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Poetics of the Flesh by Mayra Rivera, pages 53-54

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Poetics of the Flesh by Mayra Rivera, pages 53-54

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"For good reason many christians have dreamt of being liberated from flesh--by shedding it or by radically transforming it--in order to become purely luminous bodies, light and transparent. But other visions of carnality survive alongside that one, where flesh retains its opacity and weight, even as it connects vastly different things--not only human communities, but also earth, water, and bread. This opacity is most accentuated where flesh seems to be most visible or touchable--as bread or earth and we can no longer decide whether the language is figurative or literal. Its opacity is not the obscurity of a closed container, but a quality of what cannot be predetermined, because it remains open to change through participation and confluence."

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Enfleshing Freedom, chapter 5, pages 108-109

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Enfleshing Freedom, chapter 5, pages 108-109

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"The fullest meaning of Eucharist goes well beyond a mere attitude of thankfulness and presses with eager yearning for concrete outward evidence of gratitude that indicates the gift is 'effective and present...' Eucharist is of inestimable value: not rate of exchange, no price can be set on the gracious, gratuitous, unmerited gift that Eucharist is... In this meal, the community of the faithful acknowledges, blesses, and praises the gratuitous gift of Jesus Christ... But, above all, Eucharist denotes the great mystery of the very presence of Christ in the sacrament. Eucharist signifies and makes visible the body raised up by Christ for himself within the body of humanity, the "mystical body" through which the domain of Jesus' body is extended, a counter-sign to the encroaching reign of sin."

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"The essence of the work is that Jesus is all of us." - Janet McKenzie

This piece seems to fit perfectly with M. Shawn Copelands words in Enfleshing Freedom - The example of the Queer Christ, the preference for African-American women in solidarity, and Copeland's reminder to stand between poor women of color and the powers of oppression in society.

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"Grimke contrasts this cruelty* with the mistress's daily scripture reading, direction of her family's worship, and solicitude for the poor. Such disparity in behavior stems from objectifying enslaved people, thus segregating them beyond the reach of human feeling."

*Cruelty referring to the treatment of a slave woman who repeatedly ran away and was punished by being sent to the workhouse and tortured, as well as being imprisoned with a heavy iron collar and having the front tooth removed.

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"Slaveholders behaved toward their human property in contradictory ways but never more so than with regard to the intellectual capacities of the enslaved people. Almost from the beginning, slaveholders and nearly all whites assumed that these opaque bodies were incapable of the human functions of intellectual reflection and critique, culture making, and cultural refinement... At the same time, undermining their own arguments, slaveholders not only taught slaves complex operations and tasks, but also benefited from their mental ingenuity and creativity."

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Enfleshing Freedom by M. Shawn Copeland: "Enfleshing Freedom," 37.

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Enfleshing Freedom by M. Shawn Copeland: "Enfleshing Freedom," 37.

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"Literally and metaphorically, black women reclaimed their bodies and the bodies of their loved ones from bondage. They defied the degradation of chattel slavery and refused to internalize a devaluation of self. Literally and metaphorically, black women chose struggle and death for the sake of life, for the cause of freedom in this life and the next."

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Seen in Olive Branch, Mississippi on November 6, 2018 - for those wondering why women like M. Shawn Copeland and men like James Cone are "still talking about slavery" and lynching.

This photo also reminds me just how privileged I am - I read people like Copeland and can acknowledge their stories and their experience, but until I see things like this picture, I have a hard time truly feeling the power and truth behind the experiences that Black Americans continue to live.

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Abounding in Kindness, Chapter 12: "Christ died for us

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Abounding in Kindness, Chapter 12: "Christ died for us

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"Christian faith dares to believe that this evil [Jesus' execution at the hand of the Romans] does not check-mate God's compassionate and loving power. Rather, God's victory over this particular initiative of evil in history shows itself in the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. What a revelation! Far from siding with the powerful judges, God is in solidarity with the victim, opening up a new future despite defeat. Now we understand that we are saved by the death of Jesus thanks to the life that leads up to it... The whole event unleashes a new Spirit into history, the Spirit of living hope... The salvation of the world becomes a new and strong possibility." 182-183

"In the middle of this Lent, let us individually and as a community be drawn ever more deeply into the liberating mystery of how Jesus' suffering born of active love can lead to life, by the gracious power of God. Yes there is Mother Jesus' agony. There is also the promise that rings from Easter morning. In Julian's words, 'All shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.' Let us cling to this hope, ever so haltingly but gratefully." 186

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As a result of reading part three, I picture Christ's interaction and presence in the world (life-death-resurrection) as the water in this picture. We are the people floating freely and deeply in the grace, love, and transforming power of God incarnate.

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Revelations of Divine Love, the Long Text 51, p 118

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Revelations of Divine Love, the Long Text 51, p 118

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"But in the sight of God his purpose remained undiminished; for I saw our Lord commend and approve his purpose, but the man himself was obstructed and blind to the knowledge of this purpose, and this causes him great sorrow and grievous misery; for neither can he clearly see his loving lord, who is most gentle and kind to him, nor can he see truly how he himself appears to his loving lord. And I am quite certain that if we really and truly see these two things, then we shall attain rest and peace partially here on earth and the full bliss of heaven, through his plentiful grace.

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"Will you know our Lord's meaning? Know Well Love is His meaning."

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"I was upending the order of creation. Strangest of all, it was the first time thoughts of equality had entered my head, and I could only attribute it to God, with whom I'd lately taken up and who was proving to be more insurrectionary than law-abiding."

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Sarah taught Nina what she believed, even though her family repeatedly admonished and mocked Sarah for her anti-slavery and feminist beliefs