The Christ Child Within

"I think that we have hardly thought through the immense implications of the mystery of the incarnation. Where is God? God is where we are weak, vulnerable, small, and dependent. God is where the poor are, the hungry, the handicapped, the mentally ill, the elderly, the powerless. How can we come to know God when our focus is elsewhere, on success, influence, and power? I increasingly believe that our faithfulness will depend on our willingness to go where there is brokenness, loneliness, and human need. . . . Each one of us is very seriously searching to live and grow in this belief, and by friendship we can support each other. I realize that the only way for us to stay well in the midst of the many “worlds” is to stay close to the small, vulnerable child that lives in our hearts and in every other human being. Often we do not know that the Christ child is within us. When we discover him we can truly rejoice."  --Henri Nouwen

"If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality."  --Archbishop Desmond Tutu

"Love isn't a state of perfect caring. It is an active noun like struggle."  --Fred Rogers, Wisdom from the World According to Mister Rogers (2003)

"If you’re always trying to be normal you will never know how amazing you can be."  --Maya Angelou

Couldn't help but make me feel ashamed

To live in a land

Where justice is a game.
--Bob Dylan, “Hurricane”

"If I can do no more, let my name stand among those who are willing to bear ridicule and reproach for the truth's sake, and so earn some right to rejoice when the victory is won.  --Louisa May Alcott

"Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom and philosophy."  --Ludwig van Beethoven