Pride and Joy

Have you been outside recently? I was doing some site visits today and got to see some familiar faces at church and in the streets. What a JOY to feel the sun in my face. Did you catch some sun? Some joy?
As we celebrate Juneteenth I’m thinking about Black resistance and Black Joy, and the ticket-only show we’re creating to mark this moment. Why tickets? Because we need to raise money to help us rise while we celebrate. We’ve just learned that incredible new folks like Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, Loretta Devine, Tisha Campbell, Dyllón Burnside and Kamilah Forbes will join our Saturday night performance that already features stars like Grammy Award-winner Stephanie Mills, Tituss Burgess, and Martha Redbone. You can watch that show online for just $19! However, as a special gift to you for all your support of this movement, we’re offering a special $61.90 discount for the entire weekend. That also includes my Sunday antiracism teach-in with Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Annette Gordon-Reed, and fabulous workshops that Rev. Darrell is putting together following our discussion. So use the discount code FREEDOM and get your ticket now, for a Juneteenth dose of Black joy and radical education. Your contributions will help Middle as we continue to rise from December’s fire.
Another way God calls to make change is by exercising our voices at the ballot box. And, for New Yorkers, early voting in our mayoral primary stars Saturday, June 12 through Sunday, June 20! This crucial Democratic primary will likely determine our next mayor and our Voter Reform Project wants to ensure that all NYC members who are registered make a plan to cast their ballot! And if you have your plan in place, please call 5-10 of your friends in NYC and ask them to make a plan too! If you have any questions about how to vote, reach out to Rev Amanda. We need your voice to make this city a place where love and justice have the best opportunity to flourish.
Come Sunday, we’ll be streaming our 11:45 a.m. ET worship celebration to the homepage, as well as our Facebook and YouTube channels. I’ll be preaching on “The Power of Naming” in a Pride worship that lifts up the beautiful gifts of our trans and gender-expansive family.
Never forget: You’re beautiful and wondrous. And you are empowered by God to be a midwife to Love. Delight in that joy, and claim its responsibility.
I love you so much,
Jacqui