― Adapted from quote by Rev. Phil Ware
We must stop viewing our fellow humans as enemies.
Much has transpired in the world since I last posted, including a national election. Understandably, people have strong feelings about the election and other issues at the center of American and international politics. However, those feelings should not cause us to assume that people who live and/or think differently than we do are our enemies. We are all brothers and sisters in humanity. That a person is registered with a different political party, lives in a different part of the country or is from a different ethnic group than ours, does not make them our enemy.
It may feel easier or safer to mentally place entire groups of people into generalized categories rather than to take the time to reach across the aisle and foster authentic relationships on an individualized basis, but it does not make it right.
You may feel as if animus toward a specific group is justified because a member of that group mistreated you, or someone you love, in the past. I disagree. We will never overcome evil by responding in kind. As the scriptures and countless wise men and women have said in various ways over the course of human history, “you cannot overcome evil with evil; you must overcome evil with good.”
I am myself no stranger to injustice and the impact of generational disenfranchisement and oppression. Difficult and hurtful events that transpire in our world at the hands of other humans can break our hearts and threaten to break our spirits. However, when we fight evil and unkindness with more evil and unkindness, no one wins. And don't be deceived, for even if it seems as though evil is prevailing for a season, know this: love always wins.
As we prepare our hearts and minds to turn the page to another year, let's resolve to be intentional about making our world better by using our talents, abilities and resources to lead with love.
“A voice that can reach the stars.” -The Washington Post
Born in Piet Retief, Mpumalanga, South Africa, Pretty Yende, grew up in a close-knit family where singing was interwoven into the fabric of the familial culture. A timid child, Yende would reluctantly sing in church at the insistence of her grandmother.
One day at age 16, after seeing a British Airways television advertisement that featured the Flower Duet from Lakmé, Yende became intrigued by the sound of the singers’ voices. She went to her high school teacher the next day to ask what the sound could have been. “Opera,” he responded. Yende’s next question was, “‘Can human beings do it?’ because it didn’t sound like anything I’d known.” Her teacher answered by telling her she’d never sing like that. Yende insisted on being taught. At that moment, she knew what she would do with her life.
We are so glad that she did.
Today her career as an operatic coloratura soprano has taken her around the globe many times over and has earned her too many accolades and awards to name. Some of the most notable include the Mbokodo Award in the category of opera, the Best Recording Solo Recital Award in the International Opera Awards, the International Achiever Award in the 23rd South African Music Awards, the Readers' Award in the International Opera Awards, and the Cologne Opera Award. In 2023, she sang at King Charles III’s coronation in Westminster Abbey, further solidifying her elite standing in the opera world and making her the first black woman and first African citizen to sing at a British monarch’s coronation. An avid human rights activist, Yende has a passion for serving youth from the marginalized sections of society and to that end, has founded a youth foundation in South Africa.
This text is excerpted from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pretty_Yende, https://prettyyende.com/biography/ and https://www.dorchestercollection.com/the-edit/pretty-yende-trailblazing-soprano.
To hear Yende’s amazing voice, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtdLk-78MUA, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ar7HGBg5o3k, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvkMvmaYyfc and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yG5MujmmSnk.
― Barbara Jordan
I recently visited Boston, Massachusetts, one of the oldest areas of our country. The old colonial architecture was beautiful; I truly appreciated the opportunity to see and touch places that I had only read about in history books. As I considered our democracy, I began to ponder a thought: our democracy was born out of the desire to permit free speech, facilitate the free exchange of ideas, and the ability to engage in personal choice, but today despite all of our advances in various arenas, we seem to have gotten away from this framework as we treat one another in unkind and intolerant ways and succumb to “cancel culture.”
Cancel culture is the idea that a person or a group of people can and should be eliminated, rendered non-factors, excommunicated from society, culture, or an “in-group” because they have done or said something with which others do not agree. The cancelation of people for having different viewpoints, or even making mistakes, has become so prevalent that even our elementary-aged children readily understand what it means for someone to be canceled. Indeed, they often engage in the practice themselves.
I believe that cancel culture is especially damaging for our young people. Adults have the benefit of life experience and perspective. We know that even our worst moments will pass and our worst mistakes will fade from memory. Missteps will be forgiven, and mercy will ultimately be shown. Things that seem insurmountable today will be something we will laugh at in the future. Youth unfortunately, do not have the benefit of the foresight that often comes with life experience and for them, cancelation can feel permanent and, even, fatal. For them, it's difficult to see beyond the moment, look forward to a brighter day or understand there will be joy in the morning, even if weeping endures for a night.
We must make a collective decision to facilitate a social culture of grace, forgiveness and mutual respect. As citizens of a democracy, we must all understand that sometimes one person’s exercise of their rights will conflict with or even offend our own. Sometimes we will not agree. Sometimes other people’s choices will make us angry, but we should never make it our goal to dismantle another human being or break their spirit. There are many people with whom I do not agree, but I understand they are entitled to their opinions and choices, as am I.
As we enter a season during which we will be invited to exercise one of our most important rights as Americans--the right to vote--I hope that we will remember to engage one another, especially those with whom we disagree, with respect. As we do, our own perspectives may shift as we learn about people who think and live differently than we do and we may be able to help expand perspectives of others as we share who we are.d have enough.
