What’s Next?

In her concession speech Wednesday, Secretary Clinton told us something we all had to hear.

Of Mr. Trump, Mrs. Clinton said she hopes he “will be a successful president for all Americans,” and that she respects and cherishes the peaceful transition of power. She told her supporters that they must accept that Mr. Trump will be president. “We owe him an open mind and a chance to lead,” she said.

Ok.

I will not go around saying, “Not my president,” like so many have done for the past eight years. I will not continue to live in an echo chamber, as I clearly have been doing for far too long now (as it seems we all have been doing for far too long now.)

I will not “unfriend” or “unfollow” or “mute” people of different political/moral/ethical/theological/ideological opinions, because conversation and seeking understanding is critically important.

I will not stop loving, caring for, and ministering to/with those who voted differently from me in this election, because we are all children of God.

I will not stop believing in a good God.

However, I understand that I have the ability to make those decisions largely because of who I am: A straight, white, middle-class, Christian male. I understand that millions of Americans went to bed last night/woke up this morning with a new level of fear resting squarely on their hearts. And it’s because of them that I cannot simply stop at saying “we are all children of God.” I can’t simply say, “my faith is in God, not American politics,” and leave it at that.

Because Hillary also said this, in her concession speech:

“This loss hurts but please never stop believing that fighting for what’s right is worth it.”

And it clearly, for me, pointed to James 2:14–26.

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.

But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe — and shudder. Do you want to be shown, you senseless person, that faith apart from works is barren? Was not our ancestor Abraham justified by works when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was brought to completion by the works. Thus the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. Likewise, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another road? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.

Hillary’s call also clearly reminded me that I have not been doing enough. That ends today.

As Rev. Dr. Wil Gafney preached a few weekends ago at a worship for the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Southwest Regional Assembly, “faith without faithfulness is faithlessness.”

My faithfulness is driven by the notion that God is a justice-seeker, all-of-humanity-lover, beauty-creator, and graceful-forgiver.

Therefore, while I keep an open mind, I will also do more to fight for what I know is right, based on what I know about the God I serve.

I will stand in solidarity with the beautiful, multi-faceted LGBTQ+ community.

I will stand in solidarity with the beautiful, multi-faceted Black community.

I will stand in solidarity with immigrants and refugees.

I will stand in solidarity with my wife, my sister, my mother, and all women.

I will stand in solidarity with people from Jewish and Islamic and other religious traditions.

I will stand in solidarity with all these groups, knowing that people within them voted differently from me as well.

I will listen and converse with those who think differently, so I might better understand them, and they me. I will seek to see the beauty God created them to be.

I will teach my son to do these things, too.

I will teach my son that respecting the office of the president doesn’t prohibit one from questioning and criticizing and pushing back against the president.

I will teach my son that seeking justice for others is a holy calling.

I will do these things with love in my heart, because it is my privilege, duty, and calling to do them.

“Let us not grow weary. Let us not lose heart. For there are more seasons to come and…more work to do.” — Hillary Clinton