THIS. Thank you Nadia for validating my belief in unsubscribing to the noise. I care very much for this earth and it's children, but I refuse to listen to the noise.
We have all been affected by the insidious algorithms in our lives. First you need to understand how it has influenced your life, thoughts, and spirituality. Once I realized how I to was living in a “silo” or “echo chamber”, I began to turn to God (again) for protection and guidance. It helped me understand that love is the only way. And that’s why at least for me it is so damn hard to step away and practice love.
Well. THIS is what I am talking about. It never fails. Some topic weighs so HEAVILY on my heart, I scoop it up and start carrying it around like a newborn. Which is EXACTLY what happened at the passing of Charlie Kirk. And then, in swoops Nadia Bolz-Weber shining a ginormous spotlight on that topic to remind me of the TRUTH. THANK YOU. I have been struggling SO MUCH with exactly what you are saying. I, too, read the story of the 2 women who had completely different Kirk experiences. Even so, I continued to struggle, grapple really, with HOW (HOW HOW HOW) ANYONE could separate the horrible and hateful things Kirk put out into the world and the supposed good he preached. I just could not get my head around HOW people can ignore the divisiveness Kirk so freely spread into the world. I do remind myself that God is in charge. But, you are right, that underlying judgement becomes so evident, so LOUD that it is hard to process. I find myself avoiding going to church (and I love my church!) knowing that so many of my friends there think nothing but positive thoughts about Kirk. I find myself avoiding friends and family members as well.
And this is my reminder that these algorithms are not the world. That our skewed sense of truth and reality is just that - skewed. Thank you for that reminder. Carrying this weight is heavy and uncomfortable and EXHAUSTING. More than that, it's not who I want to be. Thank you for reminding me that I do have a choice to recognize the love and beauty and wonder of all that God has provided and continues to provide. I am so thankful that you are in the world.
Nadia - One thing I do (aside from avoiding all TV and trying to avoid the oversaturation of other news feeds) is to participate in Braver Angels programs. Braver Angels was born out of the 2016 election when its founder (a family therapist) realized "America is like a couple caught in a bad marriage - who can't talk to each other." Since that time, they have developed programs to help left/right - red/blue folks to respectfully talk to (and see) each other. I especially like their "Disagreeing Better" workshop which I've helped host at my church. BraverAngels.org.
"The spiritual life is not a theory. We have to live it. " (pg 83, AA Big Book.) Thank you, Nadia, for showing up and sharing your ardent commitment to love, joy, compassion, empathy, humor, curiosity, and faith in a Higher Power. Your example calls me to do the same.
I’ve been saying this for a while now- we have to recognize that we’re not all getting/reading the same news. And consider: who is benefiting from that? While the tech giants keep us ‘little people’ all riled up in division and distracted - what’s really going on that they don’t want us to pay attention to? I’ve also fallen victim to the idea that I need to know what’s going on in the world…but then I consider that Jesus also lived in politically harsh and dangerous times, but did not get all ‘spun up’ in it. He focused on the needs of the people right in front of him. A good message for all of us.
Nadia! Oh how I needed your words right now. Feeling very overwhelmed not only about the big picture of the world, but about heightened rhetoric at church about Charlie Kirk, I was so sad and dismayed. Magnified by the recent death of our son, the world just seemed hard and gray. So much anger and hate. I was having trouble even looking for God. Your words were like a light in the dark for me. A light that makes the path a bit easier to navigate ahead. We are going to spend some time traveling to the southwest soon and I find myself now longing for those places where nature smacks me in the face with the magnificence of God’s creation. And I will utter those words “this is God” over and over! Thank you for being such a beautiful light!!
Thank you for your words. I always share them widely. We have to focus on the good, one day at a time, one hour at a time even. Whatever you need to get you through. Lately we have been feeding crows in the park and they have become quite attached to us. Magnificent creatures they are. Focusing on their extraordinary behaviour is a wondrous thing to behold and shuts out the darkness. Highly recommend a podcast episode here to encourage others to engage with corvids, too: Clever Crows from Curious Cases on Amazon Music.
