A cry from the heart for compassion, justice, peace, and equality in Gaza and Israel
Years ago I met The Rev Canon Dr Richard K. Toll. when I spoke at a conference of Friends of Sabeel - https://www.fosna.org/.
He recently wrote this open letter to bishops, priests, deacons, and lay leaders in the Episcopal Church. (It's worth reading if you are not Episcopal, of course.)
I asked his permission to post it here, which he granted. Please read with an open heart.
Thank you, Rev. Canon Dr. Toll, for sharing from your heart. Our hearts are one.
+++++
AN OPEN LETTER TO THE BISHOPS, PRIESTS, DEACONS, AND LAY
LEADERSHIP OF THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH
A CRY FROM THE HEART
I write this letter having been ordained to the Episcopal
Church priesthood in the Diocese of Oregon in 1968. When I retired
from my parish at St. John the Evangelist in Milwaukie, Oregon in 2003,
I was asked to be the Chair of Friends of Sabeel North America by
retired Episcopal Presiding Bishop Edmond Browning. (Sabeel is an
ecumenical liberation theology center in Jerusalem founded by a
seminary classmate of mine at CDSP by the name of Naim Ateek.) I
served in this position as a volunteer for 10 years. After Bishop
Browning died in 2016 I became the honorary President of the Board.
Bishop Browning had served as President of the Board in his
retirement.
Before I became the Chair of FOSNA (Friends of Sabeel North America),
I thought I knew what was happening in Palestine and Israel. I found
my ignorance to be profound. I went over to the region over 30 times
since my first visit in 1983. Each time I learned lessons I cannot forget.
While Chair of FOSNA and afterwards. I went to 9 international
conferences hosted by Sabeel in East Jerusalem. 250 to 500 people
were in attendance at the conferences and many Christians from as
many as 40 countries attended the conferences. Thus began an
international Sabeel moment. I found that putting conferences
together in the United States was important. FOSNA hosted 34
conferences in the United Stated in 23 states during the period 2002 –
2012. Over 10,000 people attended these conferences. Archbishop
Desmond Tutu, from South Africa, became the Patron of Sabeel in
Jerusalem and he spoke at a number of our conferences.
I have been aware of the lack of leadership of our ordained clergy,
including bishops, and laypeople in our church and many other
American churches regarding justice for Palestinians. In our church and
other churches the silence is deafening on the genocide taking place in
Gaza. As people of faith, we are asked to take stands that are often
unpopular. It is clear that the killing of over 1200 Israelis on October
7th of 2023 was unacceptable. But the killing of Palestinians after that
in the tens of thousands including women and children is not
acceptable. Military planes, bombs, and equipment given to the State
of Israel by the U.S. government is not acceptable. The Anglican
Diocese of Jerusalem needs more of our support in its many programs
that mitigate the ongoing issues of the unlawful occupation of the West
Bank and the war in Gaza.
As much as I abhor what happened in October 2023, the war in Gaza is
deeply rooted in what has been happening to Palestinians since 1948
when over 750,000 Palestinians became refugees. Over 500 of their
villages were destroyed. Gaza in 1948 had 80,000 people living within
the Gaza strip and over 2,000,000 live there today. Over 70% of the
people in Gaza today are direct descendants of the 1948 refugees.
They were never allowed to return to their homes and villages so close
from where they lived in Gaza.
Since I made my first trip to the region in 1983, I have found that
walking in the footsteps of Jesus has allowed me to open my eyes to
not only the needs of Jewish people after the Holocaust but to have my
eyes opened to the needs of Palestinians who have been and are being
continuously displaced from their land.
I have found the Episcopal Church lacking in addressing justice issues
for Palestinian issues while often supporting the State of Israel
uncritically. The 1991 General Convention said it distinguishes "between legitimate criticisms
of the Israeli government and anti-Jewish prejudice, and denounces expressions of anti-Semitism."
We have supported our government in giving billions of dollars to provide
planes, tanks, and war machinery all in the name of the State of Israel's
self-defense while meanwhile it takes more and more of Palestinians
land.
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE
In the name of God, stand up for an end to the war in Gaza.
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE
Repair whatever your own issues are in regard to justice and human
rights regarding Palestinians. I hope many will join in the work of
Friends of Sabeel North America to hear and respond to the voices of
Palestinian Christians.
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE
Support the people of the state of Israel. Let them know that what has
happened through their government's oppressive Palestinian policies,
since 1948 has not helped them in defining the state they and the
world envisioned in 1948.
My prayer is for the people who live in present day Palestine and Israel
come to terms with a common goal to live together in a true
Democracy with equal rights for all the people in the Holy Land.
The Rev Canon Dr Richard K. Toll
Former Chair and President of Friends of Sabeel of North America
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A Nautilus Book Award for LIFE AFTER DOOM!
