Author: Pat Liberty

America Has a Lynching Problem, and It Is Nothing New

Pat Liberty

It was as American as apple pie. White men ambushed black people and then the black people were found hanging from tree branches. Sometimes the victims were beaten, tortured and violated prior to hanging. This often happened in broad daylight.

In the post-Civil War era, attending a lynching was a family event. After church, white families would gather with their picnic hampers and settle in for an afternoon of entertainment. Sometimes post cards commemorating the event were sent to friends and relatives.

 Yes, it is as horrific as it sounds.

It is widely believed that over 4,000 women and men were lynched in the years between the end of the Civil War and 1950. A recent study by the Equal Justice Initiative posits that over 6500 people were lynched from the end of Reconstruction (1877) through 1950. The number is likely much higher as not all lynchings were recorded at the time. The names are lost to history. Most of the lynchings involved black people; however, white men and some women were also lynched for supporting and assisting blacks with finding housing, employment, assistance with voting, and working for anti-lynching laws.

Lynching is defined as an extrajudicial vigilante murder primarily committed against black Americans for no other reason than the color of their skin. Many victims did not have criminal records. Sometimes they were executed for not extending the deference white people expected. False sexual assault charges levied by white women against black men also played a significant role. This has perpetuated the myth of male hyper-sexuality and (not so) subtly communicated that black men are dangerous.

Terrorized racial murders communicated to Blacks that they needed to keep the social expectations of the day. Public lynchings maintained white supremacy. Although lynchings were usually associated with the deep South, they also occurred in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Nebraska and Kansas.

Public lynchings decreased in the 1930’s largely due to the emergence of the death penalty in the criminal justice system. To this day the percentage of Blacks on death row is disproportionately high compared to their white counterparts. The move from vigilante murder to state sanctioned murder was no improvement. The beginning of World War II also contributed to the lower numbers of lynchings. Following WWII there was an uptick in lynchings after the Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education, ruled that separate but equal was unconstitutional. The last recorded lynching was March 21, 1981, at least until recently.      

Fast forward a few decades and lynching is still as American as apple pie. In 2026, to date, there have been at least six, possibly seven lynchings. It is difficult to have a hard and fast number since police departments are quick to classify them as suicide.

Black people do not hang themselves from trees.

The most recent lynching was Demetrius Eugene Fleming of Roanoke Rapids, NC on August 21, 2026. It was quickly ruled a suicide which effectively shut down any meaningful investigation. The collusion of law enforcement with white supremacy groups and other racist vigilante groups keeps the truth of lynching hidden. Newspapers rarely report it.  

This is horrifying. Every person of faith should be outraged. The silence, especially of the church, is deafening.

Lynching violates one of the Big Ten: “thou shalt not kill.” There is, however, a deeper more troubling theological aspect to lynching and the terrorization of African Americans. Scripture teaches that all people are created in the image of God; all people carry the divine spark within them. Genesis reminds us that “In the image of God, God created them. Male and female, God created them” (Genesis 1:27). There is no footnote saying only white people were created in Divine image. 

As people of faith grounded in the Judeo-Christian tradition, creation in God’s image is a fundamental truth. In the second testament we read in 1 Corinthians 3:16,  “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?”  We are all vessels of the Divine. This is a second fundamental truth of our tradition.

The only way Blacks can be marginalized, mistreated and lynched is if they are seen as less than their white counterparts. This hearkens back to the 1800’s when Blacks were counted as 3/5 of a person for purposes of property tax assessment and the census. That notion, no matter how unconscious, persists. People of color are “less than.” The failure of Reconstruction institutionalized racism that was not addressed by emancipation. Blacks have consistently been denied the fullness of humanity that is their birthright. Make no mistake, the racism that persists today has a deep theological root in the Judeo-Christian tradition.

The surge in lynchings as well as the increase in murders of unarmed black (mostly) men by police reinforces and strengthens the racist roots that have never really been exorcised from the United States. In the current social and political milieu, racism is seeing a resurgence in acceptability and popularity in the United States. Racism is America’s original sin. It is past time to repent.

Being a Woman In a Post Roe v Wade World

Pat Liberty

In 2021 the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade. Fifty years of settled law was overturned in minute–fifty years of women having control over their bodies, deciding if they want to be pregnant. This opened the door for states to make their own laws which delineate what health care services a woman can access. Currently, abortion is banned in fifteen states.

In Alabama, all abortions at every stage of pregnancy are outlawed. The law allows an exception only if the patient’s life or health is at serious risk. There are no exceptions for rape or incest.

In Arkansas, abortions are banned entirely from conception, with an exception only to save the life of the pregnant person. There are no exceptions for rape or incest.

In Kentucky, all abortions are banned, with an exception only to save the life of the pregnant person. There are no exceptions for rape or incest

In Louisiana, all abortions are banned with exceptions only for life endangerment or lethal fetal anomalies. There are no exceptions for rape or incest.

In Missouri, all abortions are banned allowing intervention solely for medical emergencies.

