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2/28
In the days in which we are living, stories about resistance are much needed. To that end, Alone in Berlin by Hans Fallada
proves a valuable resource. Inspired by a true story, Alone in Berlin was first published in 1947 as part of a denazification
cultural rehabilitation in East Germany, remained unpublished in English until 2009. After TV versions in both East and Germany in the '70's, it became a major film in 2017 bringing attention back to the story again.
Based on the story of Otto and Elise Hampel, alone tells of how an ordinary German working class couple, the Quangels, comes to the point of initiating their own resistance following the death of their son at the front. (And the suicide of a viciously bullied neighbor.) The Quangels begin writing anti-Hitler postcards and dropping them around the city.
There are several striking things bout the book. First Fallada (born Rudolph Wilhelm Adolph Ditzen) presents a striking picture of what life was like in Nazi Germany through the eyes of common people. In an understated, matter of fact tone, we get a feel for what day to day was like. Through the interconnected relationships of families and neighbors, it is helpful to be reminded that in most times, most people spend most of their energy just trying to get by. Whoever happens to be fuhrer or (President) is simply what has to be be dealt with. For most, true ideological analysis and commitment is a luxury. It also makes clear that in these kind of regimes, self serving behavior becomes common and corruption permeates everything. Paranoid perspective on the part of governments allows people to use the security apparatus for self advancement and the settling of personal scores. These kind of systems attract people of like character.
Step by step the tension tightens until finally the Quangels are taken in and begin the journey through the Gestapo and "Peoples' Court" to their inevitable execution. At one point, Otto Quangel discovers that most of his postcards were almost immediately turned into the police. Very few seen multiple times or perhaps even read.
When questioned by his interrogator he responded, " You see it doesn't matter if one man fights or ten thousand; if the one man sees he has no option but to fight, then he will fight whether he has others on his side or
not...." Later, when he questions what good did our resistance do?, his cell mate, a symphony conductor, responds, "Well, it will have helped us to feel that we behaved decently till the end. And much more it will have helped people everywhere..nothing in this world happens in vain, and since we are fighting for justice against brutality, we are bound to prevail in the end." These words help Otto preserve is dignity an decency to the end. At one point, the gestapo interrogator realizes that Quangel is the better man and sees his own moral emptiness.
In these times, it's important to remember that "effectiveness" and "visible results" are not always helpful criteria. In his afterward, Geoff Wilkes that we defeat the regime in both ideal and metaphysical terms by preserving our own moral integrity both as individuals and as representatives of what a better society could be. As opposed to Hannah Arendt's comments on Eichmann and the banality of evil, Wilkes says that Fallada "comprehends and honours the banality of good."
So in thee days, we should figure out our personal version of the Quangel (Hampel)'s postcards. And maintain our own decency, no matter what.
2/22
My friend Beppe and I have a tradition every year during the Oscar run up time of going to the Independent Film Center to see the Oscar nominated Live Action Short Films. Freed from the need to produce massive box office revenue or fill feature length running time seems to open up creativity and allows the filmmaker to simply tell their story as seems natural. The five films every year always come from a variety of countries with a broad spectrum of film style.
This year had a surprising difference.....for of the five films dealt with social issues in striking ways, perhaps a commentary on how we are living now. The one comedy, "The Eleven O'Clock"...is a well written clever comedy asking us o figure out which character is a psychiatrist and which is a patient who believes that he is a psychiatrist. There's plenty familiar to laugh at for one who's ever been through the therapy experience.
The first film is "De Kalb Elementary" (U.S.) Watching a film begin with a would be shooter taking out an assault rifle in an elementary school is almost unwatchable during the week that we once again faced a public school shooting in Parkland, Florida. The sad reality, any time this film would be seen would have the same tragic context. Part of what makes the film so disturbing is that director Reed Van Dyke's story proceeds with the knowledge that we know how this story will almost always end in our experience. He further disturbs us by taking us into an empathy for the clearly deeply troubled potential shooter. Tara Riggs as the administrator keeps us completely rapt as she tries to connect with the young man with the gun.
"The Silent Child"(UK) takes us into the world of a deaf child and her tutor and poignantly and painfully makes the case for the necessity of sign language as the most appropriate means of communication for deaf students and how our educational system fails our students by not providing interpreters. Watching Maisie Sly as Libby blossom then retreat again into isolation is profoundly moving.
