Articles on Contemplation in Action
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Racial Justice and Equity: What is Mine to Do?
by Tom Adams Recently I was at a dinner with a mix of friends and acquaintances. In the midst of the discussion, someone was talking about how to get into Canada without going through Customs. Once you make it, you are a refugee and given all kinds of support and benefits. A friend I didn’t…
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Please Come Back
by Rose Mary Dougherty A wooden heart hangs on my office door; one side says, “Welcome,” the other, “Please come back.” Sometimes I forget to turn the sign and to leave the door open after my appointment has gone. Other times I choose to close the door and leave the sign turned, because I’m not…
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Proximity and Hope
by Mary Van Balen A movie or book can be transforming. For Black History Month, I’m sharing an experience with both. In January, I attended a movie with friends: Just Mercy. Based on the book Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption, written by Bryan Stevenson and published in 2014, the movie centers around…
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Reflection on Contemplation and Race: A Letter
By Fay C. Acker When I was a child, I used to sit in the living room in a little alcove formed by the piano and the television, writing letters to God. I gave the letters to my mother, quite sure they would be mailed, received, and read with all my questions: “God, where do…
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A Long Breath in the Season of Busyness
Today’s blog is by Areeta Bridgemohan One sunny Saturday early in December, 12 church members and I gathered to spend a quiet morning together in the company of Howard Thurman and Lerita Coleman Brown. It was a friendly group, some of whom were unknown to each other prior to this day. We began by introducing…
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Center Down: Prayer in the Struggle for Justice
Today’s blog is by Jessie Smith “How good it is to center down! To sit quietly and see one’s self pass by!” — “How Good To Center Down,” Howard Thurman Spiritual nurture: essential and pragmatic Walking the three or four blocks to Capitol Hill from Union Station week after week takes its toll. For the…