In Oklahoma, all abortions are banned from the moment of conception. An exception is made if the life of the mother is in danger. There are no exceptions for rape or incest.

In South Dakota, abortion is banned except when necessary to preserve the life of the pregnant person. The law explicitly excludes rape or incest.

In Texas, abortions are banned from the moment of conception. An exception is made only to save the life or prevent substantial physical Impairment of the mother. Rape and incest are omitted.

In West Virginia, abortion is banned from the moment of conception. There are very narrow exceptions for medical emergencies and lethal fetal anomalies. There are no exceptions for rape or incest.

Other states have heavy restrictions on abortions. Idaho, North Dakota and Mississippi allow exceptions for rape or incest but restrict them tightly. A police report is required and access to abortion is capped at six weeks. Most women do not even know they are pregnant at that time.  

It doesn’t stop there. In states that ban abortion, women are three times as likely to die during pregnancy, childbirth or soon after giving birth. Babies born in states where abortion is illegal are thirty percent more likely to die in their first month of life.

One in four teens live in states that ban abortion. Seven in ten women live in states that ban or severely restrict abortion.

These are human beings forced to carry a pregnancy to term, even if it is the result of sexual assault or incest. Age is irrelevant; children as young as 13 are forced to carry a pregnancy to term. Often girls are impregnated by a much older man. Only seventeen states explicitly ban child marriage. Yes, seventeen out of fifty.

In high income wealthy nations, the United States ranks the highest in maternal mortality. Neonatal deaths are also disproportionately high compared to other wealthy developed countries like Canada and the United Kingdom.

Significant racial disparities exist among minority populations. Non-Hispanic Black women and American Indian/Alaska Native women experience maternal and infant mortality rates two to three times that of white women.

Women who seek abortion care are often subject to heavy fines and in some cases imprisonment. Fear and suspicion on the part of medical personnel have already resulted in denial of necessary reproductive care, with death being the result.

It is dangerous to be pregnant in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease control from 2018-2022, maternal mortality increased from 17.4 per 100,000 deaths to 33.6%per 100,00 live births.

Let’s be clear; this has nothing to do with being concerned about children. This is about a bunch of men deciding that every conception should lead to a live birth. This is about men controlling women’s bodies. This is about taking agency from pregnant persons when they face one of the most difficult decisions in their life. This is patriarchy on parade, unapologetically slashing women’s rights. Men should not be in women’s uteruses.

I am not debating the morality of abortion. I believe that access to abortion is a decision between a pregnant person and her health care provider. I believe that abortion is health care.

Abortion is as old as human history. It is widely believed that abortion was practiced in ancient near eastern civilizations and throughout the ancient world. The first written reference to abortion occurred in 1600 BCE when The Ancient Egyptian Papyrus Ebera was penned.

Abortion likely existed during the writing of the First Testament. It occupies no significant space in the narrative of Israel. It was a non-issue.

Since abortion existed in Jesus’ time, it is interesting that he never mentioned or commented on it. It played no part in the narrative of Jesus’ life and the life of the early church. Jesus trusted the agency of women to lead fledgling churches, serve as deacons and generally take on all the tasks that men performed in the early church.  Jesus kept company with women. They were part of his inner circle. There are clues hidden throughout the Second Testament. This is not to say that women were treated equally, far from it. Women were regularly stoned to death for adultery. Laws about divorce favored men. Women had little power under Roman occupation.

Jesus was revolutionary in his treatment of women and was roundly criticized for it. Maybe it’s time we acted more like Jesus. Women’s lives are depending on it.

Shining a Light on Child Marriage

Pat Liberty

In a recent vote, Oklahoma senate Republican legislators voted against Senate Bill 504, which is an outright ban on child marriage with no exceptions.  They argued that the bill amounted to government overreach into personal family choices. Despite the opposition, the measured passed and became law in May 2026.

In Wisconsin, State-level efforts to ban child marriage have repeatedly stalled in committees controlled by Republican leadership. They argue that proposed laws infringe on the rights of parents to decide what is right for their children

In Missouri, a Republican-controlled House committee killed a bill that would have completely outlawed marriage for anyone under eighteen. Opponents argued that the age requirement ignored “unique” family situations and undermined parental authority.

In South Dakota, the Senate killed a bi-partisan bill that would have removed exceptions allowing 16 and 17 year olds to marry with parental consent. Republicans argued that banning child marriage would criminalize young marriages and disrupt family values.

Eighteen states have fully banned child marriage with no exceptions: Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington. Delaware became the first state to outlaw child marriage, with a law passed in 2018. Yes, 2018!!

Child marriage laws in the United States were based on English Common Law. Marriages in that time were often related to strategic land acquisitions or situations where one or both parties stood to make significant financial gains. The minimum age of consent was fourteen 14 for boys and twelve for girls, which was inherited from medieval canon law. Technically, girls as young as seven could be betrothed; the actual contract was invalid unless both parties reaffirmed the union at twelve or fourteen. The life span of the average person was 35-40 years. Even if you do the math and say they were “middle age”, it doesn’t add up. The law was overhauled in 1753 when the age of consent was 21. Marriages under the minimum age requirement parental approval.

