Black Culture Commission

Martin Niemoller (1892 – 1984) was the Lutheran Pastor who wrote:
 
First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out— 
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out— 
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.

 
An early supporter of Adolph Hitler’s “Third Reich”, Neimoller later denounced the Nazi regime, becoming an outspoken adversary of Nazi rhetoric and practices.  He spent the last seven years of Nazi rule in prison camps. 
 
This quote epitomizes the best response to those who choose to do or say nothing in the face of evil, social injustice, and cultural, ethnic, racial or sexual intolerance and hatred.  It says we are all in this – no matter the struggle; no matter the cause – together.  Dr. King expressed the same sentiment when he said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”
 
Our Lady of Consolation Church may sometimes seem a small pebble in the vast “lake” of Catholicism in Charlotte.  The vibration that we make, collectively, when we hit the water can be tremendously powerful.  And there are some vibrations – some messages – that must be brought by us.  BLACK LIVES MATTER is just such a message!
 
As we ponder the purpose of Christ in our lives through the Eucharist during the Congress and as we think about the sacredness and sanctity of the gift of life…let’s also be reminded that if all life is truly sacred, then surely…BLACK LIVES MATTER, too.
 
Our communities, our people and our children – Catholic, protestant, Muslim – need us to speak and to act…to show up to tell their stories and to represent those who cannot speak or are tired of standing alone.  Not in protest – but in solidarity for that which is right!
 

B L A C K   L I V E S   M A T T E R!