From the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the address given by Bishop Michael Curry, to the sound of Karen Gibson and the Kingdom Choir singing “Stand by Me” and “This Little Light of Mine” — the American half of the marriage between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle was steeped in black American tradition.
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“And now in the name of our loving liberating and life giving god, father, son, and holy spirit, amen. From the song of Solomon in the bible, set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is as strong as death, passion, fears as the its flashes are flashes of fire, a raging flame. Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods. Drown it out.
The late Dr. Martin Luther king once said and I quote, ‘We must discover the power of love, the redemptive power of love, and when we do that, we will make of this old world a new world.’
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Someone once said that Jesus began most revolutionary movement in all of human history, a movement grounded in the unconditional love of god for the world. And a movement mandating people to live that love. And in so doing, to change not only their lives but the very life of the world itself. I'm talking about some power, real power, power to change the world.
If you don't believe me, well, there were some old slaves in America's antebellum south who explained the dynamic power of love and why it has the power, they explained it this way, they sang a spiritual, even in the midst of their captivity, something that can make things right, to make the wounded whole.
“There is a balm in Gilead to heal the soul. They said if you cannot preach like Peter and you cannot pray like Paul, you just tell the love of Jesus how he died to save us all. Oh, that's the balm in Gilead.”
It was clear that many viewers had never heard Bishop Curry before — and I was elated to see his message of love spread to millions.
Have talked about him here on Daily Kos in the past — in Let's talk about black evangelicals and social justice ministries.
To hear the sounds of a gospel choir — among the other musical offerings, made my heart sing.
The exit:
And of course, there was the bride’s mom — Doria Ragland.
Amen.
Love not hate.