I should have picked up immediately what "My Nephew Emmet" was all about. It's sense of place is immediately established and the tone and cinematography is reminiscent of last year's "Moonlight." When I realized we were into the Emmet Till story, my heart sank. I knew where we were headed. We are thrust into a world ...and forced to experience the sense of powerlessness .... where whites impose their cruel and violent will on African Americans. We never see what happens to Emmet. Only the face of his uncle who knows what will happen. This is an important film to watch and wrestle with when you realize that this is the "Great" that our current President wants to return us to.
Finally, the joint German-Kenyan film "Watu Wote: All of Us" takes us to the border of Somalia and Kenya as a gang of Al Sha-baab rebels who take over a passenger bus and try to separate the Christians from the Muslims. the Muslim passengers immediately move to protect the Christians and challenge the rebels understanding of the Quran and what being a faithful Muslim means. In a time of rampant Islamophobia, this film makes a dramatic witness as to what shared humanity is all about. It's moving to realize that the film is based on a true story.
That's where we live now. How we live now. No escape in these short films, but inspiration for theological reflection. Take your church group, your book club or just some friends. See the films. Have a conversation. It's where we are. How we live. "All of us."
2/18
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| Ready for chirch... |
On the first Sunday of Lent, I come to Good Shepherd Faith Church in the shadows of Lincoln Center. Here is my reflection:
I was going to start today with some words about one of my favorite things: spring training. But I can't do that. i have to start by saying something about the shooting at Parkland in south Florida. My first reaction was muted...like, oh this again. Sadly showing how common this has become...but I don't know...those Parkland students are amazing...they're calling us out...and we're hearing from teachers...they're talking about a national walkout on April 20th....it's way past time for us to confront this reality....way past....and it is truly shameful....there is simply no excuse to allow the power of guns in our society to continue...this is that classic moment...Reinhold Niebuhr always said we needed to preach with the Bible in one hand and the New York Times in the other...
OK....last week it was that first sign of spring: "Pitchers and catchers report..." And tomorrow the position players report...spring training....Last year I got to go for the first time...one of those bucket list experiences...my own personal retirement gift to myself...I hope to get down again next week...it's kind of a magical time...snow up here...down there? Palm trees, sun and baseball....it's a time when anything seems possible...maybe a first look at Giancarlo Stanton...maybe Russell Wilson gets in the game..it's all about getting into shape...getting ready....
So what does that have to do with Lent and Jesus and...?
Yes..it's the first Sunday in Lent...when I was growing up, as a Presbyterian in a majority Catholic culture, we always looked at Lent with suspicion. The whole idea of " giving something up for Lent" was especially suspect..creeping papism..it started on Ash Wednesday, which always left me feeling very lonely as all my classmates wold disappear, and then return with Ash crosses on their foreheads..(later at West Park, I came to appreciate the cultural significance of Ash Wednesday..I loved the day a bus driver raced in from the nearby bus stop to receive ashes and then raced back out again to his bus...) This year we all began at West End...it was at Yale I enjoyed the blessed Henri Nouwen ( who taught us about the Wounded Healer) distributing ashes....
So let's take a look at Jesus...
In Mark,look how fast it goes from baptism to temptation....and also note that this " the Spirit immediately drove him out to the desert..." It is the same spirit that just descended on him in baptism, that just declared him "...the Son, the Beloved..." that Spirit drives him to the desert....and you have to read everything else from that..
It makes you question who is Satan in all this? ( Matthew 4: 1-11 is so much more detailed in his story of temptation in the desert..) it's almost like he's working for God....there no Manichean heresy here two powers struggling against one another....it's almost like Satan is a drill sergeant..Jose Saramago, that great Portuguese novelist, in his the Gospel according to Jesus Christ, places this story in the middle of Genesseret..pages of the suffering that will follow after Jesus..and Satan is willing to give up come back if there could only be another way..and God responds there is no other way....it's like Satan is getting Jesus ready....spring training...if you're gonna get baptized, embark on a mission, you've got to be ready...you can almost hear Satan at the end of this story in Matthew saying, "He's good to go...." So done right, Lent is our Spring Training (and this year the regular baseball season season begins Easter weekend...)
And so we have questions:
What is your calling?
What does it mean to wrestle with demons? What are your demons?
What is wrestling with Satan?
