Thank you for this, I've been waiting to hear all of your thoughts. What really hit home for me was Robby's comment about his this is all his 14 year old child has known. I have a teenage daughter and the morning after the election, her first comment about it was "they voted to take my rights away". I can't describe how this broke my heart. It's hard trying to help her make sense of this when I am struggling to make sense of it myself. We all want a better world for our children and this a huge step backwards that will follow them throughout their lifetime.
Thank you all for the work you have done and are doing. I was fortunate to attend the event in Tempe. I don’t have the words yet to express my feelings about the election results. But I am grateful to have you all sharing yours.
As I watched your broadcast and your apparent despair over the election outcome I could not help but remember my feelings after Nixon defeated McGovern in 1972. Nixon received 60.7% of the vote and won 49 of the 50 states. Many of us had given up a year of our lives (or more) in the belief that the American people could make the correct choice and select the best person if we worked hard enough and provided enough information . After that experience I learned the very hard lesson that the US is the "evil empire" and Americans are never likely to make the right choice even when the choice is so clear. My experience over the years teaches me that I should never expect US voters to do the right thing and unfortunately that is true in spades when it comes to Christians. I don't like to be so cynical but facts are facts. The secret to happiness in politics is to have very low expectations.
Thanks for sharing your experiences. I wonder if The Convocation Unscripted identifies with feeling "despair" or more something else? "disgust"? "grief?" mixed emotions? Participating in a virtual meeting with https://weareworthfightingfor.org/, I learned that despair is what prevents moving forward with advocacy & activism if it's a lasting state of being. Thankfully, I didn't hear lasting despair from The Convocation Unscripted. I hear the hope of linking arms together as we make our way forward together, amidst evil, & accepting whatever costly consequences we may face.
I'm all for linking arms and making our way as I have been doing for the last 60 years or so. I think it is the right thing to do regardless of my low expectations for success. There is value in the effort of moving the boulder up the hill.
Thanks for your faithful work, Timothy. This encouraged me today: Rev Dr Howard-John Wesley, "We Will Survive This Too, Part 1," ASBC, 11/10/24, https://www.youtube.com/live/i6saw85sYOQ?feature=shared&t=6135 (Luke 24) For me, there are people throughout my life who planted seeds in my life, watered, & weeded. It took years for me to see differently & renounce my white Christian nationalism. I pray God blesses each person & I believe someday they'll see their efforts & the fruit in my life. I hope so.
Please take 9 min. to watch this chilling video. It is a rapid recitation in chronological order of Musk’s march. I had clocked maybe 75% of the individual items, but randomly and unconnected from one eruption to the next (as is the way of such endeavors). Well here it is strung together in a truly shocking litany. The malevolent intent becomes unmistakable and is quite overwhelming. Feels like this video should be preserved in a time capsule for the remnant to discover & study, maybe 80-100 years hence.
Recommend captions ON because it goes very fast and there’s much to absorb:
Thank you more than I can express. Comforting to see your faces and hear all of the exact same body & mind trauma expressed. That’s all I can muster right now. 💔
I am fired up and ready to go. I want to see peaceful protest in the streets in every city in our country and other countries. The first day after Inauguration day. Our voice, our constitutional right. In honor of Martin Luther King.
Thank you for all the work you have done to inform our country of what is really going on with the election of #47. I can't even say his name. I was shocked to hear about King Jehu and Jezabel and the beliefs of the evangelical right concerning that Bible narrative!. I live in rural Colorado and we don't have people like you around here, as far as I know, and we need you. I'm so thankful for The Convocation and the work you are doing, and for your stand and your fervor for the teachings of Jesus. I have a hard time relating to people who voted Republican and truly support their agenda and leader. Some of those people are or used to be my friends. Now I don't want to be around them. So again thank you for your stand and willingness to get out there and inform all of us. I look forward to more from you.
I agree with whoever pointed out that a big part of the problem is the turn of young men toward Trump. The social media aspect is surely important, maybe most important, but I wonder about other factors. A thought that has crossed my mind is whether the isolation during Covid kept many young men from developing a healthy sense of compassion, making them more susceptible to fascism.
Just played this recording after being with you "live". So many good thoughts. But what really helps is knowing you all aren't just writing and talking. You are living it out. Thank you.