Infringing on parental rights is dubious, at best. It basically means parents can sell their children into marriage and use the proceeds to either bail out their financial disaster or support a way of life. Government overreach is, perhaps, a matter of opinion; but one of the purposes of government is to protect the vulnerable, which includes children. They deserve to be protected from abusive parents.

To the infringement on religious rights, it’s important not to cherry pick verses out of context. It is true that in biblical times parents sometimes sold their children into indentured servitude or as temporary slaves. Generally, this was done to pay off debt. Oftentimes the debt was garnered through the oppression of the Roman Empire which charged outrageous taxes on peasants. When they were unable to pay the debt, their land was confiscated.

Jesus was overwhelmingly an advocate for the most vulnerable members of society. This included children. In Matthew 19 “children were being brought to Jesus so that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples spoke sternly to those who brought them, but Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.’”

In Luke 17, Jeus said to his disciples, “Occasions for stumbling are bound to come, but woe by whom they come. It would be better for you if a millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea than for you to cause one of these little ones to stumble.”

When Jesus preached the sermon that began his public ministry, he proclaimed, “The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”  The word “poor” is a catchphrase that represented society’s most vulnerable. It is frequently grouped with the widow, the orphan and the stranger/foreigner. These groups represent the most marginalized socially and economically powerless people in the ancient world. Children were included in that population. Jesus was always headed toward the margins, where the vulnerable people were.

The witness of scripture is that Jesus loved the little children, as the old song goes, and sought to protect them and help them grow to the full stature of their humanness.

Where these Republicans get the idea that child marriage is in the bible is a stretch. That said, when children reached puberty they were considered old enough to marry. Remember, the average life span was thirty years.

We do not live under ancient Common English Law, and we do not live in biblical times. It is time for white men in power to use their power to protect the vulnerable, not sell them off to the highest bidder. We need laws in all fifty states that make child marriage illegal. If you live in a state where child marriage is still legal, write to your legislators and tell them it is time to change this law.

The Road to Fascism, Part Two

Pat Liberty

A few weeks ago, I shared a blog about the warning signs that we are headed down the road to fascism. I was waylaid by other pressing news, so here is Part Two.

There are predictable things that happen on the road to fascism. We are further down the road than we think. As I said in Part One, I think we are underreacting to what is going on.

Here are other characteristics of fascism:

            1.Coerced Loyalty: The occupant has repeatedly demonstrated his willingness to cater to his cronies and punish those who do not agree with him. Frivolous lawsuits, public shaming, name calling and such.

            2. Corruption, Grift and Greed: This is pretty much self-explanatory. There is no end to the schemes the occupant comes up with to benefit the organization, his children and those who make massive donations to his campaigns.

            3. Mythic Past: Curricula writers are rewriting history to show the US as a loving, Christian nation rather than telling the truth about colonialism. During the colonial period, Native Americans were slaughtered and those who managed to escape being murdered were put on the Trail of Tears to a reservation that was created “just for them.” We are talking millions of people. We will never know exactly how many because the colonialists didn’t care. There is still our original sin of slavery that continues to shape the present.

            4. Humiliation: The occupant frequently stoops to grade school tactics in name calling,  insulting and trying to call the character of leaders into question. In truth, it just makes him look like he brought a squirt gun to a Super Soaker event.

            5. Savior Complex: The occupant will try and tell people that he is the only one who can save democracy, this as he systematically takes our democracy apart. He points to his political enemies as the ones who are harming democracy, when in truth he is doing more than any other leader in American History to undermine our democracy.

            6. Purification: This is particularly heinous. The first “purification” came with the genocide of Native Americans. It manifests today as the desire to deport people of color, some for no apparent reason. Another, more subtle and more frightening manifestation is the cuts to Medicaid and SNAP. When people don’t have access to health care and adequate food they will get sick and die sooner.  The white supremacist agenda is out in the open and unapologetically so.

            7. Propaganda: Now that the occupant has his cronies owning the major news outlets, it is interesting to watch how the same news story is spun by different stations. CBS has sold its soul. It’s hard to find reliable news outlets, but we can’t drink the Kool-Aid the regime is handing to us. Staying well informed and vocal are two of the best strategies to fight fascism. Reputable news outlets include Global News and Wire Service. Publicly funded outlets are generally recognized for having high journalistic standards, such as PBS, NPR and the BBC Written media that generally trust include the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, the Guardian and Reuters.

            8. State Sanctioned Violence: The deputized thugs that dress in fatigues, carry assault rifles and cover their faces regularly violate people’s civil rights. Peaceful protesters are routinely maced, pepper sprayed and attacked with pepper ball projectiles. Peaceful protesters are detained unlawfully. And we cannot forget the outright murder of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. There are other murders that have not received the publicity they have received. Another manifestation of state sponsored violence is the way people are treated in detention centers. Their civil rights are violated daily. ExampIes include inedible food, lack of medical care, and withholding medications needed to maintain health.  There have been numerous deaths in detention facilities, the exact number is not known. Estimates are eighteen or nineteen. This puts the thugs on schedule to break the record of 31-33 in 2025.