Some good news for current and future readers of Life After Doom: Wisdom and Courage for a World Falling Apart -
The book received a 2025 Nautilus Book Award in the category of Ecology and Environment. Nautilus Book Awards seek to highlight noteworthy books from around the world that contribute to "social and environmental justice, spiritual growth, and conscious living."
You can see the 2025 winners here: https://www.nautilusbookawards.com/2025-winners-1-10
And you can order the book here: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250893277/lifeafterdoom/
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Coming Up in May, June, and July …
Friends in Maine! I'll be speaking in Portland, May 3, 4, and 5.
Saturday May 3: A World Unraveling - join me for a deep dive into our current situation and how we can show up with wisdom, courage, and love: https://episcopalmaine.org/event/a-world-unraveling-a-day-with-brian-mclaren/
Sunday May 4: I'll be preaching at St. Alban's Episcopal morning and evening: https://www.stalbansmaine.org/
Monday May 5: I'll be speaking to the Episcopal clergy of Maine at St. Luke's Episcopal. Details here: https://episcopalmaine.org/event/save-the-dates-for-clergy-conference-2025/2025-05-05/
Friends everywhere - Online, Saturday May 17, with Fr. John Dear
Available everywhere: I'll be spending 90 minutes online with my joyfully nonviolent friend Fr. John Dear on May 17 - 2-3:30 pm ET. We get to speak about my favorite subject of all - Jesus and his transformative message. Register here: https://beatitudescenter.org/
Friends in Michigan (and beyond)
I'll be at Bay View Chautauqua, June 22-26 speaking on Four Twentieth-Century Theologians the Twenty-First Century Desperately Needs. Details here: https://www.bayviewassociation.org/bay-view-a-chautauqua-on-lake-michigan/
Friends of Open and Relational Theology:
I will be joining the wise and wonderful Dr. Tom Oord and the great and growing ORT community in wild and beautiful Wyoming which takes place June 30 - July 4. (I'll be there Monday - Wednesday). Details here: https://c4ort.com/ortcon/
Friends in Campus Ministry:
I'll be with the UMCMA in Dallas July 15-17. Details here: https://www.umcma.org/
Friends in Alaska!
I'm making my first ever visit to Alaska to join the Alaska School of Theology, July 18-19. My topic will be "Dancing on a Moving Floor: Christian Leadership in an Ever-Changing Landscape." Register here: https://app.easytithe.com/App/Form/ae1439ae-9ce0-4136-8543-c2d0866ee622
I hope to see you this summer!
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It’s not every day you get to hang out with Rainn Wilson (aka Dwight Schrute) …
... and talk spirituality. I think you'll enjoy our conversation on Soul Boom. https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/f8cbbc1b-1a98-4f74-97ba-df4dfaa0697a/episodes/facf14c7-c2ab-44c4-9d3f-40b295b33d47/soul-boom-faith-after-doubt-can-religion-evolve-w-brian-mclaren
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Here we are. Four weeks in.
What began at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, on our TV screens for all to see, has been unrolling ever since.
Nearly all Republican politicians aided and abetted it. (Most of those who resisted either resigned or got voted out.)
Democratic elected officials failed to stop it.
And last November, a slim majority of American voters fell for it.
And so here we are. Four weeks in.
You can call what's happening a coup or an overthrow of the US Constitution or both.
After their ugly and sloppy (and deadly) frontal attack in 2021 failed, Trump and his supporters quickly regrouped and began planning a return to power.
They developed a detailed (900 page) written plan called Project 2025. Trump originally denied knowing about, but as is so often the case, that was a lie. In fact, he recently appointed its primary author as Director of the Office of Management and Budget, the perfect place from which to implement the plan.
So here we are.
In just a matter of weeks, the forces of MAGA and Project 2025, supported by (or perhaps directed by) "the broligarchy," are dismantling the American democracy that patriotic citizens built over lifetimes.
In its place, they are erecting a neo-feudal right-wing oligarchy. They will hold all the power, and there will be little left in government to hold them accountable.
We've seen Nazi salutes. (In spite of their deflections, we know what we saw.) We have seen expressions of support for Nazi-friendly and Apartheid-friendly and ethnic-cleansing-friendly parties in Germany and South Africa and Israel/Palestine. We have seen capitulation to Putin's war of aggression in Ukraine, and talk of ending the war without even including Ukraine in the negotiations. (As Tim Snyder says, if you're not at the table, you're on the menu.)
We have seen threats to abandon allies and take over Greenland, Canada, Panama, and Gaza ... as if we're deciding that colonialism is OK again.
We have seen the blanket pardons of all the convicted foot-soldiers of the January 6 coup attempt, including Oathkeepers, Proud Boys and the like.
