Tis the final Sunday in Advent as well as the first day of winter, so I'm going to recycle a graphic I put together last year, featuring a lovely snip of poetry by Howard Thurman.
Thurman, a grandson of slaves who was ordained a baptist preacher in segregated America, went on to broaden his theological --- and social --- horizons considerably, studying with Quaker mystic Rufus Jones, even Gandhi. His became an integrated, intercultural, interdenominational faith of non-violence that incorporated a call to action. He became a mentor to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders.
The musical setting, by Kim Andre Arnesen, was premiered by the St. Olaf College Choir and Orchestra (Northfield, Minn.) during their 2017 holiday concert.
Another brief poem by Thurman, "The Work of Christmas," carries the theme forward --- once the celebratory season is over, the work begins.
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flock,
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among others,
To make music in the heart.
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