There’s often an inclination to lean towards the nurturing of the eternal body found in the spirit. In acts of faith and obedience in service to God, are we missing an aspect of the creation that concerns the care for the temporal body? Care for the body means we must engage in the prophetic. We do so when our vision offers those around us a glimpse of what could be. This is not a glimpse of the ethereal beauty that awaits us once we transition, but rather, the joy to be found in every footstep in the soil. The justice to be found in this life, not the next. How can we speak of the eternal being, the spirit, if our ministry speaks nothing to the world it exists in?
As time goes by, we see more and more individuals speak of Jesus the Christ as static instead of the dynamic being that lives; not only in scripture but one who walks with us and speaks through us. If there’s one thing I’ve witnessed about Jesus the Christ, it is that though he did many things, he never destroyed people. When we slide into that path of destruction, we lose sight of the vision God has for us. The prophetic, those words that give life, no longer speaks through us.
May our activism always give life and not take it away
and our words be strong and loud but never destroy.
May our hands be prepared to do the work and our feet always ready for the journey ahead.
May our hearts always be open and our vision clear.

Janan Graham-Russell

Janan Graham-Russell is a writer based in Evanston, Illinois. In 2016, she graduated from the Howard University School of Divinity with a Master of Arts in Religious Studies. Her writing focuses on culture, history, religion and theology through Black feminist and womanist lenses. Her work has been featured in The Atlantic as well as Mormon Feminism: Essential Writings (2015) and A Book of Mormons (2015). When she's not writing or doing research, she enjoys dancing to Beyonce, watching films, and spending time with her husband and infant son.

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