Dear First Church,
In church, we sing “Oh I Woke Up This Morning” (with my mind / stayed on freedom), which is a Civil Rights adaptation of an older gospel song. An Illinois minister who was jailed during the Freedom Rides of the Civil Rights Movement adapted the song while in prison.
Freedom is a foundational concept of the United States, but for centuries it has only applied to some people. At this moment in history, what does it mean to keep our minds stayed on freedom for all people? What if all people’s bodies, hearts, minds, and time were free? What if no one and nothing forced or imprisoned or controlled any of us? What would that feel like? What would the world be like?
As the oligarchs try to tamp down freedom and increase their control over the general population, we need to keep our minds stayed on freedom. Whether we’re dreaming of it from jail, the hospital, a cubicle, or the streets, we will keep holding the vision of freedom for all people and moving towards it. There is enough to realize this dream. It is possible. Let’s be part of making it happen.
Love,
Jennifer
Rev. Jennifer Nordstrom, Senior Minister