Words Matter.

The right word at the right time has brought faith to the fearful, hope to the hungry, peace to the perplexed. Not only a lens on theology, the opening verse of John attests equally to the power of words: “In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was God.”

Liberators weave words as few others can. Socrates was not the first to valorize doubt, but his eloquent Apology prompted a sea change in the Greek battle between rationalism and superstition. Martin Luther King was not the first to criticize racism, but his sonorous voice bellowing Gospel texts moved millions. Rachel Carson was not the first to document pollution, but her lyrical style brought scientific knowledge to husbands and housewives of the ‘50s and ‘60s.

What words will set us free today? That question moves me to take pen to paper, ever reaching for le mot juste as our souls and our civilizations face new forces as yet unnamed. If it succeeds, the pen that I wield takes the reader to a mental landscape of religious tolerance rooted in historical knowledge, a sense of the sacred that refuses to validate violence, and a vision of human rights for all.