“I was saved by God to make America great again.” President Trump 2025 Address to a Joint Session of Congress
Many in his MAGA base also believe that. Some Evangelical Christians even exalt him as a prophetic figure, divinely appointed to be here at this time to save the lost. However, I, as a woman of faith, have difficulty reconciling that prophetic belief with President Trump’s actions over the years. In fact, I would argue that most are clearly antithetical to the Christian life.
Can we imagine one who truly follows Christ mocking the disabled, the one who stutters? Can we imagine such a person describing the violence and destruction, the threats to hang Vice President Mike Pence on January 6th as a “day of love,” and then to call the perpetrators the true victims and pardon them? Can we imagine such a person showering accolades on Putin, one of the world’s most notorious dictators, while publicly chastising Zelenskyy, a courageous leader desperately trying to defend his country from an unprovoked takeover?
Meanwhile, as Elon Musk parades like a rock star with his chainsaw, tens of thousands of federal workers are being sent home with little notice, some wondering how they’re going to pay the rent or mortgage next month, put food on the table or how to tell their children their favorite activities have to stop—all challenges the world’s richest oligarchs couldn’t possibly imagine. And who knows what the inevitable fallout of services will be to many of us who rely on them daily. Could we imagine one who follows Christ casually dismissing and justifying all such collateral damage as simply a small price to pay for cleaning up the nation’s waste and fraud?
But, in my view, perhaps the most egregious anti-Christ-like example was conveniently made silent and invisible by the stroke of an executive order on day-one, the “Executive Order Protecting the American People Against Invasion.” Among an array of former immigration policies Trump rescinded in conjunction with this Order was Biden’s Executive Order 14011 that had established a task force to reunite families separated by Trump’s “Zero Tolerance” immigration policy.
On Dec. 19, 2024, The Latin Times cited a joint 135-page report by Human Rights Watch, the Texas Civil Rights Project (TCRP), and Yale Law School’s Lowenstein International Human Rights Clinic highlighting the over 4,600 children who were deliberately separated from their parents between 2017 and 2021 and the lasting harm incurred as a result.
The report states that children were held in overcrowded conditions and often lacked adequate food, hygiene supplies, and supervision. Guards often ignored crying children or subjected them to verbal abuse. No doubt, as many health professionals warned, such separations could cause severe, lifelong psychological harm.
Today, as many as 1,360 children still remain separated from their parents. Think about that. 1,360 children who may never know where, or perhaps even who, their parents are.
Images of the separations, the children, are well documented. I often think about the very young ones, those just old enough to feel it all but not yet old enough to know what’s happening or to understand. If you are strong of heart, take a look. See their faces. We did this.
“Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” Matt. 19:14
No one argues that we need immigration reform. No one disputes that we need to target the most violent criminals attempting to cross into our country and that we need to stem the flow of fentanyl and other dangerous drugs. No one. But to have perpetrated such violence on innocent children and their parents, many of whom came here to escape horrendous conditions, is not only far from Christ-like, it’s indisputably inhumane and cruel.
But on day-one, President Trump took it a step further. He doubled down on the cruelty to ensure that those remaining 1,360 children would no longer have any governmental support to find their parents.
There’s a clear and present danger here. Perpetrators, domestic and foreign, are praised. Victims are ignored or blamed. Unloading our national debt has been transferred onto the backs of tens of thousands of everyday Americans, while the oligarchy running our country celebrates numbers on the national spreadsheet. And gangs haven’t paid the price at the border. Children and families have.
If Trump was sent to save America, I would say it is we who are now living in the land of the lost. But I still believe, as John Newton wrote in the well-known hymn, Amazing Grace, that with just a little true Christ-like care for one another, we too as a nation may one day be able to say, “I once was lost, but now I’m found; was blind but now I see.”
It was like we were there that afternoon of January 6, 2021 as we watched in disbelief the violence erupting at our nation’s Capital. We kept checking across various news outlets from MSNBC to Fox News to make sure what we were seeing was really happening. And, sadly, we were confronted again and again by the same violent images. In the days that followed, many lawmakers on both sides of the aisle would forcibly, and rightfully, condemn the violence.
But soon the tide was recalibrated as allegiance to our flag and Republic went silent, drowned out by the growing vocal allegiance to Trump instead. Memories began to morph as Republican lawmakers tried to convince us that, essentially, we hadn’t really seen what we’d seen. Desperate to remain in good stead, strengthen the alliance, and court favor with their emerging autocratic leader, spines went soft. Most troubling, the ability to stand for the true heroes of the day, the Capitol Police officers, waned.
And today this morphing has culminated in a full reversal of the facts of what actually happened on January 6th. Now we’re told not only did we not see what we saw but, in reality, just the opposite happened. By continuing to describe the insurrectionists as “hostages,” Trump and his top guard have been reprogramming us to see what they want us to see: the violent mob that attacked the Capitol that day were simply true, unarmed, patriots.
