“Reconstruction”

Reconstruction presumes destruction, or some kind of breaking down of a structure that needs immediate addressing to make functional again. After the Civil War, the term reconstruction marked the period following the schism of our nation as we know it today, including the dysfunction of slavery that was broken down and made obsolete in its present form. In the years that followed, the African American community made great strides to guarantee that those in their community could work, get their children educated in proper schools, and pursue horizons that prior generations had dreamed for them.

As has been the consistent case in American history, though certain institutions in their present form were abolished and made illegal, the impulse that built these institutions persisted and found new expressions. Shortly after reconstruction, Jim Crow laws arose in the South, contributing to an increasingly segregated country that led to inhumane poverty and disproportionate disease and low health outcomes among African Americans throughout the US, not just the South.

During the Civil Rights movement of the 1960’s, there were two dominant opposing views about reconstruction. Martin Luther King Jr. saw this period as the second important stage of reconstruction, offering another chance for our country to live up to its creed of liberty and justice for all. The counterpoint was Malcolm X who believed reconstruction to be a nightmare, an American nightmare that he felt was important to finally wake up from. Malcolm saw that a new experiment would be necessary, a starting over, a point of construction that was released altogether from the present systems.

Although historically reconstruction is a term associated with African Americans, it is important to note that other movements grew and had great power during the second reconstruction of the 1960’s: the American Indian Movement, the Women’s Liberation Movement, the Gay Rights Movement, and the important passing of legislation that came about through the Environmental Movement. All of these were part of this second reconstruction.

Today we are not much interested in history lessons for mere curiosity. Many of us are trying to get a sense of where we are in the movement of this time, and how we might show up for ourselves and others. Right now you are seeing the resurgence of what began during each stage of reconstruction: the hope and belief that we can improve the lives of those on the margins in this country, and the great doubt that we can do this without dismantling the entire system. There is a great, seemingly unstoppable impulse to wake up to all that we’ve been terribly asleep to for way too long: all those who live and toil and die without the notice or care of the powers that be or the people who tolerate these powers.

There has yet to be a serious conversation about what status quo we are seeking to change. Until we take time to understand thoroughly where we’ve been up to a few months ago, the impulse of this current movement may be fickle and lack long-term rooted-ness. We have a chance to root this time in an understanding of where we’ve come from, so we can see with new eyes where we are. This new way of seeing ourselves is the transformation we speak about as the mission of this church. Our mission is to take time to put in the due diligence bit by bit, in our daily living to wake up to the reality of our lives, and gain the ability to respond with steadfast kindness to whatever we may discover or find. More than ever, this is not becoming an optional path. It is the only path forward. I look forward to continuing on this heartfelt and worthwhile path with all of you who are cultivating steadfast kindness in this third reconstruction.