            9. Denial of Due Process: People are routinely arrested and sent to detention camps without access to lawyers, family and religious support. The construction of detention centers that house thousands of people tells the story. Get “those” people in there and who knows (or cares) what happens to them next. At the infamous “Alligator Alcatraz” in Florida, hundreds of people simply disappeared, never to be heard from again. Our government is disappearing people! Tens of thousands were disappeared in system transfers. In times of mass deportations, and interstate transfers, migrants drop off the records of ICE and CBP. It is an “enforced disappearance.” No one knows where they are or if they are dead or alive.

Part of the strategy of fascism is to keep the news cycle spinning. The newest outrage quickly puts the outrages of yesterday in the dustbin of history. The hope is that the American people will get tired and cease to be outraged. Silence is the greatest factor in the proliferation of fascism.

Manifestations of all these signs of fascism are right in front of us. It’s time to pay attention.

Where’s the Tea?

Pat Liberty

In 1773, a group of Bostonians revolted against the British Empire. It arose from two challenges, the financial problems of the British East India Company and an ongoing dispute about the extent of Parliament’s authority over the British American Colonies. The claim was “taxation without representation.” Britain continued to levy taxes on the American Colonies without seating any representation in the British Parliament. As a result, Bostonians threw 342 cases of tea into Boston Harbor, and the famous Boston Tea Party became a part of American history.

We need another Tea Party. We pay our taxes and our tax dollars are used for things over which we have no say. For example, one billion dollars of our tax money has been appropriated for the “Ballroom.” You may remember that originally it was to be paid for with private donations (which is problematic in its own way). This is a classic bait and switch. One billion dollars. Let that sink in.

Former Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, appropriated tax-payer money to lease a Boeing 737 Max 8 for DHS operations. This luxury jet featured a queen-size bedroom, 3 showers, a bar and a kitchen. It came with a price tag of $170 million dollars. It was used primarily for her personal and cabinet travel. After Noem was fired from her position the White House appropriated the jet to support cabinet secretaries and First Lady Melania Trump’s office. Noem faced further push-back when she spent $172 million dollars of tax-payer money to purchase two Gulfstream G700 private jets during the government shut down.

In a blatant act of corruption, the occupant has appropriated 1.8 billion dollars of tax-payer money to create a slush fund of sorts that can funnel money directly into the pockets of his political allies, including the January 6th insurrectionists. It is widely agreed that this is the single most corrupt act in American political history. It is unconstitutional in a number of ways. This, however, seems immaterial to this regime.

A vanity war in Iran is costing $1 billion dollars a day. The money financing it is our tax money. At the same time the regime says there is no money to fund Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. There is money. It is a question of priorities.

All of this amounts to taxation without representation. Our tax dollars are being hijacked for purposes that do not serve the people of the United States. Where do we find 342 cases of tea when we need it? 

Oppressive regimes are fond of diverting funds to serve their political ends.

Oppressive regimes also levy taxes on their subjects that they are unable to pay. This was true under Roman Occupation in Jesus’ time. Regime officials would tax the land of peasants at a rate that they were unable to pay. Consequently, they had to forfeit their land for non-payment of taxes.

Regardless of the methods, the end is the same. Money is used for purposes that do not serve the people. Jesus’ answer to that was to hang out with people who were victimized by an unjust government system and speak truth to power.

It is what is needed today. Write/call your Senators and Representatives. Even if you live in a blue state, your legislators need to know that you appreciate that they are fighting corruption. Protest. It’s easy to think this makes no difference, but that is not true. The protests in Minnesota drove ICE into the shadows and caused them to draw down their presence. Numerous arrest warrants, felony charges and FBI investigations are under way. This would not have happened if it wasn’t for the protests and push-back. It matters.

Dose yourself on the news. It is depressing. If we are going to stay in this fight for the long haul, we have to keep ourselves centered and energized. Watching news 24/7 is not conducive to sanity. Get your news from reputable sources. The three major TV networks are owned by the occupant’s supporters. Main-stream media is selling its soul; get your news somewhere else. 

Attend an observer training, which will give you skills to protest peacefully. Above all, our protests must be non-violent. It would take very little for the regime to call a state of emergency and derail the midterms. As far as it is up to you, be peaceful and non-violent.

Believe that what you do makes a difference. Do not be afraid to speak. Oppressive regimes count on people becoming tired, burning out or being afraid enough to keep silent. Show them they are wrong.

Everyday people are being victimized by an unjust system. ICE agents shoot people in the streets. Thousands of children have watched one or both of their parents are carried off in handcuffs by ICE agents. Both legal citizens and those without papers are treated in inhumane and abusive ways. Medical care is denied; food is infested with maggots; there is no adequate sanitation; and beds are non-existent. The answer of this regime is to fund ICE and Customs and Border Patrol until 2029 at a rate of 29 billion dollars a year. 