This, of course, was predictable and unsurprising. After all, the so-called hostages had done their due diligence by showing clear and proper allegiance to Trump before they tried to destroy all constitutional vestiges of power. And we, having been duly programmed, were now primed to at least consider that it was really the rioters who were the true victims of that day. In this way, Trump could pardon them all with minimum fear of political backlash.
“I pledge allegiance to President Trump, and to the Republic which he has formed . . .”
It just may have worked—“if” we hadn’t seen with our own eyes what we saw. But we did. We did, in fact, see many of the rioters come armed with a variety of weapons such as stun guns, pepper spray, baseball bats and flagpoles wielded as clubs. We saw the violent attacks on police officers just doing their sworn duty that day. 140+ of them were injured, some seriously. Others would die in the days and weeks following including Officer Brian Sicknick, 42, an Iraq War veteran, who died the next day from wounds caused by a fire extinguisher to the head. We saw the lynching noose and heard the cries, “Hang Mike Pence.” And we watched, horrified, as the Confederate Flag was proudly carried through the Capitol.
Those of us who witnessed the events of January 6th must now not remain silent, lest we appear to be following along like imprinting ducklings to Trump’s self-serving propaganda. We must stand with the National Association of Police Officers and the International Association of Chiefs of Police, along with many US citizens, Republican and Democrat, who’ve condemned Trump’s decision to pardon those involved in the insurrection.
We must not cower and avoid dialogue as Trump’s top guard is doing. This should show us all that they’re unwilling to engage in any discussion that may potentially displease or threaten their leader. They’re clearly fearful and rightly should be. After all, autocrats get even particularly when they believe they’ve been touched by the providential hand of God and now have a Supreme Court willing to shelter and protect all actions done under the cloak of the office.
“I pledge allegiance to President Trump, and to the Republic which he has formed, one nation duly governed by him, God’s chosen servant . . .”
Sadly, Trump told us who he was in 2016 when he said, “I could stand in the middle of 5th Ave. and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose any voters.” At the time, most of us dismissed it as simply a grossly inappropriate display of chest-thumping. Today, we know it’s absolutely true. Trump could stand out in front of the Capitol building, kill someone while many watched, and by the evening news the channels supporting Trump would be assuring us that we really hadn’t seen what we’d seen—that what we’d really witnessed was, in fact, a most courageous and patriotic act carried out by our illustrious, divinely appointed, leader.
And, we’d all be encouraged to pray for him, placing our hands over our hearts as we remembered our Pledge of Allegiance:
“We pledge allegiance to President Trump, and to the Republic which he has formed, one nation duly governed by him, God’s chosen servant, to offer liberty and justice as decreed.”
To all who treasure democracy, let’s not falter at this critical moment! Let’s fight for the country our forefathers dared to envision, now on life support, so, just maybe, our children and grandchildren might one day still be able to stand and pledge allegiance to the flag and to our great Republic for which it stands.
In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. day . . . A blog I first posted in January 2020.
In 2016, I visited the largest mosque in New England, The Islamic Society of Boston Cultural Center (ISBCC), in Roxbury Crossing, MA, to hear Sheikh Yasir Fahmy speak on The Toxicity of Othering. As usual, I did not receive what I expected. No, I received so much more!
About a third of the way through, I started to recognize similar teachings to that of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I noticed that if I were to remove the Arabic phrases the Sheikh occasionally included and changed “Allah” to “God,” that, indeed, the core message would seem to be the same. Curious, once home, I listened to the video again off the ISBCC website and printed out a transcript. From there, my journey began and below are my findings which led to the creation of The Sheikh & The Preacher. The essay, expanded from this blog, was chosen for inclusion in the anthology One Nation, Indivisible: Seeking Liberty and Justice from the Pulpit to the Streets, edited by my former professor Celene Ibrahim and released by Wipf and Stock Publishers in 2019.
The four key categories below came to me as I heard the similarities unfold. The sub-headings I also included as a way to highlight the specific teachings within each category. Sheikh Yasir Fahmy’s quotes have been occasionally edited by punctuation only to facilitate ease of reading. The numbers noted at the end of each quote indicate where in the video the wording appeared. The quotes by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. are taken directly from the sources indicated at the end of each quote.