Thank you for your honesty! I am sober and an Episcopalian! I am happy to support in a small way your writing and presence in the world. You speak my language! It is good to be reminded my algorithm is not the same as those who I would demonize! And I too will say to myself…this is the world …as I go through my day! Peace.
Thank you for the reminder that the 12 steps really can apply to all the big things in my life that I just can wrap my head around. I'm grateful that I've removed myself from social media in order to stay present. Even though disconnecting comes at a certain cost to me professionally (I can't use it to publicize my business), I know that I can't afford to be swept away by the addiction of false connection.
Thank you for this, truly. Oddly (or maybe not so oddly) enough, I've been carrying a very similar mantra with me lately. I'm doing an extended 30-week unit of CPE at one of the largest level 1 trauma children's hospitals in the country. Because of my schedule demands, for most of my shifts I'm the sole chaplain onsite for the entire campus. I've found myself repeating: "This is what matters. This is what's real." over and over again in my head as I respond to each new trauma alert and code blue. My personally assigned unit where I spend time outside those calls is our cardiac wing, which includes a cardiac specialized NICU and a "special delivery unit" for women carrying high risk pregnancies. Because of this, my work involves a lot of bereavements and baptisms - many times simultaneously. Nothing silences the virtue-signaling suffering-olympics bullshit noise the world throws at us or provides perspective on what I am powerless over - but also what I am capable of doing in my tiny corner of the world to alleviate some suffering - quite like sitting with a family in that moment and reminding them that their beloved child is a child of God forever and always. That matters. That is real. That is the world.
THIS. Thank you Nadia for validating my belief in unsubscribing to the noise. I care very much for this earth and it's children, but I refuse to listen to the noise.
We have all been affected by the insidious algorithms in our lives. First you need to understand how it has influenced your life, thoughts, and spirituality. Once I realized how I to was living in a “silo” or “echo chamber”, I began to turn to God (again) for protection and guidance. It helped me understand that love is the only way. And that’s why at least for me it is so damn hard to step away and practice love.
Well. THIS is what I am talking about. It never fails. Some topic weighs so HEAVILY on my heart, I scoop it up and start carrying it around like a newborn. Which is EXACTLY what happened at the passing of Charlie Kirk. And then, in swoops Nadia Bolz-Weber shining a ginormous spotlight on that topic to remind me of the TRUTH. THANK YOU. I have been struggling SO MUCH with exactly what you are saying. I, too, read the story of the 2 women who had completely different Kirk experiences. Even so, I continued to struggle, grapple really, with HOW (HOW HOW HOW) ANYONE could separate the horrible and hateful things Kirk put out into the world and the supposed good he preached. I just could not get my head around HOW people can ignore the divisiveness Kirk so freely spread into the world. I do remind myself that God is in charge. But, you are right, that underlying judgement becomes so evident, so LOUD that it is hard to process. I find myself avoiding going to church (and I love my church!) knowing that so many of my friends there think nothing but positive thoughts about Kirk. I find myself avoiding friends and family members as well.
And this is my reminder that these algorithms are not the world. That our skewed sense of truth and reality is just that - skewed. Thank you for that reminder. Carrying this weight is heavy and uncomfortable and EXHAUSTING. More than that, it's not who I want to be. Thank you for reminding me that I do have a choice to recognize the love and beauty and wonder of all that God has provided and continues to provide. I am so thankful that you are in the world.
Nadia - One thing I do (aside from avoiding all TV and trying to avoid the oversaturation of other news feeds) is to participate in Braver Angels programs. Braver Angels was born out of the 2016 election when its founder (a family therapist) realized "America is like a couple caught in a bad marriage - who can't talk to each other." Since that time, they have developed programs to help left/right - red/blue folks to respectfully talk to (and see) each other. I especially like their "Disagreeing Better" workshop which I've helped host at my church. BraverAngels.org.
"The spiritual life is not a theory. We have to live it. " (pg 83, AA Big Book.) Thank you, Nadia, for showing up and sharing your ardent commitment to love, joy, compassion, empathy, humor, curiosity, and faith in a Higher Power. Your example calls me to do the same.
