Sabbath sunday & compassionate solidarity
“Sabbath is not simply a pause. It is an occasion for reimagining all of social life away from coercion and competition to compassionate solidarity.”
- Walter Brueggeman
This blog post entitled I. Can’t. Breathe. was written several years ago, but it could have been written today. This week, families have been struggling to breathe in the face of losing their children to yet another senseless act of gun violence. People of color are still struggling to breathe in a country whose air is polluted with white supremacy. Many of us are struggling to catch our breath as we face the reality of America, the gun capital of the world.
Despair, numbness, anger and apathy fill the air here.
Where do we go from here? What do we do with this mess we find ourselves in?
If you are like me, you have struggled to know how to respond this week. The well-rehearsed public litany of outrage that will inevitably die down in a week feels pointless, but checking out is not the answer either. Perhaps there is a third way: compassionate solidarity. Maybe those of us who are privileged enough to be able to do so can take some time to catch our breath and to consider what invitation there is for us in this moment.
Over this sabbath weekend, would you dare to make this kind of space:
1. Pause and become conscious of your ability to breathe. Feel the air flowing in & out of your body for several minutes (it may seem like an eternity, but try it). Give thanks for each breath. You are alive, you are here.
2. Call to mind those who are struggling to catch their breath or to breathe deep & free here. If that’s you, acknowledge your pain. It may be helpful to bring up some images of recent events - maybe some you have scrolled past this week, but have not really seen. Light a candle. Hold the pain, the loss, the grief in the light of God’s love & care.
3. After at least 5-10 minutes of silence, begin to honestly ask yourself what invitation there is for you & for US in this moment? How are you being stirred to greater compassionate solidarity? Is there a way you and I can show up more consistently in the wounds & weariness of the world? Write whatever is stirring in you down. You could even take it a step further and share your reflections in a conversation with a friend or family member.
Our community is scattered this Sabbath Sunday, but we are together in spirit - united by the Breath of Life who flows through each of us & longs for every living creature to breathe deep & to live as fully human, fully alive, fully loved & finally free. I hope we will each allow that Spirit to speak & to stir us into giving birth to a stronger, more vibrant & life-giving movement of God's love & justice in the world.