—
RSVP to join weekly calls on Conscious Intersectionality
—
“The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”
In 1871, Unitarian minister Theodore Parker first spoke these words in opposition to slavery here in America.
In 1958 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. repeated them to a nation still fighting for equality for all its people.
In this day of uncertainty and grief, these words desperately need to be repeated again, though not as solace for weary spectators—but as battle cry for warriors.
We who occupy this space and time need to understand that the arc of the universe does not bend without us. It never has. It never will.
Humanity is the irresistible force shaping the crescent we stand upon together; every single life and every infinitesimal, seemingly unimportant decision adjusts its path in ways we can’t always perceive. With each decision, the curvature changes ever so slightly. It is changing in the seconds it takes me to type these words, and you to read them. Every single moment is a movement, one way or the other.
Friends, this means that we are the arc benders.
With each act of love, each word of truth, each brave step, justice comes a little closer.
|
We are not passive victims of the difficult times in which we live, we are powerful participants in them; mighty co-authors of the story we find ourselves in, and together we can twist the plot. We can write something redemptive to mark this day on the planet.
With each beat of our bleeding hearts and every breath passing through our scorched lungs; as we speak and struggle, pushback and pray, resist and engage—the universe bows a bit more. With each act of love, each word of truth, each brave step, justice comes a little closer.
Yes, the arc of the moral universe is long, and we may not see all the movement we wish to see while we are here, but make no mistake—it will bend far less severely and far more slowly if we simply wait for it to do so.
It’s why we don’t sit in the comfort of our privilege, and why we face this day with urgency: because people of love will hasten the bending if they choose to.
|
And while we are waiting, others may decide that we are bending too quickly toward equality and diversity, and they may move in opposition, arching us away from the progress of our forebears. And if we are not diligent and relentless and steadfast with these moments, we risk leaving those who come after us, a world that is veering off course.
This is why we keep going now. It is why be brave the difficult conversations and the exhausting days and the sleepless nights. It’s why we don’t sit in the comfort of our privilege, and why we face this day with urgency: because people of love will hasten the bending if they choose to.
And I choose to.
I want to be an arc bender.
I want to live leaned toward justice.
I want my choices in the small and the grand to contribute to the holy momentum of the planet.
I want my presence here to yield more compassion, more goodness, more decency than when I arrived.
I want my abundance and privilege to be spent on behalf of those who have less of such things.
I want to spend the remaining of my days shoulder to shoulder with other passionate, resolute arc benders, deliberately altering the curvature of the universe toward justice, by the sweat of our brows and the defiance of a love that will not cease.
We don’t wait for the Universe to bend, my friends.
We move together—and we bend it.
Blessed are the arc benders.
Be encouraged.
—
RSVP to join weekly calls on Conscious Intersectionality
What Now? Participate. Take Action. Join The Good Men Project Community.
The $50 Platinum Level is an ALL-ACCESS PASS—join as many groups and classes as you want for the entire year. The $25 Gold Level gives you access to any ONE Social Interest Group and ONE Class–and other benefits listed below the form. Or…for $12, join as a Bronze Member and support our mission. All members see the site AD-FREE!
Register New Account
◊♦◊
Your ANNUAL PLATINUM membership includes:
1. Free and UNLIMITED ACCESS to participate in ANY of our new Social Interest Groups. We have active communities of like-minded individuals working to change the world on important issues. Weekly facilitated calls that lead to the execution of real-world strategies for change. Complete schedule here, with new ones starting all the time. We now offer 500 calls a year!
2. Free and UNLIMITED ACCESS to ALL LIVE CLASSES. Learn how to build your own platform, be a better writer, become an editor, or create social change. Check out our training sessions. As a Platinum member, you can take them all.
3. Invitation to the MEMBERS ONLY Good Men Project Community on Facebook. Connect with other members, network and help us lead this conversation.
4. Access to our PREMIUM MEMBER LIBRARY with our recorded ConvoCasts and classes. ConvoCasts are a new form of media—and you are in them! Only Platinum Members get access to our recordings. And recordings of our classes are really valuable for those who do not have time to take the live classes or just want to review.