 If we are to save our democracy, we need to act. Daily. Don’t give up the fight.

The History of Mother’s Day

Pat Liberty

Before Mother’s Day became a twenty-five-billion-dollar holiday, it was a lot of other things, and it was a lot more complicated than cards and flowers.

Mother’s Day began as a radical movement led by women seeking social change, public health improvements and peace.

Ann Reeves Jarvis, in 1858, started Mother’s Work clubs. She lived in Eastern Appalachia where poverty was crushing as were all the realities that came when there was poverty. She had 14 children and only 4 survived into their teenage years. One way she dealt with her grief was to help other families who were suffering a similar fate.

Her goal was to combat high infant mortality rates and provide medical care to needy families. These community driven clubs educated women on hygiene, provided nursing care, worked with doctors to obtain clean water supplies and safe sewage disposal.

When the Civil War broke out, the area in which she lived, part of West Virginia today, was deeply divided. Neighbors fought with neighbors, family and friends were divided. From the outset she insisted that soldiers from both the Confederacy and the Union be treated equally.

Mother’s workday clubs remained a neutral presence and provided food, clothing, and care to both Union and Confederate soldiers.

After the war, Jarvis organized Mothers’ Friendship Day to bring together families and soldiers from both sides to help heal regional animosities.

In 1870, Julia Ward Howe, best known as the writer of The Battle Hymn of the Republic, issued an appeal for women to unite. Her appeal to womanhood was a pacifist reaction to the carnage of the American Civil War and the Franco Prussian war. The appeal was deeply connected to Howe’s feminist conviction that women had a responsibility to shape their societies at the political level.

Her original proclamation reads, in part,

“Arise, all women who have hearts, whether our baptism be that of water or tears! Say firmly: we will not have great questions decided by irrelevant agencies. Our husbands shall not come to us, reeking with carnage for caresses and applause. Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn all that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience. We, women of one country, will be too tender to those of another country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs.

From the bosom of the devastated earth a voice goes up with our own. It says: Disarm, Disarm! The sword of murder is not the balance of justice. Blood does not wipe out dishonor, nor violence vindicate possession. As men have often forsaken the plough and anvil at the summons of war, let women now leave all that may be left of home for a great and earnest day of council.”

She goes on to invoke the name of womanhood and humanity to bring about a general congress of women, of all nationalities. It did not come to pass. She did not give up. Rather she sought to establish an annual Mother’s Day for Peace, to be celebrated in June. It didn’t quite catch on.

The inspiration for Mother’s Day, moving toward what we now know, came to Anna Jarvis, Ann Jarvis’ daughter. After teaching a Sunday School lesson. She prayed for a memorial Mother’s Day to honor the service mothers provide to humanity. It was to be a day of tribute to all women, especially mothers, to recognize their service to humanity. Anna sought to fulfill her mother’s dream of establishing an official day to honor mother’s contributions.

By 1911, the holiday was celebrated across the USA, and in 1914 Congress authorized a national holiday dedicated to honoring the mothers’ social impact.

Anna Jarvis fought against the commercialization of Mother’s Day, arguing that the true meaning was focused on gratitude, activism and community. To this day, many view today through the lens of peace, social justice and political action.

Each year Mother’s Day offers a unique opportunity to reflect on and honor the role of mothers and people who nurture us, while remembering the rich and complicated history of our nation.

As Mother’s Day evolved, the text from Proverbs 31 became the siren song for women. I remember every Mother’s Day our pastor would do some harangue on Proverbs 31 and my mother would cry the rest of the day because she was such a failure. It kind of ruined the day.

So Proverbs 31 can come with some baggage. The passage needs some redeeming. Proverbs 31 is intended to show what wisdom looks like in action. The whole book of Proverbs is a wisdom book and Wisdom Literature emphasizes practical ways to live well by observing the world’s design and adhering to divine principles.  There is a strong emphasis on fear of the Lord.  But it’s not the fear and trembling to which our minds default. A more accurate translation would be “awe.” A wise woman is constantly in awe of what is around her and within her.

And the pronoun used for wisdom is always feminine. Wisdom is always “she.”  It’s important to say this text was never intended to be interpreted as a job description for women.

The intended audience is actually men. In Jewish culture it is not women who memorize Proverbs 31, it is the men. And they sing it as a song of praise to the women in their lives. This poem is about Wisdom with boots on the ground.

The only instructive language in the poem is directed at men. “Praise her for all her hands have done.”

The first line of the poem…a virtuous woman who can find?  It is better translated as valor.  This casts the whole passage in a different light. Valor means great courage, strength of mind and bravery. This fits with most of the women I know and celebrate. And valor is not just about what you do, it’s how you do it. When my sister was undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer, she said she had read this somewhere and she was appropriating it for that time her life. She said, “If you have to go through hell, act like you own the place.”  And she did. You don’t mess with my sister.

