An assault on our words
Some words captivate the soul. Consider how, during the pandemic, a few articles caught fire simply by naming the feeling in the air: languishing, grief, burnout. They showed how words are more than words; they’re roadmaps to self-understanding.
That’s why I’m part of a project called faith250. The idea is simple but powerful: gather clergy and communities to study the sacred words of our American tradition, then come together around July 4, 2026, for a shared meal. Here’s why it matters …
I’d describe the moment we are in now as one of moral paralysis, ethical bewilderment, or soul trauma. The shock value of cruelty has overwhelmed our spiritual fluency as a people. We are unable to keep up, much less speak to what is unraveling.
Torrents of words rush by us, leaving us stranded like flood victims, clinging to the branches of what we thought we understood. What do we do in times of moral desperation when everything is too much and not enough at the same time?
Our current moment reminds me of the world of George Orwell’s 1984, where the Party institutes a new form of language, Newspeak, with reduced vocabulary and restricted grammar. As the character Syme describes the enforced language, “Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end, we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it.” We, too, face an assault on our words. And that’s what we’re trying to address with faith250.
When language heals and when it harms
About a month ago, my friend Rabbi Michael Holzman posed a hypothetical question: “Next July 4, what if instead of a tank parade or a day of protest signs, we did something different … a massive potluck meal, based on the sacred values that sustain this country?” His imagining felt less like an intellectual or religious exercise and more like an invitation for spiritual neighbors to get into our various boats to do search and rescue work, seeking memories of belonging and holding onto the moral foundations from our various religious traditions that we know are stronger than “current” events (pun intended).
Here’s the plan. Faith leaders interested in faith250 will study some very American words together. “The Declaration of Independence.” Emma Lazarus’s “The New Colossus.” Frederick Douglass’s keynote address, “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” The beloved hymn “America the Beautiful.” Then, we’ll discuss and grow the conversation.
“We believe faith leaders are like first responders for words…”
We decided to start the conversation with clergy because we believe faith leaders are like first responders for words, trained to recognize when language heals and when it harms. We know how sacred words can restore people or be used to wound them. And we have networks, and time, and maybe even a sense of holy urgency. Most clergy are part little networks where we meet and sometimes avoid being a punchline. “A rabbi, an imam and a Presbyterian minister walk into a coffee shop.” If not, those networks are pretty easy to start.
Here’s what faith250 invites you to do
- Gather a diverse group of clergy or faith leaders in your area.
- Meet four times to study these texts: “The Declaration of Independence,” “The New Colossus,” “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?” and “America the Beautiful.”
- Then invite your community into the conversation. Meet four more times.
- End with a shared July 4 ritual — a meal, a gathering… public, joyful, multifaith, something unique to each local community
Maybe this is the Boston Tea Party in reverse, when we draw from the waters the sacred cargo and the holy words that we will need to save this country, and we refuse to throw each other overboard.
Maybe this is a much older story than the 1770s. Maybe it’s the story of how prophets are drawn from troubled waters, like Moses, and raised up to help set their people free.
We’ll figure that out together. In any case, the time is now. Let’s gather the sacred words we still believe in and the sacred people we still belong to and get to work.
Learn more
You can learn more about Faith250 on our website, or you can join our upcoming info session:
- August 28, 1:30-2:30 pm ET (register here and share the link).
