As I crossed the country on Friday, passing through three US airports, Sybrina Fulton, the mother of Trayvon Martin, was on every TV I saw. She took the stand to testify that it was in fact her son crying out on the 911 call that came in moments before his death. After reading the news, I also learned that George Zimmerman’s mother testified that it was her son and not Trayvon crying for help. I’m not sure we’ll ever know... Read more
All of the events recorded below are true. Some of them actually happened. I got a call after I got home from last week’s Moral Monday. It was my granny from up in Mayberry. Now, Granny keeps her ear to the ground up there—never misses much. Said she’d just got off the phone with Ms. Viola Mae over in Mount Pilot. What you need to know about Ms. Viola is that she has a grandson who lives down in Raleigh.... Read more
Dear Mr. Pope, Though we do not know each other, I’m writing because of what I know we have in common. Because of your significant investments in the John Locke Foundation and the Civitas Institute, your political enemies have broadcast your personal history, professional interests, and political affiliations. With an internet connection, it’s easy to learn a great deal about you. Just this week, your Civitas Institute published all available data on those of us involved in Moral Mondays. So... Read more
Back in March of this year, The Everyday Awakening covered the faith-based organizing efforts of churches and community groups in Durham, North Carolina who were concerned about a new anti-panhandling law that had landed dozens of beggars in court and three in jail. For a brief refresher on the story, here’s a clip from local TV news. Following our public action, members of city council asked to meet with the ministers and service providers who had organized the public meeting... Read more
For the past seven weeks, a growing number of North Carolinians have gathered at our state’s General Assembly to collectively petition an extreme legislature whose daily decisions are attacking the general welfare. We have called these gatherings “Moral Mondays,” and an awakening of hope led by people of faith has been at the heart of them. Last week, our Moral Monday was led by hundreds of pastors, drawing attention from the New York Times. But pastors are not the only... Read more
I’m just back from three days at the monastery with a working group on community–pastors, scholars, monastics and new monastics trying to understand what it is we mean when we say we want “community” and how this desire is cultivated and directed toward the common good in our society. One of my great heroes in the American pursuit of beloved community is Peter Maurin, co-founder of the Catholic Worker Movement with Dorothy Day. He was a street teacher who distilled... Read more
Last week Katelyn Chapman completed three years with SFC’s Walltown Aspiring Youth, where she served as coach, creator, and listener among middle school girls in our neighborhood. She is a gift–especially because she’s been able to see and name the gifts that these girls are and the incredible possibility of beloved community among them, even as they make their way through adolescence. Reilly O’Hara, who’s working with us this summer, sat down to interview her for The Everyday Awakening. What... Read more
Hundreds of clergy from across North Carolina will gather in Raleigh today to lead the Moral Monday witness, a growing movement organized by the NC NAACP which has brought thousands of protesters to the General Assembly during this session, over 300 of whom have been arrested while petitioning their legislators. Rev. Jimmie Hawkins, a Presbyterian pastor from Durham, NC, organized the clergy witness because, he says, there is a great need for people of faith to say, “We stand with... Read more
Dear JaiMichael and Nora, Since we went to Moral Monday together a couple of weeks ago, I’ve wanted to sit down and write to both of you to tell you why I got arrested—why I wasn’t home that evening to read you your stories and say prayers with you. I’ve rarely felt happier than I did that evening when the bus pulled out to take us to jail. I looked up and saw the two of you standing with mom,... Read more
As I prepared to enter the NC Legislature last Monday with hundreds of fellow citizens who are deeply concerned about how policies coming out of our General Assembly are harming our most vulnerable neighbors, I was glad to see Leigh Bordley, a member of our school board in Durham. I’m grateful for the work she’s doing for all kids in Durham (including mine). But I was moved by her testimony about why she, as a Christian, knew she had to... Read more
Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove
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