As Rachel Held Evans wrote, “If you are a stay-at-home mom, be a stay-at-home mom of valor. If you are a nurse, be a nurse of valor. If you are a CEO, a pastor or a barista at Starbucks, if you are rich or poor, single or married, do it all with valor. That’s what makes a proverbs 31 woman, not creating a life worthy of a Pinterest board.”

Proverbs 31 can be redeemed…it’s a way to celebrate all those daily acts of faithfulness exhibited by women. It is how men celebrate the women in their lives. It’s not our roles that define us, but the integrity and bravery we bring to those roles.

It brings us full circle to the rich history of Mother’s Day, women of valor who did extraordinary things with ordinary resources, women who refused to give up even when all the signs pointed to defeat, women who held themselves and their families together in the face of struggle, women who went through whatever was in front of them and acted like they owned the place.   Amen. 

More on Policy 2025: Department of Health and Human Services Goal 3# Promoting Stable and Flourishing Married Families

Pat Liberty

Project 2025 is the conservative agenda for social, political and economic policy. It repeals crucial protections for marginalized populations, slashes social safety net programs and penalizes the poor. The following is an excerpt from the Health and Human Services section of Project 2025.

“Families comprised of a married mother, father, and their children are the foundation of a well-ordered nation and healthy society. Unfortunately, family policies and programs under President Biden’s HHS are fraught with agenda items focusing on “LGBTQ+ equity,” subsidizing single-motherhood, disincentivizing work, and penalizing marriage. These policies should be repealed and replaced by policies that support the formation of stable, married, nuclear families. Working fathers are essential to the well-being and development of their children, but the United States is experiencing a crisis of fatherlessness that is ruining our children’s futures. In the overwhelming number of cases, fathers insulate children from physical and sexual abuse, financial difficulty or poverty, incarceration, teen pregnancy, poor educational outcomes, high school failure, and a host of behavioral and psychological problems. By contrast, homes with non-related “boyfriends” present are among the most dangerous place for a child to be. HHS should prioritize married father engagement in its messaging, health, and welfare policies. In the context of current and emerging reproductive technologies, HHS policies should never place the desires of adults over the right of children to be raised by the biological fathers and mothers who conceive them. In cases involving biological parents who are found by a court to be unfit because of abuse or neglect, the process of adoption should be speedy, certain, and supported generously by HHS.” (Project 2025, Page 453)

Here is the practical translation of what this means for an already marginalized segment of Americans:

  • Hard won civil rights for the LGBTQI+ community are on the chopping block. In Trump’s first reign of error the administration repealed all healthcare regulations that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. As a result, LGBTQIA+ persons can now be denied both public and private health insurance, including Medicaid.
  • Equal marriage may be made unconstitutional. Repealing equal access to marriage has devastating consequences for thousands of families. Family health insurance policies will end. Visitation rights during times of illness will be curtailed because gay partners are not “family.” If same sex marriage survives at all, it will be seen as inferior to heterosexual marriage.
  • The Gender Policy Council (GPC) will be dismantled. This was established by President Biden to advance gender equity and equality at home and abroad. The GPC developed policies addressing economic security, access to healthcare, gender-based violence and education for women and girls with special focus on marginalized communities.
  • The Trump administration will threaten the Biden administration’s expansion of gender and gender identity discrimination protections. Biden’s policies were in alignment with the landmark Supreme Court decision in Bostock v. Clayton County. This ruling affirmed that LGBTQIA+ individuals are protected under federal nondiscrimination laws. It also recognized gender identity as a protected class of gender.
  • The current administration will erase and criminalize transgender behavior. The broad expression of transgender behavior will be seen as pornographic. By labeling transgender expression as pornography and then outlawing pornography, the trans community’s identity will be erased in the United States.
  • Project 2025 will change the name of the Department of Health and Human Services to the Department of Life. 
  • Funding for gender affirming care for children and adults will be cut or eliminated.
  • Lack of treatment for children with gender dysmorphia will likely lead to increased depression, anxiety and rates of suicide.
  • LGBTQIA+ families will be banned from the Foster Care system. There is already a critical shortage of foster homes. This will exacerbate the problem considerably.
  • Same sex couple adoption will be banned. Same sex couples have higher adoption rates (21%) than different sex couples (3%).
  • Sex education for minors will end.
  • Transgender military service will end.
  • Parental rights regarding how their children are referred to and which pronouns are used will be outlawed.
  • Tax advantages will be extended to ONLY heterosexual married couples.

This is far from an exhaustive list. Those who believe that God’s love extends to all people regardless of age, sexual/gender identity or sexual orientation should rightfully be horrified. The God of the Judeo-Christian tradition is a God of compassion, mercy, justice and love. Hatred and injustice have no place in God’s being and it should have no place in those who claim to be God’s followers.