I’ve been saying this for a while now- we have to recognize that we’re not all getting/reading the same news. And consider: who is benefiting from that? While the tech giants keep us ‘little people’ all riled up in division and distracted - what’s really going on that they don’t want us to pay attention to? I’ve also fallen victim to the idea that I need to know what’s going on in the world…but then I consider that Jesus also lived in politically harsh and dangerous times, but did not get all ‘spun up’ in it. He focused on the needs of the people right in front of him. A good message for all of us.
Nadia! Oh how I needed your words right now. Feeling very overwhelmed not only about the big picture of the world, but about heightened rhetoric at church about Charlie Kirk, I was so sad and dismayed. Magnified by the recent death of our son, the world just seemed hard and gray. So much anger and hate. I was having trouble even looking for God. Your words were like a light in the dark for me. A light that makes the path a bit easier to navigate ahead. We are going to spend some time traveling to the southwest soon and I find myself now longing for those places where nature smacks me in the face with the magnificence of God’s creation. And I will utter those words “this is God” over and over! Thank you for being such a beautiful light!!
Thank you for your words. I always share them widely. We have to focus on the good, one day at a time, one hour at a time even. Whatever you need to get you through. Lately we have been feeding crows in the park and they have become quite attached to us. Magnificent creatures they are. Focusing on their extraordinary behaviour is a wondrous thing to behold and shuts out the darkness. Highly recommend a podcast episode here to encourage others to engage with corvids, too: Clever Crows from Curious Cases on Amazon Music.
https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/87041893-fed2-4dcf-956a-b50e99737f65/episodes/60a9e721-22ef-4bef-958e-fca7cecfab88/curious-cases-clever-crows?ref=dm_sh_MgdJuW2wjtDRc9sJpE88Ltqad
Thankyou so much Nadia. I needed this. 🙏🙏🙏
Thank you for your honesty! I am sober and an Episcopalian! I am happy to support in a small way your writing and presence in the world. You speak my language! It is good to be reminded my algorithm is not the same as those who I would demonize! And I too will say to myself…this is the world …as I go through my day! Peace.
Thanks for this post. I really needed it. From a 94 year old living in s senior retirement “community”.
As Richard Beck (who also blogs on Substack) said the best thing to confront this was "To show up sane, wise, humble, and kind".
Thank you for the reminder that the 12 steps really can apply to all the big things in my life that I just can wrap my head around. I'm grateful that I've removed myself from social media in order to stay present. Even though disconnecting comes at a certain cost to me professionally (I can't use it to publicize my business), I know that I can't afford to be swept away by the addiction of false connection.
Thank you for this, truly. Oddly (or maybe not so oddly) enough, I've been carrying a very similar mantra with me lately. I'm doing an extended 30-week unit of CPE at one of the largest level 1 trauma children's hospitals in the country. Because of my schedule demands, for most of my shifts I'm the sole chaplain onsite for the entire campus. I've found myself repeating: "This is what matters. This is what's real." over and over again in my head as I respond to each new trauma alert and code blue. My personally assigned unit where I spend time outside those calls is our cardiac wing, which includes a cardiac specialized NICU and a "special delivery unit" for women carrying high risk pregnancies. Because of this, my work involves a lot of bereavements and baptisms - many times simultaneously. Nothing silences the virtue-signaling suffering-olympics bullshit noise the world throws at us or provides perspective on what I am powerless over - but also what I am capable of doing in my tiny corner of the world to alleviate some suffering - quite like sitting with a family in that moment and reminding them that their beloved child is a child of God forever and always. That matters. That is real. That is the world.
Bless you and thanks for your work. Take care of yourself! Retired palliative care nurse practitioner
"This is the world" will be my mantra going forward. I am a new subscriber and so happy to be here.
A sort of self check tangent/non tangent from my hero steven charleston:
(from his "climbing stairs of sunlight" spiritual diary)
"Warning Signs of Hardening of the Spiritual Arteries"
(1). You begin to believe you know who is going to heaven and who is not.
(2) You worry more about
what other people are doing behind closed doors than what
you are doing in plain sight.
(3) You imagine that God
belongs to your political party.
(4) You spend more time
blaming than listening.
"If you develop any of these symptoms, go quickly to a place of worship you would otherwise never attend.
Sit quietly.
Watch the children.
When they make you smile you are on the road to recovery.
Repeat as necessary."
I love steven charleston