The Rural Assembly’s Whitney Kimball Coe is a contributor to the Interfaith Youth Core’s new collection of essays “State of the Interfaith Nation: American Civic Leaders Reflect on the 2020 Election and Beyond.”
Whitney’s essay “Tending Relationship After Despair” focuses on the need to mourn together and to repair broken relationships in our communities.
I believe the work of now is about repairing the breach we’ve observed in our own communities. It looks like accepting the casserole and the challenge that comes with it. It is tending wounds in ways that acknowledge harm but don’t imprison us to bitterness. It is grieving without drowning, raging but also listening. It is holding each other accountable while honoring the dignity and divinity of one another.
The State of the Interfaith Nation is a series of reflections on where America is after the 2020 election and visions of a way forward in the midst of our deep divisions. The IFYC hopes to spark new insights, generate discussion in our virtual communities, and re-invigorate our commitment to strengthening our democracy.
Related links
Introduction to The State of the Interfaith Nation piece by Eboo Patel and Mary Ellen Giess