There is thinly veiled “religious” language throughout the Project 2025 document. It is fundamentalist, socially archaic and spiritually abusive to anyone who is not white, heterosexual and married with children. The guarantee of religious freedom for all people means that those who claim a different, more loving stance toward the human family should have an equal say in the legal process that defines religious expression. Make no mistake, the lines of separation between church and state are becoming dangerously thin. The “religion” that is shaping the state is White Christian Nationalism.

There needs to be a howling pushback to the religiously repressive undertones of Project 2025. Our legislators are hearing far too little from their constituents about the social and political implications of Project 2025. They are hearing even less from people of faith. If you are concerned about your freedom to practice your religion as you see fit, you need to write to you legislators and object on legitimate religious grounds. Our religious rights as well as our social and political rights are on the chopping block.

Period

Pat Liberty

Period

No, it’s not the one that comes at the end of a sentence. It’s the one that comes about every 28 days to women of particular ages. In a post Roe v. Wade world, there is increasing fascination about menstruating people.

This has nothing to do with the health of those menstruating people.

Rather, it is about controlling their bodies. It is about limiting access to abortion and birth control. It is about usurping agency from their own being. A total of 41 states restrict access to abortion in some way. Some states, like Alabama and Arkansas, make no exception for rape or incest. Other states allow abortion under specific circumstances such as fetal viability, gestational duration, or threat of harm/death to the pregnant person. Even in states where there are exceptions for rape or incest, they are essentially meaningless. In order to qualify under the law, the sexual assault must be reported within forty days. Incest must be reported to law enforcement within one hundred and forty days. According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, 63% of rapes are not reported. Only about 12% of child sexual abuse is reported to law enforcement. With such a dismal reporting rate, and the stipulations imposed, the rape/incest exception is useless. Further, even if the criteria for pregnancy termination are met, there is often no one to perform the procedure. This means travelling to another state, which is not an option for many poor pregnant people, who are disproportionately BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color).

In other states, abortion care must happen before six weeks of gestation. Most pregnant people do not even know they are pregnant at that time. It is another “allowance” that is essentially meaningless.

According to http://www.ReproductiveRights.org, Project 2025 outlines a detailed plan to limit access to abortion care and other reproductive services. This includes but is not limited to:

  • Ending access to medications like Mifepristone, which accounts for 63% of all abortions.
  • Allowing hospitals to deny medical care to pregnant persons in crisis.
  • Prosecuting people for shipping or transporting abortion pills and supplies across state lines.
  • Establishing an abortion surveillance system requiring states to report personal data of all patients receiving abortion care.
  • Restricting access to birth control, emergency contraception and other reproductive health services.
  • Tracking pregnant persons who are “at risk of having an abortion” (Missouri).
  • Paying a bounty of $10,000 to individuals who report a person seeking abortion care by crossing state lines (Texas).
  • Tracking pregnant persons through their internet search histories and social media. (Platforms track data using algorithms and selling the data. Setting up a Virtual Private Network (VPN) and using encryption can limit access to search history, but it isn’t foolproof. A public computer is a better choice.)

These tactics are front line ammunition to control menstruating people who may unintentionally get pregnant. They also feed the larger goal of keeping those who give birth subservient to and dependent on men (though there are few consequences for men who do not support the children they create). 

While access to reproductive health services is being severely limited, social safety net programs are being slashed: WIC, SNAP and Early Intervention to name a few. As a result, persons with children, particularly BIPOC people are trapped in a cycle of poverty that is almost impossible to escape.

Sr. Joan Chittister writes, “I do not believe that just because you’re opposed to abortion, that makes you pro-life. In fact, I think in many cases, your morality is deeply lacking if all you want is a child born but not a child fed, not a child educated, not a child housed. And why would I think that you don’t?” Because you don’t’ want any tax money to go there. That’s not pro-life. That’s pro-birth.”

For many conservative evangelicals and white Christian nationalists, all their anti-abortion rhetoric is wrapped in a neat little package, branded with a Jesus sticker and called Christian. In truth, Jesus was unwaveringly concerned about and committed to the poorest and most vulnerable members of society. What was true then is still true…the most vulnerable among us are women and children.

You would think the government has better things to do than peer in the windows of women’s bathrooms and see who is peeing on a stick. But it is all part of the re-entrenchment of a patriarchal society where white, cisgender, heterosexual men are in charge. Whatever progress we have made in dismantling the patriarchy is on the line in Project 2025. And it all begins by trolling your social media.  

An Open Letter to JD Vance

Pat Liberty

February 3, 2025

Vice President JD Vance

The White House

Office of the Vice President

1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

Washington, DC 20500

Mr. Vance,

I write to inform you that you are fundamentally wrong in postulating that there is a Christian concept “that you love your family and then you love your neighbor, and then you love your community, and then you love your fellow citizens, and then after that, prioritize the rest of the world. A lot of the far left has completely inverted that.”