Enjoy…
Origins of Unhealthy Otherness
Exalting the Self and the Self’s Group as Superior
The Sheikh:
“We want upliftment. We want recognition. We want stability. We want to be known and recognized. We want to be justified. Because of our distance from Allah, we think that the only way I am to make myself big is by belittling others.” (25:05 – 25:34)
The Preacher:
“We all have the drum major instinct. We all want to be important, to surpass others, to achieve distinction, to lead the parade…And the great issue of life is to harness the drum major instinct. It is a good instinct if you don’t distort it and pervert it.” (Sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church, February 2, 1968)
Outcomes of Unhealthy Otherness
Removing the Inferior Others
The Sheikh:
“[At the extreme, this need for recognition] becomes toxic, demonic, destructive. The self becomes self-aggrandizing and self-absorbed. (2:57 – 3:11) You are a danger to my existence, to my power. You threaten me so I want to destroy you. (5:35 -5:43) [These are] diseases of the heart that exist at the root of this toxic other. (18:44-18:50)People have trouble distinguishing between religious or cultural expressions and human value.” (9:48 – 9:54)
The Preacher:
“We’ve been in the mountain of war. We’ve been in the mountain of violence. We’ve been in the mountain of hatred long enough. It is necessary to move on now, but only by moving out of this mountain can we move to the promised land of justice and brotherhood and the Kingdom of God.” (Sermon at Temple Israel, February 26, 1965)
How to Combat Unhealthy Otherness
Humbly Examine the Self
The Sheikh:
“So, brothers and sisters as we think critically about this disease that exists in our society we have to begin with ourselves. We begin by looking in the mirror and thinking, ’Am I a person who otherizes?’ Am I someone who puts others into other ugly categories and belittles them because of who they are?” (21:49 – 22:13)
“We must take a step back and before really thinking about what people are doing to me, I have to ask myself, ‘To what extent do some of these diseases exist within me?’ For to them as you do it, it will be done to you. Before we sit there and look at others, we have to ask, ‘Am I truly embodying the best of prophetic ideals in this particular regard?’” (7:10 – 8:02)
The Preacher:
“Now first let us deal with this question, which is a practical one: How do we go about loving our enemies? I think the first thing is this: In order to love your enemies, you must begin by analyzing self. And I’m sure that seems strange to you, that I start out telling you this morning that you love your enemies by beginning with a look at self.” [later] “There might be something within you that arouses the tragic hate response in the other individual. And this is one of the tragedies of human nature. So, we begin to love our enemies and love those persons that hate us, whether in collective life or individual life, by looking at ourselves.” (Loving Your Enemies, Nov. 17, 1957)
How to Cultivate Healthy Otherness
The Sheikh:
The purpose of all creation is ‘so you may know one another,’ to have an intimate engagement with people. [Allah said] I made you into these different tribes that you might know one another. So, it is through humility—that is the way we begin to heal the pains of our society.” (29:36 – 29:56)
The Preacher:
“People fail to get along because they fear each other; they fear each other because they don’t know each other; they don’t know each other because they have not communicated with each other.” (Advice for Living, May, 1958)
Recognize the Common Unity and Destiny of the Human Soul
The Sheikh:
“When Muhammad stood up before a Jewish funeral procession and was asked why, he replied, ‘Is he not a soul that deserves honor, dignity and respect? He is a human soul and, therefore, has inherent value and has inherent sacredness and sanctity and the human soul should be honored and respected regardless of the realities of that person. That’s the prophetic ideal that must thrive in societies.’” (8:15 – 8:59)
The Preacher:
“They [our white brothers] have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone. [later] We will be able to speed up that day when all God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!” (I Have a Dream Speech, August 28, 1963)
See the Sanctity Within Each Person
The Sheikh:
“Am I someone who has genuine honor for others, genuine love? Can I see the sanctity in human beings no matter who they are? Rather than looking out into the world, rather than seeing all the ugly, I see all the beautiful. I see the beauty of human beings who are struggling to just be there.” (22:17 – 22:34)
The Preacher:
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” (I Have a Dream Speech,August 28, 1963)
Seek to Love and Forgive Your Enemies
The Sheikh:
“Only Allah can measure the God consciousness of others. It’s not your responsibility to identify others as being this or that. (27:40 – 28:03) We hold dear to our beliefs. We have a distinct desire to see that human life is treated as sacred regardless of the differences that may exits—even in the quote-unquote enemy. No matter your worst enemy, whoever they may be, they deserve dignity as prescribed by Allah.” (16:22 – 16:58)
The Preacher:
“And so I stand here to say this afternoon to all assembled here, that in spite of the darkness of this hour, we must not despair. We must not become bitter nor must we harbor the desire to retaliate with violence. No, we must not lose faith in our white brothers.” (Eulogy after bombing of Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, September 18, 1963)
Care for One Another
The Sheikh:
“That’s what it means to be a mercy to mankind. To dignify others is to make sure that everyone comes before me. I want people to be lifted high and if it requires that I bow down and that my neck is broken for others, I will do it. That is the prophetic spirit. That is what it means to honor others, to care for others, regardless of religion or ethnicity or race or even in financiers in the economic realm.” (20:16 – 20:50)
The Preacher:
“The true neighbor will risk his position, his prestige, and even his life for the welfare of others. (From his 1963 book, Strength to Love.) Everybody can be great because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace; a soul generated by love.” (The Major Drum Instinct, sermon adapted from the 1952 homily ”Drum-Major Instincts” by J. Wallace Hamilton, 1952)
Cultivate a Consciousness of Love
The Sheikh:
“The most dignified and the most honorable amongst creation is the one who has the most God consciousness.“ (26:50 – 26:57)
The Preacher:
“Inject within the very structure of the universe that strong and powerful element of love.” (Loving Your Enemies, Nov. 17, 1957)
Seek to be Vehicles of Goodness and Unconditional Love
The Sheikh:
“May he make us vehicles for good on this earth. May he make us prophetic vehicles of change toward goodness on this earth. May we be sources of mercy for others on this earth.” (26:57 -29:28)
The Preacher:
“Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love. [later] I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality.”(Noble Peace Prize Acceptance Speech, December 10, 1964)
Closing Quote: The Sheikh
“May Allah rectify the conditions of our humanity on this earth. May he allow it to begin with us. May he guide us, guide through us. May Allah rectify our hearts of the diseases that have caused the problems that we see today so that we can see a society that is prospering.” (30:17 – 30-22)
Closing Quote: The Preacher
“I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.” (I Have a Dream Speech,August 28, 1963)
I used to hate Christmas. Well, not “Christmas” really. Just what it’d all come to mean, especially after the kids were grown, and there was no more special magic building up to Christmas morning. What seemed left was a non-negotiable requirement to shop, spend, wrap, mail and oh, by the way, do it all in the spirit of joy, peace and love. “Sure,” I’d think trying hard to hold off the low simmer of resentment brewing just under the surface.
