“…Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy; now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice; now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood; now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children. It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment…
“I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed, ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’ I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, sons of former slaves and the sons of former slaveowners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood… 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…
“…and when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of 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. Free at last. Thank God Almighty, we are free at last.’”
– Martin Luther King, Jr.
from the “I Have a Dream” speech
King’s words are still relevant today – and we are, again, living in a time when we need to recognize “the urgency of the moment.” Our nation is at a crossroads, isn’t it? All the slime and ooze hidden on the bottom of the pond has been stirred up and is coming to the surface – corruption, racism, bigotry, and greed are being exposed to the light. Now it’s up to us to decide, as a nation, what we’re going to do about it. The decisions we make now – the direction we choose to go – is going to determine our fate. I’m thinking we should choose equality, freedom, and justice, right?
I keep hanging onto the memory of that night – the night of the election – when I saw a shooting star streak across the sky and the voice said, “Trust. Everything is happening as it needs to happen.” But the voice didn’t tell me what was to come would be easy, or that it wouldn’t involve some effort, time, sweat, tears, courage, and prayer…
“Peals that should startle the slumbering thought from its erroneous dreams are partially unheeded; but the last trump has not sounded, or this would not be so. Marvels, calamities, and sin will much more abound as truth urges upon mortals its resisted claims; but the awful daring of sin destroys sin, and foreshadows the triumph of truth.”
– Mary Baker Eddy
Adventures of the Madcap Christian Scientist 
Reblogged this on Die Erste Eslarner Zeitung – Aus und über Eslarn, sowie die bayerisch-tschechische Region!.
Trust. That is such an issue for me – and perhaps for many. I have difficulties trusting in ‘God’ or ‘The Universe’ when I see such corruption and obscenity in the way humans treat each other. It seems as if only the greedy and meanhearted thrive. And it’s difficult for me to accept ‘pie in the sky’ comfort. It’s a dummy (British word for pacifier – how double-ententre is that?!)
So many times we hear, let go and let God. However, I think it encourages people to just go flat and do nothing.
On the other hand – and this was my Dad’s biggie – if God’s so great, why is there such evil and horror? You’d better believe he hated ‘Job’. Made him an athiest at 9.
Sigh. Wednesday morning esoteric struggles …
I get this. Totally. Old Testament god is not a comforting presence. I prefer the God who is, literally, Love. Love doesn’t create the evil and horror, but Love can heal it. The power of Love is a power I’ve learned I can trust. Your dad sounds like a wonderful person. I’m guessing our fathers would have been good friends.
Yes, I think they would have! They were both scientists – my father wass a physicist. He was a wonderful person – always young at heart – without prejudice and very self aware.
And yeah, the OT Gd is … scary. And although Jesus’ message was one of love, there still is a boatload of fear interspersed in the NT. I guess we can thank Paul for that …
I remember wonderful Father Greg – a Carmelite Catholic Priest (they’re very ‘Zen’) who said to me, after my Dad died, “Of course your Father is in heaven with God. It doesn’t matter that he didn’t believe in God – he knew how to love. That’s all that matters!”
In some ways, we have come a long way 🙂
Beautiful! Thank you, DK! ❤