I beg to differ, sir. It is you who has completely inverted the Christian tradition. Your position reflects a fundamental misunderstanding and ignorance of Scripture. For example, the same story is told in all the synoptic gospels. Matthew 12:46-50, Mark 3:31-35, and Luke 8:19-21. In each of these pericopes Jesus is told that his mother and brothers are waiting to see him. Jesus responds, “Who is my mother and who are my brothers? And pointing to his disciples, he said, here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

Jesus consistently advocated for the poor, the marginalized, the disadvantaged and the disenfranchised. Your distortion of words to a “Christian” concept is blatantly and dangerously false.

I realize you are a fairly new Christian, and have not had years to study scripture and theology as have I. If you would like some remedial Bible study to gain a more accurate understanding of the faith you proclaim, you may reach me at the above address.

Until you are better informed about the Christian faith, you should seek the counsel of wise elders who are well versed in Scripture and tradition. Your false portrayal of Christian faith, which equally naive people will believe is true, distorts the Christian faith. I urge you to cease to speak about that which you know little.

Faithfully,

Rev. Patricia L. Liberty

This Letter was sent to JD Vance on February 3, 2025

Dismantling Democracy

Pat Liberty

Hitler dismantled the democracy of Germany in just 53 days. It began with mass deportation and the dismissal of government officials who opposed him. Number 47 has begun in exactly the same way. Widespread ICE raids are targeting and rounding up immigrants, many of whom are legal citizens and have committed no crimes. The philosophy seems to be “round them all up and we will sort it out later.”

This week he fired a number of officials from the Department of Justice who pursued litigation against him for his illegal behavior. He said he would retaliate against those who opposed him and he is making good on that promise.

He is also challenging birthright citizenship in direct violation of the fourteenth amendment to the constitution. It hinges on a short phrase in the amendment that his right wing justices can interpret any way they choose with virtually no opposition.

Hitler became chancellor of Germany on January 30, 1933. We are in a very similar situation to Germany at that time.  It is important to understand some history so we see the parallels to our own time. Hitler did not seize power in a coup. He was not directly elected to power.  Rather a combination of social and economic and political crises conspired to put Hitler into power. The fragile Weimar Republic which came to be in the aftermath of World War I was unable to manage the crises and political divisions that emerged during the late 1920’s and early 30’s. The world-wide Great Depression politically divided Germany and people lost faith in their government’s ability to solve problems and govern.

Radical antidemocratic political groups like the Nazi party grew in popularity, taking advantage of the political and economic chaos. The Nazi party made outlandish promises that captured the attention and the hopes of disgruntled Germans who were suffering in the economic and political chaos.  Things like fixing the economy, making Germany great again, reclaiming territory Germany lost in WW I and restoring a heavy handed rule of law were among the planks in their platform.

If it all sounds familiar, it should. The United States is following a very similar trajectory. The promises 47 made in his campaign are hubris to some extent, but he is making good on his anti-immigrant, anti-trans, anti LGBTQI agenda, much to his followers’ delight. He is also signing Executive Orders, some 300 since taking office. Many of them will go nowhere or will be delayed in endless litigation, but the overall visual is one of 47 taking charge and getting things done.

The American people are largely ho-hum about it. If this doesn’t affect us directly, we tend to not react or respond. We are not immigrants, legal or illegal, so who cares? We can take the hit for increased egg prices, so who cares? The Department of Justice probably needs some housecleaning, so who cares? It isn’t until the chickens come home to roost in ways that directly impact people that they wake up and take action. And often that action is pretty anemic– complaining loudly, kvetching and grousing.

This is the time to be paying attention. In Germany it didn’t begin with gas chambers. It began with mass deportation, dismissal of government employees who saw the danger in the Hitler regime and increasing authoritarian governing. In other words, what is happening here.

If you aren’t writing your senators and representatives weekly; if you are not writing to 47 and expressing your outrage; if you are not supporting the agencies that embody your values; if you are silent in the midst of what is happening; you are like the majority of Germans in 1934 who ignored the gradual hand writing on the wall.

Our democracy is older than Germany’s was at the time. It may mean that we have some resilience that Germany didn’t have, but I am not willing to bet the farm on that. Democracy, while incredibly strong, is always incredibly fragile. The degree of its fragility depends on the engagement of its people in the political process.  Given what I am seeing currently, this does not make me hopeful.

I implore you. Get politically active. Make your voice heard. Even if it doesn’t impact you, even if you don’t see the problem, even if you agree with some of his policies, even if you don’t really give a damn, it’s time to rise up.  Elie Wiesel said, “Silence benefits the oppressor.” The poor disenfranchised and politically powerless will pay the price long before many of us. If we claim to be followers of Jesus in any way, shape or form, our concern for them must rise to the top and our actions must reflect Jesus’ values and behavior. Otherwise, we become like the German church, which became the Reich church and did the bidding of the Nazi’s. Or we become like the confessing church, which ultimately failed because of its cowardice and lack of faith.

For those of you who say faith and politics don’t mix I say bullshit. The gospel is inherently political. It is not partisan, but it is political. Jesus’ ultimate concern was for the poor, the powerless, the disenfranchised, the last, the least and the lost. Embodying his concern for the people of our time who are exploited and beaten down by the system is our moral duty. It’s just that simple.