For Jesus this wrestling follows baptism. In our tradition, Lent was a time of preparation for baptism. it precedes....
What is Satan for us?
In the Jewish tradition, Satan is like the prosecuting attorney, that accusing voice, the voice that says we'll never make it , we're no good, that power that won't allow us to forgive ourselves, to believe it is real...Pastor Nadia Bolz-Weber says the church's most important task is preaching the forgiveness of sins because so few of us believe it...
What are our temptations? My friend Steven Phelps says we are all criminals....
Remember...all Jesus' temptations are good things...but they are short cuts...and one thing I experienced in ministry...short cuts never work, they're just not possible....
So we've got Lent....remember those New year's resolutions? How many broken already? Well Lent is another chance...
Lent is not a giving up but a taking on...a spiritual discipline
Our Lent
Our spring training
Time to get ready.....
As is the custom at Good Shepherd Faith, a lively discussion followed...and beautiful music by the former football player, now opera singer tenor Ta'u Papua (http://www.taupupua.com/)
Lent has begun.
2/18
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Thank you, Susan....
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Late last night I learned that shortly after noon yesterday, my friend Susan Stack had died a few short weeks after her 65th birthday following a year long struggle with a rare and aggressive form of cancer. In her own desire to maintain control over as much of her life as she could, Susan kept her medical situation (mainly) to herself and resisted hospitalization as long as she could. Susan maintained her fierce hold on life to the end.
For over 30 years of her life, Susan served the Presbyterian Church (USA) in the ministry of the Presbyterian Health, Education and Welfare Association. She was one of the church's last connections back to the church's old national offices at 475 Riverside Drive, New York City, leaving a city she loved to move to Louisville so she could continue to serve. Through a changing cast of Executive Directors over those 30 years, Susan always fought to keep PHEWA true to its founding vision, and the legacy of the director with whom she first served, Rod Martin.
During those years, as the person on the other end of the phone, Susan was in many ways a true "first responder" to needs ...and crises..of those who called into PHEWA's office. For countless people across the country, Susan was the voice, the ears, and the heart, of the ministry she served. And thereby, for many, of the church they loved. For many, Susan was the human embodiment of what it meant to be a concerned, caring and responsive Presbyterian Church. Whether it was connecting someone to another who could give the advice needed or helping someone bring a new justice issue or concern to General Assembly, Susan more than any of us was that church.
Susan gave up her opportunity for early retirement in the hopes that she could continue to serve her crunch. Sadly, that was not to be. When Susan left, the church, perhaps without fully realizing it, lost the greatest...and most irreplaceable...relationship based resource bank that could ever be held in one person.
Susan loved her cats. And the Mayan Cafe. And whatever team Tubby Smith was coaching. And there are people she was committed to, whose lives were enriched by Susan, in ways no one ever knew about. Yes, she could be obstinate and prickly. But she was, in the words of her PHEWA colleagues, fierce and passionate. Especially for justice. And she had literally made the church the center of her life, a singular commitment beyond most of us. And yes, there was pain when she felt that she may not have been loved to the same extent she loved.
Behind her desk at the Presbyterian Center, she kept photos of PHEWA families and their children, as part of her extended family. She also kept a gallery of photos representing those she called "the saints of the church," the faithful witnesses who inspired her to keep going on. Today she has clearly joined that number. Susan has joined the saints.
Thank you Susan.
2/16
On Tuesday, February 13th in Brooklyn, Mayor William Di Blasio delivered his "State of the City" address for 2018. On Thursday morning in the august setting of Christ Chapel at Riverside Church, the Micah Faith Leaders Table delivered its 'Spirit of the City" 2018 address. Not so much as a response to the mayor as these faith leaders sharing their own faith based critical analysis of where we are now and equally important, where we need to go. Much to Micah's credit, the leaders gave detailed policy proposals in each of their work areas: economic justice, housing, immigrants, police community relations and education. (The full text of the presentation can be found at www.micahspirit.weebly.com and full video will soon be available. Videos can be found at https://www.facebook.com/robert.l.brashear/videos/10156010323563361/ )
According to older faith activists on hand for the event, this was an unprecedented, even historic moment. It is a major element of Micah's strength that it is the most diverse alliance of leaders in the city, one of the first to go beyond the Abrahamic tradition and be inclusive of Buddhists and Hindus as well. Equally important, Micah has accomplished the seemingly impossible task of bringing evangelical and progressive Christians together in the faith rooted struggle for justice. This diversity was clearly present in Thursday's presentation.
