Let this radicalize you rather than lead you to despair.

Radicalize your gratitude In a world where a white teenager is acquitted after using an AR-15 to murder people who were defending Black life... In a world where we still lie about the history of the relationship between white settler colonial people and Indigenous people on Thanksgiving... In a world where our global leaders cannot meet the moment of climate crises with adequate courage... In a world where a pandemic is still claiming the lives of our beloveds... It can be hard to practice gratitude. On this day we call Thanksgiving, which is also a National Day of Mourning, what does it mean to be "in the harvest" while in the midst of such pain and trauma? The organizer and educator Mariame Kaba invites us to let realities like these radicalize us rather than lead us into despair. This is an invitation to move through our trauma, not to ignore it. To process our pain so as not to be stuck there, and move toward hope and liberation. And so this week: we invite you to be in lament. To lament is to tell the truth, object, cry out and resist what is, which is a portal into our imagination about what can be. We cannot heal without lamentation. And then to be in gratitude. We're not talking about the flimsy toxic positivity that tries to sell us satisfaction. No, gratitude is a deep practice that connects us to what we love. To what we long for. To hope. Gratitude is a form of resilience even as we feel loss, helplessness or shame. This Thanksgiving let your gratitude be radical. Which is to say: get at the roots. What are the nutrients that are truly sustaining? What truths are waiting to be breathed into the world? What do you long for? What lifts up? What heals?  For the sake of our Indigenous siblings, and all of us, may this National Day of Mourning/Thanksgiving be a day for our collective healing. Advent campaign to kick off next week Come to an interactive and creative Bible Study and discussion on Revelation 22. December 15 4-5p ET (3-4p CT / 1-2p PT). In this waiting time for Christ, we’ll dream together about a new heaven and new earth, even as we face the end of the world. Led by members of PPF & Fossil Free PCUSA Liv Thomas, Colleen Earp, and abby mohaupt.  Sign up today. PPF's Advent fundraising campaign begins next week. This is when we raise a bulk of the money that we need to do our work together. Please keep an eye out for a letter and emails sharing about this campaign and please give to PPF financially as you're able. Gifts of all sizes matter. We're grateful for you, and we're grateful to do this work together. Check out this new video We are building a network of disarming congregations around the country. Our third cohort will start in the new year and will help you move your congregation from study and prayer toward action. While legislators are slow to respond to the crises of gun violence, we can disarm our own communities and hold space for healing and transformation. Sign up for the Winter Action Circles How security is used to justify military action PPF is co-sponsoring this webinar exploring the concept of security and militarism. Join us and hear from one of our partners in Colombia, Rev. Milton Mejia, as well as partners of the Presbyterian Peace Network on Korea. This is the first in a series of webinars that PPF is co-sponsoring with the Militarism Working Group, a group of the Presbyterian Mission Agency. Register Today Presbyterian Peace Fellowship 845-786-6743 | presbypeacefellowship.org Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

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