We are seeing a revenge tour (still ongoing) against all in the CIA, FBI, the judiciary, the media, and other agencies or networks who have done their jobs, but have not been active collaborators with Trump, Musk, and their plan.
We have seen purges that would have embarrassed Richard Nixon (or made him proud?), not to mention the reckless annihilation of entire departments and agencies that were built to solve problems for the American people.
We have seen Trump rename the Gulf of Mexico and punish the free speech of any who don't submit to his Orwellian mind control tactics.
Lives will be lost, science will be lost, expertise will be lost, resilience will be lost.
There are legal challenges, of course, but Trump has already announced that nothing he does can be considered lawless. Toward that end, he has made huge gains in purging, controlling, and corrupting the courts. The Supreme Court's "unlimited immunity" ruling last year adds doubt as to whether even this last check and balance to Trump's grasp for complete power will stand up to him, or kneel as to a dictator.
Day by day, Musk and Trump and their team are recklessly destroying what took decades for us to build through our taxes and elected officials. The costs will be greater than the benefits, and the benefits will not go to "normal" Americans. They will go to the mega-rich ... who fly in private jets (so don't need public transportation), who visit exclusive luxury resorts (so don't visit National Parks), who send their kids to elite private schools (so have no sense of the value of good public education), and who can afford concierge medical care (so have no understanding of basic health insurance or public health.)
Wherever there are dictators and the ultra-rich, there are religious leaders providing them moral camouflage.
Thankfully, other religious leaders are standing up and playing the role of the biblical prophet ... like Nathan who confronted King David (2 Samuel 12), or Azariah and the 80 priests who confronted King Uzziah (2 Chronicles 26) or Jesus who confronted the broligarchy of his day (Matthew 18:1-4, Luke 22:25-28).
The results of what is happening now will be devastating, both in the US and around the world ... for people who will die, for people who will suffer, and for people who will watch their children inherit a world that is dirtier, poorer, more angry and conflicted (and armed with more dangerous weapons). And we're only four weeks in.
If you have children and grandchildren, these first weeks of the Trump regime have already guaranteed that their futures will be more tense, less peaceful, more conflicted, less stable, hotter, sicker, poorer.
If you voted for this regime, you may already be having second thoughts. But probably not. Because you listen to Fox News and similar echo chambers, you will probably not have second thoughts or engage your critical thinking skills until things get much, much worse for you. When that time comes, the rest of us will gladly welcome you back into the reality-based community. We understand. We're all human beings, and human beings are easily deceived.
If you want to follow trustworthy people who are detailing this, I would recommend you start with The Contrarian and Letters from an American and The Ink and Tim Snyder and Ezra Klein. There are many other thoughtful and trustworthy sources too, of course.
I believe we all need a simple, five-fold strategy in these times.
- Guard your heart ... guard it from exhaustion, anxiety, overwhelm, and "preemptive surrender." Guard it from becoming a mirror image of the monster you're trying to fight (referencing a famous quote from Nietzsche). Guard it from bitterness, and flood it with mercy - toward yourself, toward others, including your opponents, toward animals and plants and soil and water. Deepen your inner life through contemplation, prayer, and the serious practices of both grieving and joy. Get outdoors more often. Enjoy the sunlight and breeze. Be brave. Be kind. Be honest. Be strong. Curate your own inner life.
- Find your people. If you have a good church or synagogue or other faith community, go ... and support it. If you don't, find one. If you can't find one, start a little "circle of sanity" by inviting some people over and talking about how you can support one another. Get together more often than necessary ... practice "social nearness-ing."
- Educate your mind. This is a time to develop wisdom ... which includes critical thinking, fairness, literacy, examination of biases, and a sense of who is trustworthy (with a "trust but verify" mindset). Those grasping for power have spent billions over many years to try to dumb us down. Don't conform to the though patterns of group-think. Be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Read things longer than a slogan. Listen to people who know a lot more than you. Listen to people's stories. Determine to get smarter, not stupider, during this time.
- Do What You Can. If you can protest, protest. If the time comes for civil disobedience, do so. If you can call or write (or email) your senators, do so. If you want to engage with people on-line or in person, do it -- skillfully, if possible! Whenever you can befriend people who are in danger -- and help them practically, even in the smallest of ways, do so. If you can financially support honest journalists, brave and good politicians, and honorable religious leaders, give generously. If you reach your limit, take a break. Do what you can ... and don't feel guilty for not doing everything.
- Survive another day. Survival is underrated in times like these. You know how it feels when you've had a long, long series of storms, and days upon days of cloudy skies? There will be moments when there's a break in the clouds, and you'll see sunlight and blue sky. In the same way, as we endure tough times, we begin to get a vision for a better day ... not a return to a past that is gone, but a pilgrimage to a future that is waiting to be born.
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