Devotional – September 3, 2025

“The truth is that frightened people will never tunr the world, because they use too much energy on protection of self.  It is the vocation of the baptized, the known and named and unafraid, to make the world whole:

• The unafraid are open to the neighbor, while the frightened are defending themselves from the neighbor.
• The unafraid are generous in the community, while the frightened, in their anxiety, must keep and store and accumulate, to make themselves safe. 
• The unafraid commit acts of compassion and mercy, while the frightened do not notice those in need. 
• The unafraid are committed to justice for the weak and the poor, while the frightened see them only as threats.
• the unafraid pray in the morning, care through the day, and rejoice at night in thanks and praise, while the frightened are endlessly restless and dissatisfied.

So dear people, each of you: Do not fear! I have called you by name; you are mine!

– Dr. Walter Bruggemann, A Way Other Than Our Own

Peace Be With You. – Paul