“Whose idea was this anyway?” I would silently complain feeling quite certain “someone” must be responsible for my checkbook going red, pants bulging from overeating and stress stealing me away into that just-get-it-done zone. Certainly, there were moments that seemed to make it all worthwhile. But, still, I would silently celebrate when it had all passed, even as I would try to ignore that ever so subtle sense of sadness. This is “not” what Christmas should be about! Something’s off.
It was. And, it was me.
So, my husband and I launched a concerted effort to make Christmas our own again and, with enthusiastic intentions, encouraged our family to join in our revolution to reclaim the mystery or, at least, our sanity. Along the way, we tried different things. One year we asked that everyone bring a contribution to our Christmas dinner as an expression of our gift to one another. Worked fine until we discovered that enchiladas didn’t go so well with pumpkin soup. Another year we suggested we all give only handmade presents until we remembered that we were the only ones with flexible time, or perhaps even the inclination, to enthusiastically create such gifts complete with all the joyful trimmings.
Then, one Christmas, unexpectedly, something happened, and I found myself totally caught up in that “something.” Maybe it was decorating the tiny jewelry box I was drawn to give my granddaughter miles away with her favorite Bible saying. Yes, quite grandma-looking but what fun I had! Or hunting down the Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer record book for my oldest grandson who has Autism, his favorite Christmas story. Still even more heartwarming would be watching him on Christmas day listen to the recording over and over again. Or when I found just the right frame for that special picture of my two youngest grandkids holding hands walking down a forest path from our mountain cabin. Mission accomplished! Yes! Amazing!
“How ‘could’ this get any more fun?”
But, still, there was more. Suddenly, I couldn’t pass by a Salvation Army jingle without giving, and was a little surprised by that lump in my throat. A not serious, yet unavoidable, trip to the doctor let me know that the visit was only for me in a minor way. I’d really been sent on a secret Santa mission.
“Oh, my God. Thank you! I accept!”
And then being nudged to give something away from my prayer space I’d long cherished. This one gave me pause. “Really? Are you sure?” And then I could only smile. “Of course, ‘You’ are sure! I’m the only one questioning here! Ok. Done!
But, perhaps, the most special was finding that last minute gift for my husband, a small wooden cabin incense holder. Oh, I just knew he’d love it. What I didn’t know was that it would instantly bring him back to a sweet memory from his childhood remembering his mom had had one exactly like it. Only the day before, we’d talked of his mom, long passed, over our morning coffee.
“Oh no! Christmas can’t be over! No!” I thought. “There must be a way to make this feeling last all year long. Oh . . . yes, that ‘is’ the point, isn’t it?”
Now, my only concern: “How ‘will’ I deck my hammock out with all those boughs of holly?”
But wait! I’m remembering, “All things ‘are’ possible to him who believes.” (Mark 9:23)
Amen.
Merry Christmas Everyone!
And here is the small cabin today alongside our Christmas deer.
I’ll keep the picture I took yesterday close as a symbol of what democracy can look like at its best. A memory of a great experiment of inclusion, the dream our founding fathers laid out in our Constitution and exemplified by the Statue of Liberty – that it is possible to hold the tensions of diversity within the greater framework of our unity as Americans. But as Benjamin Franklin reminded us, in response to being asked about the type of government being established by the Constitution, “A republic,” he said, “if you can keep it.” Yesterday, election day, I had a glimpse into how it just might be possible to keep it.
I was holding a sign for democrats at my voting location and found myself right next to a group of red signs. “Ummm,” I thought, “time to practice what I preach,” so I introduced myself. Cautiously, they reciprocated. Then, in an extempore moment, I asked, “Would one of you mind taking a picture with me? I think, after all, this is what America is all about.” A brief pause of silence and then a man said, “Sure.” And so, we did.
