Word&Way Voices

Lisa Sharon Harper writes that here, in the darkness, we acknowledge all the deaths that have occurred from gun violence. Here, in the darkness, we say to each fallen soul: We see you. The dark is clarifying. Isn’t it? When we allow ourselves to sit in the darkness and recognize it as darkness then something almost magical happens — we feel.

William Wright of the Faithful Politics Podcast writes that the Brittney Griner prisoner exchange and circumstances that surround it have so many layers to it that it’s a wonder people are naturally retreating to their respective political and cultural camps without spending too much time appreciating the full panoply of details that makes this single issue so meaningful — and equally as confusing.

Michael Martin, founder and executive director of RAWtools Inc., writes that Christians are both one of the largest gun-owning demographics in the country and are consistently labeled as judgmental, especially toward the LGBTQIA+ community. This Advent, let us reflect on the inclusive ministry of Jesus and Jesus’s constant love of the other.

Bekah McNeel writes that Advent affirms we are right to wonder. It sighs, “not yet,” in reply. Advent reminds us that the Prince of Peace is coming to a wounded, fearful people, but he is not here yet. Peace is still twisted and detoured by gun violence and the greed and idolatry facilitating it.

Francisco Miguel Litardo had the opportunity to travel to Eastern Europe as part of a media team gathering stories from Ukrainian war refugees. All the narratives he discovered while on this assignment were compelling and moving, but there was one that lifted his spirit more than any other: a story about a preacher’s voice that was lost and yet continues to proclaim God’s word.

Beau Underwood writes that if we will listen to the full story, Advent holds a reorienting power. It can call us away from ourselves and refocus our attention on God’s priorities. Too often, the story of Jesus’s birth is narrowly interpreted as a personal gift. God coming to be with us is really understood as God coming to be with me.

Contributing writer Sarah Blackwell writes that some of the greatest blessings she has received are the love and care of refugees. Once she got over her own need to be the one always giving, she learned that receiving the blessings of others, in whatever form they come in, is what knits families and communities together.

Angela Denker writes that "Love is Blind" is the reality television show she loves to hate. The premise of the show is that they’re going to prove if love can be grounded in things other than appearance. But she argues this idea that we can escape and transcend our bodies is a version of the human desire to want to be gods. To deny our mortality and our shared culpability and responsibility to one another.

Rick Santos, president and CEO of Church World Service, writes that rather than ascending to a place of power through brute strength, wealth, or status, the life and mission of Jesus are enacted through humility, presence, and connection. As he is with all of us, we too are called to be with those who are suffering this Advent season and every day.

Joy Martinez-Marshall, pastor of First Baptist Church in Lincoln, Nebraska, writes that the Christ child knows what it is like to be born in a place not his own to a world that did not value his humanity and dignity. Today, innocent lives are caught in the middle of political wars waged for power and bred out of hate. They are no different than the maddening actions of Herod at Christ’s birth.