5. An ad-free experience. No banner, pop-up, or video ads when you log in.
6. Weekly conference calls with the publisher and other community members. Our weekly calls discuss the issues we see happening in the world of men in a friendly group setting.
7. PLATINUM member commenting badge. Only members can comment!
Price for ANNUAL PLATINUM membership is $50/year.
♦◊♦
Your ANNUAL GOLD membership will include:
1. Free access to any ONE Social Interest Groups.Try them out! We have active communities of like-minded individuals working to change the world on important issues. Weekly facilitated calls that lead to the execution of real-world strategies for change. Complete schedule here, with new ones starting all the time.
2. Free access to any ONE of our live classes. Each month, we have the following: Learn how to be a Rising Star in media, build your own platform, become an advanced writer, become an editor or create social change. Check out our classes here. RSVP for any one class—if you want to take more, just upgrade to an Annual Platinum Membership.
3. Invitation to the MEMBER-ONLY Good Men Project Community on Facebook and all Weekly Friday Conference calls with the Publisher and community. Connect with other members online and by phone!
4. An ad-free experience. No banner, pop-up, or video ads when you are logged in.
5. GOLD commenting badge. Only members can comment on the website!
Price for ANNUAL GOLD membership is $25/year.
♦◊♦
Your ANNUAL BRONZE membership will include:
1. Invitation to weekly conference calls with the publisher and community. Connect with other members, network and help us lead this conversation.
2. An ad-free experience. No banner, pop-up, or video ads when you are logged in.
3. BRONZE member commenting badge. Only members can comment on the website!
Price for ANNUAL BRONZE membership is $12/year.
We have pioneered the largest worldwide conversation about what it means to be a good man in the 21st century. Your support of our work is inspiring and invaluable.
◊♦◊
“Here’s the thing about The Good Men Project. We are trying to create big, sweeping, societal changes—–overturn stereotypes, eliminate racism, sexism, homophobia, be a positive force for good for things like education reform and the environment. And we’re also giving individuals the tools they need to make individual change—-with their own relationships, with the way they parent, with their ability to be more conscious, more mindful, and more insightful. For some people, that could get overwhelming. But for those of us here at The Good Men Project, it is not overwhelming. It is simply something we do—–every day. We do it with teamwork, with compassion, with an understanding of systems and how they work, and with shared insights from a diversity of viewpoints.” —– Lisa Hickey, Publisher of The Good Men Project and CEO of Good Men Media Inc.
—
Originally Published on JohnPavlovitz.com
Image ID: 1458616904
Amen!
When you have found your way to empathy, loving-kindness and compassion for those with whom you disagree – then you’ll be ready to talk about bending the arc of the universe with credibility. First you unbend yourself (or ask your Higher Power to unbend you). Then you look to see how you can serve. It’s all right there in the !2 Steps, which were derived by a couple of drunks from the Bible – with a lot of help from folks who gave them a lot of wisdom. Start with Step 1…and don’t skip any of the steps as you… Read more »
Sounds like you want to make good choices, and leave the world a better place for having been here. That’s a good start.
So I have a suggestion for you. Start by reconciling with all the folks you kicked to the curb because of your political differences, That will give you some basic tools to move forward in a non-harmful way.
https://goodmenproject.com/featured-content/people-ive-lost-election-dg/
Here’s Joe Biden yesterday, making the exact same point I am making. You really don’t have moral ground to stand on if you cut people out of your life because they don’t share your political views. >>> From Yahoo! News: Former Vice President Joe Biden gave assurances Sunday that the country’s current divisiveness brought on by a presidential election that “churned up some of the ugliest realities” of society will be temporary. Biden told graduating seniors at Colby College to resist the impulse to throw up their hands after an election that played to society’s “baser instincts.” “It’s time for… Read more »
The quote about bending the arc of the universe is a nice aspiration. But, looking over the long arc of recorded human history, I am having trouble finding evidence that this is in fact the case. We humans are very shortsighted and prone to the availability heuristic. There may have been some very brief advances in human rights over the last few decades or so, but we are seeing now, in the US and elsewhere, how easily this can be reversed. And, for the vast majority of recorded human history, and in almost all parts of the globe – the… Read more »