Throughout the day, conversation went back and forth between us. They shared why they’d supported Trump. I shared why I could not. One woman proudly said she’d been at the Capital on Jan. 6th. I shared what a scary time that had been for me especially seeing all the violence, destruction, the Confederate flag being flown inside, and the hanging noose with shouts of, “Hang Mike Pence!” all as Trump watched. They blamed Nancy Pelosi.
Finally, we were able to agree that we live in very different news bubbles and therefore had largely arrived at different beliefs and narratives about a number of issues. Though we clearly disagreed, the exchanges continued to be amicable. I could also hear the man, with whom I’d taken the picture, talking to a passer byer about his life saying how his job and health had collapsed under Biden. I could sense his deep anger and frustration.
At one point, a couple of young women arrived all dressed out in flag outfits that were, quite honestly, pretty amazing and someone asked me to take a picture of the group. After, I said, “Great outfits!”
“Well, at least you’re cordial,” said one of the women, glancing at me dismissively with an air of distrust. “Most of you just call us trash.” A little later they left in a truck flying huge Trump flags. I thought, “I hope I gave them a glimpse into the ‘you’ they may have thought I was and that, just maybe, they could see not everyone thinks of them as trash.”
By noontime, one of the women in the group asked, “Hey, would you like a chicken wing? We have plenty.” She shared how she often makes food for the meals at her church, and we went on to talk more about our perspective churches and activities.
When it was time to go, I went over to the man with whom I’d taken the picture. I reached out to shake his hand and said, “I enjoyed being with you today. Take good care.” He looked like he didn’t know quite what to do but said quietly, “Thank you.”
I realize the coalition of supporters who ushered in Trump’s return to office is multifaceted. Some, particularly Christain nationalists and proponents of Project 2025, would prefer not to keep our republic but, rather, have us become a theocracy based on their interpretation of scripture. There are those who don’t necessarily even believe democracy is the most efficient form of governance, actually preferring a more autocratic type of leadership. And then I suspect there are many like the man with whom I took the picture who believe it was the current administration’s policies that have caused all their current hardships and struggles.
Still, I, being wholly committed to our great democratic experiment, will continue to practice welcoming all into conversation when the opportunity arises. And it is, indeed, a practice to look beyond religious affiliation, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, all variations of diversity, in search of the unity which lives in our common humanity – the unity which makes it possible not just to see one another as Americans but also as brothers and sisters.
I realize not everyone is wanting or is able to do this. No matter. That will not change what I do. As Project 2025 begins to be implemented, I will keep a vigilant lookout for all who feel squeezed by imposed governmental regulations and religious ideologies. I will practice welcoming any persons feeling disenfranchised to be seen and heard.
Sometimes the most challenging times offer the greatest opportunities. I like to think this is a time not to fight against, but rather for, the unity that can only be recognized in our common humanity. If we can do this, who knows? We just might be able to keep our great republic after all.
I once asked a bird, ‘How is it that you fly in this gravity of darkness?’ She responded, ‘Love lifts me.’ Hafez
Recently, I was offered the most beautiful gift. Rev. Barbara Landry, Tree of Life Seminary Class of 2011, asked if I’d like to speak about my newly released memoir, Dancing on the Moon: The Non-Ordinary Life I Never Saw Coming, A Spiritual Memoir, on her podcast, “The Truth So Help Me Good.” As I listened to the recording, it occurred to me that for all I’ve written in books, blogs, articles, or spoken in classes, workshops and presentations, this is the first time I’ve talked about the seminal events in my personal story which would shape the trajectory of my life and become inextricably interwoven with my spiritual journey.
While I first mentioned a part of the early events in my July 2018 blog, The Monomyth: The Heroine’s Journey, and again recently in my June 2024 post, A Memoir Journey, I write the full depth of it in the introduction to my memoir, When the Katydid’s Went Silent, and have given it my voice here on Rev. Barbara’s podcast for the first time.
Listing to the recording, it occurred to me how many times I’ve wanted to know the personal story of my spiritual teachers. While so many have gifted me in immeasurable ways, it feels important for those of us offering ourselves as spiritual teachers and guides to also be as transparent as possible, in appropriate ways, with those we serve. To not be so can run the risk of fostering a sense of spiritual superiority or separateness.
I believe we, as spiritual teachers and leaders in the Aquarian Age, are called not to sit apart and above in the old patriarchal paradigm but, rather, with and among. Having walked the spiritual path, we’re able to be transparent, speak authentically, and offer up our own life experience as just one illustration as to how, in the end, the personal and divine journeys are one and the same. And in the telling, we are all lifted from the darkness of separation into the light of connection and unity where we find one another and know ourselves to be, at once, unique and the same.
