I Had Come To See That The

Biological Family Is Too Small Of A Vision. Patriotism Is Far Too Myopic. A Love For Our Own Relatives And A Love For The People Of Our Own Country Are Not Bad Things, But Our Love Does Not Stop At The Border.

Sometimes People Call Folks Here At The Simple Way Saints. Usually They Either Want To Applaud Our Lives And Live Vicariously Through Us, Or They Want To Write Us Off As Superhuman And Create A Safe Distance. One Of My Favorite Quotes, Written On My Wall Here In Bold Black Marker, Is From Dorothy Day: "don't Call Us Saints; We Don't Want To Be Dismissed That Easily

There Is A Movement Bubbling Up That Goes Beyond Cynicism And Celebrates A New Way Of Living, A Generation That Stops Complaining About The Church It Sees And Becomes The Church It Dreams Of.

When One In Three Black Men Are In Prison, Those Larger Systemic Injustices Become A Part Of What It Means To Love Our Neighbor As Ourself. We Care About Dismantling Institutional Racism. That Begins In Relationships When You See Injustice Happen.

So Even As We See The Horror Of Death, May We Be Reminded That In The End, Love Wins. Mercy Triumphs. Life Is More Powerful Than Death. And Even Those Who Have Committed Great Violence Can Have The Image Of God Come To Life Again Within Them As They Hear The Whisper Of Love. May The Whisper Of Love Grow Louder Than The Thunder Of Violence. May We Love Loudly.