Told by several people that they did not feel responsible for the injustices their ancestors had created, the writer Isabel Wilkerson compared America to living in an old house with creaks in the floorboards, cracks in the plaster, and fissures built into the foundations. Unless we address the problems of the old house, it will continue to deteriorate. Her imagery certainly makes the point.
Now in the beginning of 2021 we do need to address the cracks and fissures. And we have the opportunity to do this. As we look at our old house America, we need to do more than plaster a wall. We need to start with the foundation because as someone else noted a house built on sand will crumble.
So, we ask ourselves, what rock do we need to repair the foundation? More than the rock of mere tolerance, we need the rock of acceptance. Acceptance does not mean we erase our responsibility for moral clarity; it means discerning right from wrong and building the new foundation on what is right.
Prayer for the Day
There are times, O God, when we feel so lost and confused,
Not knowing which way to turn, not knowing what to do;
And like the Psalmist, we cry for the help only you can give,
To move us beyond our despair that the world will not change.
So we turn to you knowing that you alone can guide us
On how best to live your kingdom of justice and mercy.
In the name of him who points the way to the kingdom,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen
Thoughts for the Day
Powerlessness and silence go together. We ... should use our privileged positions not as a shelter from the world's reality, but as a platform from which to speak. A voice is a gift. It should be cherished and used.
- Margaret Atwood, Canadian writer
No democracy can long survive which does not accept as fundamental to its very existence the recognition of the rights of its minorities.
- Franklin D. Roosevelt, President (1882-1945)
Answer me quickly, O Lord; my spirit fails.
Do not hide your face from me, or I shall be like those who go down to the Pit.
Let me hear of your steadfast love in the morning, for in you I put my trust
Teach me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
Psalm 143: 7-8.