“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.” Harriet Tubman
Fragile. Brave. Hopeful. As a democrat, these were the feelings I had watching the Democratic National Convention. Could it be we just may be able to maintain and enjoy our democratic values, those values based on diversity, equity and inclusion, fragile now with DEI constantly under attack? How refreshing to feel a sense of hope, even normalcy, as we celebrated “all of us” regardless of religious preference, gender, racial identity, ethnic heritage or even political leanings. Palpable to savor.
Yet, I was also aware of the acute sense of courage and bravery this moment in history is requiring of us as it’s all on the line in November. Make no mistake, being victorious will require no less if we’re going to sustain this great democratic experiment as we’re going up against the very antithesis of DEI–Project 2025.
Spend some time with Project 2025, created largely by former and current Trump loyalists as a blueprint for a second Trump administration. You won’t find a heralding of women as potential leaders. You won’t find the raising up of minority ethnic groups. You won’t see an acknowledgement that an estimated 40% of families in the US are blended. And certainly, you won’t find any welcoming of our LGBTQ+ Americans or the mentioning of any other forms of family. No, the party of Trump is not interested in being the party of “all of us.”
What you will find though, for example, on page 451, “The only valid family is a working father married to a stay-at-home mother with their children.” Tell that to the 1300 new stepfamilies that are formed each day according to the Bureau of Census. Championing traditional patriarchal values, Project 2025 intends to make America great again by returning us to the pre-equal and civil rights period, a time when only White males inherited the mantals of power–the power to dream.
This vision is heralded by a narrow cohort of Christians intent on dismantling our pluralistic democracy and establishing a theocracy under the banner of Christian nationalism. To many such nationalists, this is not a political race between two parties. It’s a fight between good and evil and Trump is their prophet come to save hell-bound America.
I confess it made me smile imagining how it must have rattled Christian nationalists to see not just a woman, but a woman also representing two minority populations, accept the Democratic Party’s nomination for President of the United States; watch her and the Second Gentleman proudly introduce all members of their blended family; and then, to top it off, hear the Second Gentleman, Doug Emhoff, actually support and cheer his wife.
Yes, I could just hear the chatter behind-the-scenes: “Don’t they know a woman’s place is at home, not in leadership? Don’t they know that blended families are, well, certainly not to be celebrated! And, doesn’t the Second Gentleman know it’s his role to lead this dutiful wife—certainly not to take a second seat or assume a supportive role to her leadership? Yes, Satan is clearly working hard to win America!”
Perhaps they’ve forgotten that many of us, particularly those of us over sixty, remember how things were “again” and it wasn’t so “great” for many. When I was in college, for example, it was not surprising that most of us followed only the more traditional career paths deemed acceptable for young women: secretary, nurse, teacher, childcare worker. And once, while raising our young family in what we thought was a friendly neighborhood, some of our neighbors abruptly left a party we were having because we’d invited a Black man. “We don’t hang out with n—gers,” they said.
The difference today is greater choice even as the fight for equity and inclusion continues. Choice so many have fought so hard for. The choice to dream, whatever your gender, race or ethnicity, and the freedom to chart your own course.
Let’s keep America the great nation it already is—as messy and challenging as it can be, yet no less beautiful and enduring. Let’s remember that when we embrace diversity, equity and inclusion, we create a tapestry of unity that is democracy. Let’s fight to preserve America as the place where “all” peoples are encouraged to reach for the stars and change the world—free from government impositions and interference.
Perhaps then, this great Democratic experiment might just not survive but thrive.
We’re in a seminal moment. Following Present Joe Biden’s performance at the June 27, 2024, presidential debate, democratic party leaders are now left teetering, facing a critical juncture. What to do now? I don’t envy them. Unless, that is, they could embrace possibility, the kind that ignited this great democratic experiment. Unless they could, like me, believe in chocolate. “What?” you ask. Stay with me! There’s something here that may surprise you.
It’s 1895 and Milton Hershey is an aspiring businessman. His dream? Milk chocolate. Unheard of in the US. No matter that he doesn’t have a product yet or even a winning recipe. In Derry Township, PA, factories are already being built and workers hired. And he’s just brought in William F. R. Murrie to interview for the sales manager position. He’s heard of Murrie and feels confident that he’s the right man for the job so tells him that whatever he’s making he’ll beat and offers him a commission on sales.
Murrie, of course, is interested and asks to see a sample of the product. But Hershey, showing only a hint of regretful truth–telling, admits, quite matter–of–factly, that there is no product—yet. But, he says, with great finality, “There will be,” and, in fact, “the product will sell itself.”
Murrie pauses. His squinting eyes unveiling his disbelief, “So, you’re hiring me to sell something that doesn’t exist . . . something people don’t know anything about . . . that’s also going to sell itself?”
And in a suspended moment, just long enough for raised eyebrows, Hershey replies, “Is that a problem?” [See “The Food that Built America,” Season 1, ep. 2]
Indeed, it was not and the rest, as they say, is history.
