Dear friend and fellow sojourner,

I wanted to send you a message that gets to the heart of Sojourners' vocation and why your financial support is so important to resourcing our mission of faith in action for social justice.

In 1995 I spent six transformational months studying abroad in South Africa. During that formative time, I had an opportunity to learn Zulu. A greeting that has now become more popularized always stood out: sawubona, which means I see you, and the response, sikhona, meaning "I am here." The greeting reflects the African notion of ubuntu, or "I am because we are."

The philosophy and moral belief system of ubuntu conveys just how inextricably interconnected our lives are — as neighbors, as a country, and even as a globe — and has deeply shaped my worldview. Ubuntu is at the heart of Sojourners’ mission and my purpose statement, and will be a continued and critical part of Sojourners’ work going forward: to spread ubuntu and build beloved community in our nation and world.

The church is facing a crisis of discipleship, rooted in the opposite of ubuntu: a pathological individualism — fused, for many Americans, with a sense of liberty, white supremacy, and Christian nationalism. Ubuntu represents a critical antidote to the politics of division and the intoxicating drug of hyper-selfishness that has exacerbated and fueled the COVID-19 pandemic and undermines the common good.

I’m grateful for all of the ways we — not just those of us on staff at Sojourners, but you and the entire Sojourners community — have strengthened and grown our work this year. How many funds we raise by the end of the year helps us to plan critical work in 2021.  Please donate today to strengthen our work ahead.

Make a year-end gift to Sojourners today

Ubuntu applies to all of our priorities that I see in the months ahead, including:

• Growing and nurturing our print and digital audience — our foundation as an organization — to help our nation recover and heal from a difficult year;
• Deepening our advocacy impact and relationships in the incoming U.S. presidential administration, so as to be a more effective and faithful voice for justice where that voice needs to be heard — including around issues of racial justice, immigrant rights, poverty, and climate justice;
• Implementing a sustainable model for equipping and resourcing churches in 2021 and beyond;
• Growing our international connections and partnerships;
• Leaning fully into our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and anti-racism work, internally and externally, because we cannot build a more just and equitable future if we are not also making those same commitments internally;
• Continuing to grow and expand our coverage, including launching a weekly podcast

In the coming year, we will not cease in speaking truth to power with the new Congress and administration. We will need to speak truth to politicians who continue to embrace the politics of division and obstruction. We will need to speak truth to our siblings who refuse to join the growing anti-racist movement and reject systemic racism as a gospel issue.

But we cannot speak these truths out of a misguided self-righteousness. We need to invite others into conversation, in such a way that says yes, those attitudes, those priorities, are contrary to the priorities of the prophets and Jesus. We must speak truth to power in a spirit of steadfast love. Because love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend.

As Presiding Episcopal Bishop Michael Curry says:

When love is the way, the earth will be a sanctuary. When love is the way, we will lay our swords and shields down by the riverside to study war no more. When love is the way, there's plenty of room for all of God's children. When love is the way, we actually treat each other, well, like we are actually family.

In the spirit of love, and of ubuntu, let us continue together into 2021, allowing hope, courage, and faith to guide us. Thank you in advance for your gift to our shared mission.

With gratitude,

Rev. Adam Russell Taylor, President, Sojourners

P.S. Help us go big and bold with our plans for 2021! Please consider making a donation now since your gift will make the most impact when received by Dec. 31. Click here to donate today.