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| The MICAH panel |
After an introduction by Joel Gibson, Rabbi Michael Feinberg of the New York Labor-Religion Coalition addressed economic justice. Citing the mayor's goal of making New York City the "fairest city in the US," Rabbi Feinberg outlined the current crisis in affordability and outline a proposal to address the issue of a real living wage with a broad based commission to establish what that is and bring it to implementation.
Bishop Raymond Blanchette of the Clergy Campaign for Social and Economic Justice spoke about the current "schools to prison pipeline" and how to close it. He also examined carefully the current controversy around charter schools, differentiating between community based and directed creative projects and what are essentially private schools using public resources. He challenged the mayor, if he wants to control the schools, to bring the community and parents into their governance.
Sunita Viswanath of Afghan Women and the Coalition of Progressive Hindus helped us understand the importance of our interconnectedness and social justice for Hindus before presenting the the proposals for housing. (In a day when there are a record 68,000 homeless people in New York City, the mayor's not mentioning the issue in his address was astounding.) A detailed...and achievable.. plan to produce and build new affordable housing followed.
Dr. Chloe Breyer, executive director of the Interfaith Center of New York, Micah's new "home," delivered the Police and Community Relations report. While appreciative of efforts at increasing community based policing, there is still a long way to go. Specific ways to bring the police closer to...and more accountable to...the community were outlined. (It's worth noting that Rev. Dr. Breyer was one of those physically abused by police during the protests around the efforts to deport New Sanctuary leaders.) The fact that nearly 4 years later, the officer responsible for Garner's death, Daniel Pantaleo remains on the NYPD speaks louder than any proclamations.
Franciscan Brother Anthony Zuba spoke passionately about issues regarding Immigration, very immediately important. While appreciating the mayor's proclamation of New York City as a sanctuary city, the cooperation, even physically rough tactics of the NYPD in support of ICE deportation efforts would seem to contradict that commitment. The case of Muhammad Bah is another clear example of the vulnerability of immigrants. Had he not been an immigrant, a Muslim and suffering from bipolar he might well still be alive. Meanwhile ICE continues to target people for deportation for what would appear to be political motivation.
Dr. Raymond Rivera of the Latino Pastoral Action Council brought it all home with his concluding remarks. (https://www.facebook.com/peter.heltzel/videos/10156066377062068/)
Perhaps there was no one better for the final prayer than Dr. Debra Almontaser of the Muslim Community Network. Dr. Almontaser was the victim of a vicious Islamophobic campaign that led to her dismissal as principal of New York City's first Arabic Culture focused public school, the Khalil Gibran school. With her usual grace and inclusive spirit, Dr. Almontaser invoked a unified stand for justice in the one city we share.
The Micah Faith Table is to be commended for bringing not only critique but creativity. A challenge, an agenda with definable, achievable and measurable goals has been delivered. Now the work begins.
2/14
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The memorial service for my friend Philip Newell was now a few weeks ago. I am thankful that he left for us his memoir, What is your calling? (https://www.amazon.com/What-Your-Calling-Philip-Newell/dp/1504371259). His own unique voice is very present in the pages of this book and it sounds very much like an extended conversation with him. What comes through very clearly is his intelligence, his faith, and his ability to communicate clearly with anyone.
For Philip, the question What is your calling? is not just a spiritual question but one with primary existential moral content. In his world view, informed by his love of Plato and Calvinist reformed theology, all of creation is interrelated and we as human beings have a shared responsibility for the overall health of creation. And because we are part of that whole, our own self interest is best served by working for the best for all. For Philip, "True spirituality and religious commitment are about adherence to a transcendent order of things, an order that manifests itself through our own transformation into an increasingly loving person who then supports the well-being, growth, and transformation of others."
The book takes us through the various parts of Philip's life beginning with his childhood and his endearing fascination with turtles. We learn of the impact of his Biblical scholar father on his life as well as the effect of his father's own spiritual journey. His post World War II service in Japan as well his education at Harvard as well as his student friendship with Martin Luther King, Jr. had their own impact.