What might we garner from the Hershey story to serve this moment? I, for one, find myself wondering what could happen if democrats were to bring such unwavering belief, vision, and, yes, all the unmitigated risks in tow, to what we could achieve in November—if we were willing to believe that there is a person, as yet unidentified, who’s name may or may not be immediately apparent on the national radar but who’d possess the ability to sell him or herself, highlight Biden’s impressive accomplishments and articulate a clear vision for the future? Could we believe in such a possibility as much as Hershey believed in the possibility of chocolate?
Make no mistake where we are. Though President Biden’s record as a bipartisan statesman is truly admirable and his record remarkable, many Americans are not living it. More importantly, recent performances have shown his mental acuity is not consistent or reliable. At the 2024 State of the Union Address, he was on. At the June 27th debate, he was clearly off. This was not a bad debate performance. This was not a cold. This was a man struggling to finish a sentence.
Republicans, on the other hand, are fully focused on their vision for America as embodied by their leader former President Donald Trump. Emboldened followers have already started dismantling the U. S. Constitution, beginning with the First Amendment, making way for the creation of an autocratic theocracy based largely on the beliefs and values of one sect of Christian believers. And, should they succeed, Trump will continue the dismantling by limiting the freedom of speech, press, assembly and the right to petition. But just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, the U. S. Supreme Court’s July 1, 2024, ruling on immunity has just handed Trump his very own embossed “get out of jail free” card.
Without question what is needed in this moment is for democrats to clone the Hershy spirit, the very passion, grit and belief that ignited this great democratic experiment because, Americans, the flame is going out fast.
Yes, replacing President Biden on the ticket at this late date is a tremendous risk. However, while we know Trump supporters are with him regardless of his actions, past and present, I believe many democrats would welcome another candidate. Such a new person could energize and unite the party with new passion and vigor and, as a result, likely attract many independent voters whom, at this juncture, I fear will stay home on election day.
Of course, we could still win by promoting President Biden and the status quo. But how long will we feel secure given his unstable mental acuity? And, most tragically, should we lose, I could only imagine waking up the next day to look in the mirror and wonder, “What if we’d only had the courage to . . .”
And should we put our faith in a new leader, we could also still lose. However, I, for one, would rather go down fighting for what is possible, what could be, like Hershey, alive with courage and commitment, and, yes, with all the risks in tow, those very ones that helped to make our nation great.
I’ve just sent the final draft of Dancing on the Moon: The Non-Ordinary Life I Never Saw Coming, a Spiritual Memoir, to my publisher. It’ll be out in the fall. I started the journey three years ago and, along the way, it’s taken me down many twists and turns. Starts. Stops. Re-dos. Should this stay in, come out? Sometimes it’s felt like taking old photographs from a cedar chest, faded and dusty, to hold gently once again and to hear what is still whispering across time. Some of those old photos have asked that I sit long and quiet to see what part they may still want to play in this new photo-story album. In these cases, nothing less than an excavation of the heart was needed.
My memoir begins with an incident that happened with my grandfather when I was ten years old, leaving me a stutter, and culminates with my TEDx talk in 2018. I would outgrow the stutter but, truly, came to know it was the essential beginning. It, together, with a 30 second encounter with a public speaking teacher, Miss Shirely Curtis, to whom this memoir is dedicated, would set my trajectory and ignite my path.
I was a sophomore in high school and had read a story I’d written with minimal stuttering. After class, she told me she was going to recommend me for the school speech club because she said, “You have something to say.” (Blessedly, one of my lifelong friends, who’s endorsed my memoir, remembers being with me that day to witness that fortuitous event.) But this sent me to the edge of the greatest fear I’d ever known, to the edge of an abyss, where I was sure there was only death. Yet, stepping, I discovered a soft landing in the hand of God and a love beyond all I could possibly have held, known, or understood at the time. It’s only been in hindsight that I’ve come to see how that soft landing opened me to an unequivocal faith and trust in God, and at the very same time let me know I was nothing more than a reflection of moonlight from the One I’d come to love the most. How amazingly gracious and good is God . . .
I know some will be surprised to read my story. Perhaps those who met me later in life or have only known me in professional or academic settings. Even a few extended family and friends who only knew me in the summers at my grandparents, for it remained the only place I felt relaxed and carefree. And for one who’s been blessed with so many moments of grace as I have, well, I suspect there could be naysayers. It’s okay. I don’t write for them. I write for all those who have something they may feel is insurmountable, something that can’t be overcome. I write to show that, sometimes, what we may think is the absolute worst possible thing that could happen might just hold hidden gifts—gifts our beloved God is waiting to use through us to create a more full, beautiful, life and, in the end, to help us serve a greater good well beyond our imaginings.
In the end, I think of my memoir as a kind of “thank you” gift back to God for my life. After all, it’s the very least I can do when I’ve been made to shine, so often, like moonlight.