Thank you for this, I've been waiting to hear all of your thoughts. What really hit home for me was Robby's comment about his this is all his 14 year old child has known. I have a teenage daughter and the morning after the election, her first comment about it was "they voted to take my rights away". I can't describe how this broke my heart. It's hard trying to help her make sense of this when I am struggling to make sense of it myself. We all want a better world for our children and this a huge step backwards that will follow them throughout their lifetime.
Thank you all for the work you have done and are doing. I was fortunate to attend the event in Tempe. I don’t have the words yet to express my feelings about the election results. But I am grateful to have you all sharing yours.
As I watched your broadcast and your apparent despair over the election outcome I could not help but remember my feelings after Nixon defeated McGovern in 1972. Nixon received 60.7% of the vote and won 49 of the 50 states. Many of us had given up a year of our lives (or more) in the belief that the American people could make the correct choice and select the best person if we worked hard enough and provided enough information . After that experience I learned the very hard lesson that the US is the "evil empire" and Americans are never likely to make the right choice even when the choice is so clear. My experience over the years teaches me that I should never expect US voters to do the right thing and unfortunately that is true in spades when it comes to Christians. I don't like to be so cynical but facts are facts. The secret to happiness in politics is to have very low expectations.
Thanks for sharing your experiences. I wonder if The Convocation Unscripted identifies with feeling "despair" or more something else? "disgust"? "grief?" mixed emotions? Participating in a virtual meeting with https://weareworthfightingfor.org/, I learned that despair is what prevents moving forward with advocacy & activism if it's a lasting state of being. Thankfully, I didn't hear lasting despair from The Convocation Unscripted. I hear the hope of linking arms together as we make our way forward together, amidst evil, & accepting whatever costly consequences we may face.
I'm all for linking arms and making our way as I have been doing for the last 60 years or so. I think it is the right thing to do regardless of my low expectations for success. There is value in the effort of moving the boulder up the hill.
Thanks for your faithful work, Timothy. This encouraged me today: Rev Dr Howard-John Wesley, "We Will Survive This Too, Part 1," ASBC, 11/10/24, https://www.youtube.com/live/i6saw85sYOQ?feature=shared&t=6135 (Luke 24) For me, there are people throughout my life who planted seeds in my life, watered, & weeded. It took years for me to see differently & renounce my white Christian nationalism. I pray God blesses each person & I believe someday they'll see their efforts & the fruit in my life. I hope so.
Please take 9 min. to watch this chilling video. It is a rapid recitation in chronological order of Musk’s march. I had clocked maybe 75% of the individual items, but randomly and unconnected from one eruption to the next (as is the way of such endeavors). Well here it is strung together in a truly shocking litany. The malevolent intent becomes unmistakable and is quite overwhelming. Feels like this video should be preserved in a time capsule for the remnant to discover & study, maybe 80-100 years hence.
Recommend captions ON because it goes very fast and there’s much to absorb:
https://youtu.be/iX3vMJOADlE
Thank you more than I can express. Comforting to see your faces and hear all of the exact same body & mind trauma expressed. That’s all I can muster right now. 💔
I am fired up and ready to go. I want to see peaceful protest in the streets in every city in our country and other countries. The first day after Inauguration day. Our voice, our constitutional right. In honor of Martin Luther King.
Thank you for all the work you have done to inform our country of what is really going on with the election of #47. I can't even say his name. I was shocked to hear about King Jehu and Jezabel and the beliefs of the evangelical right concerning that Bible narrative!. I live in rural Colorado and we don't have people like you around here, as far as I know, and we need you. I'm so thankful for The Convocation and the work you are doing, and for your stand and your fervor for the teachings of Jesus. I have a hard time relating to people who voted Republican and truly support their agenda and leader. Some of those people are or used to be my friends. Now I don't want to be around them. So again thank you for your stand and willingness to get out there and inform all of us. I look forward to more from you.
So much wisdom here.
I agree with whoever pointed out that a big part of the problem is the turn of young men toward Trump. The social media aspect is surely important, maybe most important, but I wonder about other factors. A thought that has crossed my mind is whether the isolation during Covid kept many young men from developing a healthy sense of compassion, making them more susceptible to fascism.
Christian nationalism is triumphant. The need for voices of true faith is even greater.
Just played this recording after being with you "live". So many good thoughts. But what really helps is knowing you all aren't just writing and talking. You are living it out. Thank you.
I go to Hope:
https://open.substack.com/pub/jonathanbrownson/p/take-hold-of-hope?r=gdp9j&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true