'Taking Heart in These Heartless Times'

"There have been heartless times before, but this is the most heartless time that we've ever experienced." - Rev. Dr. Craig Nessan

LAM-NM Director Ruth Hoffman poses with Rev. Nessan

In an  era when the level of public discourse has turned away from reasoned discussion, when the rich and powerful have gained control over the White House, when the government policies more than ever are set up to oppress the most vulnerable in our society (and our God-given creation)...Rev. Dr. Craig Nessan urges us to remember that our faith calls us to be people of compassion.

"We are Christians grounded in scripture," Rev. Nessan told several dozen people who attended the Lutheran Advocacy Ministry-New Mexico's Advocacy Conference in Albuquerque on Saturday, Oct. 14."We try to articulate and advocate for a neighbor policy."

In light of all the discouraging changes around us, Rev. Nessan urges us to remain people of hope by engaging in a mysticism of the the ordinary to detect the holy in the things that are right in front of us. This approach allows us to bring the Creator into our spiritual practices in a deeper way.

In the current climate, Rev. Nessan argues, it might be that turning inward is what is needed the most. According to Rev. Nessen, this grounding gives meaning to our actions. So what is  Rev. Nessan's approach? "I walk and I breathe," he said.

He cited a number of difference-makers in history who had deep faith while working to promote social justice: Mahatma Gandhi, Dorothy Day, Thomas Merton, Gustavo Gutierrez, Walter Brueggemann, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, Nadia Bolz Weber and others. These individuals "stand in alignment" with the values that Jesus promoted in the Gospels, said Rev. Nessan.