If you’ve read my blog over the years, you’ll find many familiar stories. But I tell others I’ve never shared publicly. Mostly, as I share stories from some long-faded photos alongside more recent one, my hope is you’ll see some reflection of yourself there, discover some gem that will serve your journey.
If so, who knows? Maybe you too will find yourself dancing on the moon.
(I don’t know what cover Wipf and Stock will design but I’ve chosen this one for this community blog as it reminds me how, back then, I could have never imagined the life coming.)
“From the places where we are right, flowers will never grow in the spring.” Yehuda Amichai (1924-2000)
In the poem “The Place Where We Are Right,” esteemed Israeli poet Yehuda Amichai invites us deep into what can happen when certainty ends conversation and moral supremacy circumvents any thirst for understanding. Inevitably, the schism created by “us vs them” leaves both sides of the great divide standing firm in the same place, the place where flowers will never grow in the spring.
There are many variables responsible for this widening schism breaking apart our nation. And, while it’s certainly imperative that all differences be heard, this is not my focus. Here, I wish to highlight what can actually build a bridge across the great divide and connect us—when we are able to let go of being right.
Recently I sat with colleagues from the Nashua Interfaith Council to discuss stories from the book, “My Neighbor’s Faith: Stories of Interreligious Encounter, Growth, and Transformation.” As “religious freedom” is a rallying cry on both sides of our national schism, this opportunity felt particularly timely. And the experience gave me a renewed sense of hope, possibility. Disclaimer! The brief summary of three stories offered here may “dig up the world like a mole, a plow,” as Amichai writes. You’ve been warned.
In “If Muhammad Had Not Spoken,” Samir Selmanovic writes that when he became a Christian his secular Muslim parents were devastated and pulled out all the stops. They recruited one of Europe’s best psychiatrists and fifty relatives to “take their best shot at helping me get over my infatuation with God.”
Finally, as a last resort, they invited Imam Muhammad, a respected holy man in the community known for emanating peace and playfulness. They felt certain he would come to the rescue. Selmanovic writes that he braced for the usual arguments he felt sure were coming. Instead, after simply sitting together in silence, the Imam stood up quietly and walked over and lightly touched his shoulder saying, “I’m glad you are a believer,” and before leaving opened his arms to invite an embrace.
After he’d left, Selmanovic’s parents nicknamed him “Crazy Muhammad.” But Selmanovic writes, “The grace and truth I had first met at the cross were embodied in this man, who was willing to be taken for a fool in order to help make me whole.”
In “What I Found in the Chapel,” Zalman Schachter-Shalomi recalls leaving years of seminary study in various Orthodox Jewish congregations to study at Boston University. On his first day, he arrived early to leave time to pray before class. Unfortunately, the small chapel, intimate for meditation, had a big brass cross on the altar so he decided to use another room, the Daniel Marsh Memorabilia Room in the same building. There he found a corner and facing east, toward Jerusalem, began to pray.
One day, a middle-aged black man came into the room and said, “I’ve seen you here several times. Wouldn’t you like to say your prayers in the small chapel? Why don’t you come by the chapel tomorrow morning and take a look?” The next morning Schachter-Shalomi stopped by and there he found two candles burning in brass candleholders, and no sign of the big brass cross. The large Bible was open to Psalm 139: “Whither shall I flee from Thy presence.” The friendly black man was the none other than the Rev. Howard Thurman, who was then Dean of Marsh Chapel at the University.
In “Finding Faith on the Road: Where Deep Commitment and Genuine Openness Meet,” Rabbi Bradley Hirschfield describes his experience hailing a cab to his hotel. The car’s interior was covered with a “JESUS LOVES YOU” sticker and there was a crucifix mounted on the dashboard. Soon, they were in a lively conversation about Jesus. Finally, the Rabbi summed up that he could believe Jesus was a great teacher without believing he was God’s son and the only path to salvation. He said, “I can love Jesus in my way. And you can love Jesus in yours. There’s room for both of our understandings. I don’t believe that you have to be wrong for me to be right.”
Reflecting on his experience, Rabbi Hirschfield writes, “I wanted him to appreciate that I could love and learn from his tradition, and that we did not need to agree in order to share that love.”
Arriving at the hotel, the cabdriver said, “Rabbi, you’d make a good pastor!” and Rabbi Hirschfield writes he felt honored, the highest form of praise. They hugged before each were on their way.
And so, when the Imam, Reverend and Rabbi, all children of Abraham, were given an opportunity to choose whether to hold fast to being right or to build a bridge based on mutual respect, one could say something akin to love created a space, tilled the soil, and made ready for flowers to grow in the spring.
Rev. Dr. Stephanie Rutt offers her work through the Tree of Life School for Sacred Living, LLC, and also serves as Founding Minister of the Tree of Life Interfaith Temple in Amherst, NH. She is the author of five books and additional interfaith curricula. To learn more about her books, as well as online and in-person classes and workshops, please visit her website at https://www.stephanierutt.com.
Stephanie Rutt 