 years ago when, right before Christmas, we visited the site of one on the major massacres of the Rwandan genocide. At Gikongoro, the people exhumed the bodies of those who had been buried in a mass grave and preserved them. The signs of how all died, including infants was visible. As I looked at the horror and heard from a survivor, all I could think was "this is why we needed Jesus to come" . My work in elevating the marginalized is predicated on that knowledge.
Thank you for all of your writings. I have read your books and followed you for several years, and am grateful to be able to be a paid subscriber to support what you do to educatethe rest of us.
Merry Christmas!
Visiting Gikongoro and witnessing the aftermath of such horror must have been an incredibly sobering experience. You’re so right—this is exactly why we needed Jesus to come, to bring hope and healing to a broken world. Thank you for your kind words, your support, and for being a paid subscriber—it truly means the world to me. Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas filled with hope and peace!
"... And the government will be on His shoulders." "Fear not", sisters and brothers, He is not concerned w the out ome of elections; only the condition of peoples' hearts. Therefore, "Let not your hearts be troubled..." That's an order from Our Commander. Peace to you all!
Merry Christmas!
Thank you for sharing these reflections and scriptural reminders! Wishing you and your loved ones a blessed and joyous Christmas!
Thank for another encouraging article. Your writings are truly helpful in times like these. I hope as we enter 2025 you stay inspired and keep using your pen, which is mightier than the sword.
What a beautiful reminder that we can hold the tension between hope and our reality even in the most difficult of times and still dream the dream - thank you!
Thank you and Merry Christmas. ♥️
Merry Christmas, and thanks for sharing such thoughtful reflections! Your theme, 'Shine Bright,' pulls together so many powerful ideas—from VP Harris’s words to the wise men’s journey and their refusal to follow Herod. Let’s keep shining bright with esperanza ahora! Wishing you a joyful and hope-filled Christmas!
Thank you! (I took action on a suggestion from the Dec Office Hour (very helpful), but I mixed up my Substack settings in the process. My comments were deleted & I'm starting anew for the new year.) Happy New Year with hope & joy!
Everyone's living & flourishing are interconnected. Hope in the expression of Christmas. Dr. Jemar Tisby's Christmastime post inspires me with the life & legacy of Rev Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
I think of my Advent & Christmas theme this year, "Shine Bright & Flight to Egypt," with my Christmas & Advent readings:
"Gift from Creator Tells the Good Story" (Matt 2:12-18, First Nations Version NT)
https://www.bible.com/bible/3633/MAT.2.FNVNT
Let's Shine Bright! (Kamala Harris, paraphrase) https://kristindumez.substack.com/p/its-dark-enough-now
Artist Henry Ossawa Tanner, "Flight to Egypt," https://americanart.si.edu/artwork/flight-egypt-23652
"Flight into Egypt: Black Artists and Ancient Egypt, 1876–Now" https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/flight-into-egypt-black-artists-and-ancient-egypt-1876-now featured in
https://news.artnet.com/art-world/black-artists-synergistic-relationship-with-ancient-egypt-2570898
The FNVNT passage includes "Sheep Woman (Rachel)" in verse 18's lamenting Herod's genocide of children & babies. My faith community and its pro-baby focus fits many descriptions in Dr. Kristin Kobes DuMez' book, "Jesus and John Wayne." In my youth, I helped care for my family's sheep in farm country. Yet I didn't note a shepherdess in the Bible or Nativity until reading Beth Allison Barr's post:
https://open.substack.com/pub/bethallisonbarr/p/a-womanist-midrash-by-wilda-gafney?r=518mt6&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
Then I read Chapter 3 & Dr. Jemar Tisby's prophetic post, https://www.bible.com/bible/3633/MAT.3.FNVNT
"Reading through the Gospels and a pattern emerges: Pharisees tested Jesus on orthodoxy because they wanted power and certainty. Jesus tested people’s faith because he wanted authenticity and relationship." https://substack.com/@jemartisby/note/c-81705328
I think of the lives & legacies of folks who followed Jesus of Nazareth, our cloud of witnesses, including Rev Dr Martin Luther King Jr. & many folks described in Dr. Tisby's "The Spirit of Justice." Let's shine bright with esperanza ahora