More than anything, it was his encounter with George McLeod and his time at the Scottish community of Iona that shaped his view of Christian life, beginning with the importance of one on one relationships the power of mutually accountable community and and an absolute commitment to social and economic justice. One can clearly see the connections between the Iona experience and Philip's later advocacy for Alinsky stye community organizing as the best means for social transformation.
Although his years in West Virginia with his closest school friends were rewarding it was in urban ministry, in Washington, DC that he truly discovered his calling. His forging ecumenical and interfaith relationships and the importance of weekly meetings with his colleagues are helpful models for us.
It is also valuable to read inside stories of both the logistical and strategic planning for Civil Rights Movement actions from Selma to the March on Washington to see what is involved in actually creating change. It is often forgotten for example, that the March on Washington was primarily a Labor Movement action in its inception. Most of the marchers were from the UAW which also footed most of the bill.The Civil Rights Movement was never separable from the call for economic justice and fair labor practices as in Dr. King's support for the sanitation workers in Memphis and the move towards a Poor Peoples Campaign.
From Washington, Philip worked creatively at the national level the Presbyterian Church forging alliances with working people and community organizers. The efforts to create a worker owned and managed steel mill in Youngstown in the face of industrial collapse was but one example.
Philip shares with us both the sorrows and joys of his personal life as well, from the tragic death of his oldest son Philip to his ultimate marriage to Madelyne Tramm. In describing his personal faith, Philip argues (as has Marilynne Robinson) that Calvin and the reformers were the first humanists. He challenges those of that tradition today to seek to reclaim its original passion to reshape the social order so that human beings could live as God intended.
Philip's short but incisive book is a clarion call to faithful witness by faith communities:
"Religious institutions of all kinds, but certainly those for which the Hebrew and Christian scriptures provide inspiration and direction, have a particular vocation: to address the needs of the poor, the outcast, and all disadvantaged people, not only for their sakes, but also for the preservation and welfare of the common life of all humanity, even to the uttermost parts of the earth. And in a world where people increasingly see themselves as spiritual, though without affiliation with a particular denomination, it can only serve each of us individually to think of our own lives in terms of ministry."
For those of us who struggle with these issues, with our own call, this book is not only inspirational but instructive.
2/4
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| worship leaders |
Beverly Church is located in the Kensington Gardens section of Brooklyn, which as you might recall, was the original home in Great Britain of Peter Pan. The walk from the (once) elegant subway station takes you up Beverley .Road past stately Victorian homes fancily labeled with their year of construction, 1889, 1901, 1902... Occasional home signs speak for immigrants.
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| welcome here |
The church itself was built in a more modest time in 1920. Today the neighborhood is a lively home to Latinos, African Americans, Russians and others.
Today os the 5th Sunday of Epiphany. Hymns focus on light. We read Isiah 40 responsively and then the Gospel. Then it's time for reflection:
So let's look at that last line from Isaiah again...
those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint.
Like what? like eagles....think there might be a hidden omen there for the Super Bowl? Yes, it's time for that great American winter holiday....Super Bowl Sunday... a day for hosting parties and indulging in all kinds of quantities of food and drink...
In 1990, a Presbyterian Pastor made a simple prayer said by Reverend Brad Smith of Spring Valley Presbyterian Church in Columbia, South Carolina:
“Lord, even as we enjoy the Super Bowl football game, help us be mindful of those who are without a bowl of soup to eat.[2] ” And so was born the Souper Bowl of Caring.(https://souperbowl.org/)
That first year, 22 churches raised $5,700. The number of groups involved has steadily grown each year, and so has the amount raised and put back into the communities.
They are now raising over 10 million a year. It started with youth groups...we did this project at West Park...sometimes with real soup!...and many places now use the Saturday before for a "service blitz"..This is just an example of how one person's idea can take off...
As for me, tonight i think I'll help serve dinner at the Homeless shelter. with church friends...(my hometown team is not in it....and the only jersey I would wear tonight is Colin Kaepernick's....)
And this week was the state of the union address...we have a long way to go...people are disappearing...who have been here for decades.... with wives and children.....our neighbors...
OK..so what's Jesus up to this week? Four scenes, two settings...Peter's house and a deserted place...(For what follow, much thanks to Jill Duffield of the Presbyterian Outlook for her inspiration...)
Scene one, starts with healing of Peter's mother in law. He "takes her by the hand." Much like when he raises the little girl in Mark 5:41 My first reaction . when I read that "she began to serve them" was "give the lady a break.." But I want to come back to that.
Four scenes, two settings.... Simon's home and a deserted place. The four scenes? Healing of Simon's mother-in-law, scene one. The whole city clamoring at the door, scene two. Jesus praying alone, scene three. Jesus' prayer time interrupted by Simon and his companion who've come to let Jesus know everyone wants him, scene four. I"Healed to Serve"
One thing is clear.....
Nothing will quiet the fervor of those once sick and suffering now made whole. Once Jesus begins to fulfill his mission there is no turning back the tidal wave of humanity longing for the presence of God.
The tie that binds these two settings and four scenes together is the mission, Jesus' mission, to proclaim the message and cast out demons and bring healing. Suffering exists in Simon's household and throughout the surrounding neighborhoods. Deserted places and crowded cities yearn to hear God's good news.
Mark's Gospel has a breathlessness to it - one scene quickly fades into another and another. We have to keep keep alert and keep watching might miss him and have to go looking for him.Jesus refuses to stay put. We cannot contain him. He is on a mission. A mission from God, no less, and all we can do is find him and follow.
Jesus never is where we expect to find him....
Jesus will be found even if it isn't where we thought he would be.
I have heard the gospel preached and Jesus present in strange places by unexpected people. I have been taught Jesus' new commandment to love one another through strangers. Rev. Vince Anderson inherited the congregation at Pete's Candy Store in Brooklyn and it became the Bar Stool Tabernacle. The Hot Metal Church in Pittsburgh began as a Bible study in a tatoo parlor.
I was blessed to be at Yale when the blessed Henri Nouwen was teaching us about being a Wounded Healer, how our wounds could heal others.
The news as of late has been filled with brutality, cruelty and violence. The serial sexual abuse of young, female gymnasts, the torture of 13 children by their own parents, another school shooting that has left students dead and lives shattered. The crowds are clamoring at the door, crying out for healing and help. Where is Jesus? Does he have the power to cast out these demons? Bring wholeness to this depth of brokenness? Is there a word of good news to be proclaimed to these communities? To ours?
I read that thousands (thousands!) of people have called to offer help and support for the 13 Turpin children. The local chamber of commerce has put together a list of items needed, and the response has been overwhelming. They have asked people to stop bringing things and said to please send money instead. So far, $50,000 has been raised. Seeing the list of shoe sizes and clothing needs and the request for art supplies and hygiene items made those children's suffering gut-wrenchingly tangible. But seeing each item crossed off and the notice that every request had been fulfilled gave me hope that Jesus' mission, his message, his healing and his casting out of demons would not be thwarted, no matter how deep the darkness or powerful the demons.
There are some scenes in our current setting filled with suffering, sickness and evil spirits, some present in the house next door, others played out in the streets, some private hells and some public tragedies. And if we want to find Jesus, we need to pray and then join him on his mission of preaching, teaching and healing, until the every member of the crowd, every member of every household is made whole and well.
We are healed to serve. Our healing is for a purpose. Yesterday I saw a play developed from the stories of formerly incarcerated people and the struggles they face in going home. It was called "Home is a Verb". They are using it to reach out to help others in heir journey.
This week:
Everyone of us here has been healed in one way or another. How has Jesus healed you for you to serve him?
When have you had to search for Jesus? Where and how did you find him?
Jesus' mission requires him to leave those who want him to stay. He is always on the move in Mark's Gospel. How do we discern when to stay and when to move? When to keep serving in ways we currently serve and when to make a change?
This week, try Praying the headlines. Pull up a news website or look at the front page of your local paper. Pray for the people and places you read about.
We are healed to serve.....the verb for Peter's mother in law was "deaconing." We are all called to use our healing for the sake of others. May God grant us wisdom, insight and courage to be about that work in Jesus name.
We hear the news of a beloved saint of the church who died nine months ago. A feisty Irish woman who never wanted anyone to mourn for her. She kept her secret well. But her community still needs to mourn.
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| Back to Beverley |
We will share communion. And then is their practice, a shared meal downstairs.
I'll spend my afternoon with Edvard Munch in the new Metropolitan Museum extension reflecting on galleries and themes like despair and sickness and death and the profound sadness that haunted him.
Then serve homeless women dinner, my Kaepernick jersey under my sweater. And finally, the end of the Super Bowl at an Irish pub.
