What Hath John L. Ruth to Do with Hillary R. Clinton?
Mennonite historian and storyteller John L. Ruth doesn’t usually wade into national politics.
So I was surprised to find the photo below on p. 376 of his book Branch: A Memoir with Pictures.
Not since H. S. Bender announced Marilyn Monroe’s suicide at the 1962 Mennonite World Conference has a more surprising juxtaposition occurred.
Hillary Rodham Clinton, 1999. Photo by John L. Ruth
In the text accompanying the photo, Ruth says
Branch: A Memoir with Photos was published in 2013 before Clinton had decided to run for President.
Credit for locating this prescient page goes to my summer writing group member and fellow blogger Jennifer Murch, whose blog The Quotidian will make you laugh, or at least smile, every time. Subscribe!
Have you ever had an encounter with a celebrity or politician? Do you know anyone despised by some and deeply loved by others? Do you dare talk about it?
Shirley — It’s interesting no matter how you slice it, but even more so because BRANCH: A MEMOIR WITH PHOTOS was published before Hillary Clinton decided to run for President.
Thank you for providing a link to THE QUOTIDIAN. I fan of laughter, I’m going to subscribe.
I agree, Laurie.
So glad you have subscribed to Jennifer’s blog. She’s amazing. I hope she subscribes to yours also. You two would like each other, I think.
Great photo, and I love the story he tells of women whispering encouragement. She had to be so moved! No matter how tough such a public figure has to seem, she’s still a human being. At some level, the constant attacks on personhood have to hurt, hence the beauty of such quiet, heartfelt support.
I love that story too, Richard. And the people closest to Clinton have deep attachment to her. They can’t understand why others don’t. Have you seen this chart? http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2015/09/hillary-clintons-favorability-ratings-are-right-their-normal-groove It demonstrates that when she is running for anything, Clinton is viewed unfavorably (this has to be gender related). When she is doing the job, she has amazing favorables — 66 percent.
John Ruth’s closing comment is so fascinating, in that year!! Back in 1988, Hilary spoke at the National Federation of Press Women national convention that I attended in Little Rock, Ark. She was just “the governor’s wife” then and I didn’t pay too much attention. 🙁 Wish I had gotten my own photo then!
Yep, John has to be given credit for his sixth sense. Do you have any memories of her speech to the Press Women? Must have been pretty heady company in 1988 even if you didn’t get a picture of Hillary.
When we were in Brussels for French language studies in 1968 former U.S. president Richard Nixon visited that city. He was in a convertible and I saw him quite closely. He had his arms raised in a victorious salute. Years later, we were at a cottage and Hardy was recuperating from an appendix surgery, when we saw him on TV. It was after Watergate and the victorious smile was gone.
I also shook the hand of President Mobuto in Zaire. He did not seem like the powerful dictator he was made out to be, but rather just a friendly sort of man. That is how his personal physician, Dr. Close (an American) has described him as well. However, he was given a lot of power and used it to his advantage.
Last, but not least, I shook the hand of our young and handsome prime minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, just before he was elected. He came to Winnipeg and spoke in an overcrowded hall. Most of us remained outside in a line-up. He knew we wouldn’t get in, stepped out of his limosine and took time to personally greet the crowd outside. That’s the kind of person I vote for, and he received mine!
Wow, Elfrieda, you have some Forrest Gump stories here! You’ve been up close to three major world leaders in one lifetime.
Justin Trudeau seems to be such a classy person. Did you see this video? He and Barack Obama have such wit and grace also. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgSNlTUTxs0
Thanks for sharing, Shirley. This is fascinating. Something about Hillary Clinton obviously resonated with Mr. Ruth, as well, for him to think she’d be a candidate years later.
I’ve also seen the information you mention about her favorability ratings and how they differ when she’s actually in a position compared to one she’ s running. She even talks about it.
Yes, Merril, I believe John felt a resonance himself, though he is far from a celebrity admirer or political junkie. He is 86 years old, has a PhD in English from Harvard, and enjoys joking in the Pennsylvania Dutch dialect with his conservative Mennonite and Amish friends. Like Whitman, he “contains multitudes.”
I hope some future historian of Hillary Clinton will be able to dissect how much of the antipathy she generates when she runs for office has to do with breaking the glass ceiling and how much relates to her individual flaws. I find myself being alternately sympathetic, understanding, and sad as I witness her struggle. If she is inaugurated, I want to be there. How about you?
I think it would be a thrilling moment, Shirley! I don’t know that I’d be there there in D.C., but I’ll definitely be watching. I’m listening to her speak right now.
What an amazing find, Shirley! My scholastic Aunt Ruthie introduced me to author/historian John L. Ruth years ago via his volume (1392 pages, I believe) entitled The Earth Is the Lord’s: A Narrative History of the Lancaster Mennonite Conference. I remember the book was dark blue and huge. Because of your post, I also checked back to a recent blog post with a photo of Ruthie’s secretary in the sitting room. Perched on a chair right beside it is a book about Hillary though I can’t discern the title.
Aunt Ruthie has been a life-long Republican, but she has always been curious about other viewpoints and could entertain opposing opinions. I am pretty sure she would not vote for the clown masquerading as a presidential candidate this year.
Unlike Elfrieda, I have not meet a political candidates. On our honeymoon, we did meet Billy and Ruth Graham after a church service in Montreal, NC. He was already large in public opinion and minister/advisor to numerous presidents including Eisenhower, LBJ, and Nixon. I admire him for insisting his crusades be integrated and once bailed Martin Luther King out of jail.
I want to check out your links here, especially The Quotidian. Marvelous post, Shirley!
Ha, Marian, you got the page numbers right! I have my own copy of The Earth Is the Lord’s, and I found it useful for background to my memoir. If you google the title, you’ll see that you have to pay nearly $500 to get a copy now. It’s like lake property — they aren’t making any more of it. 🙂
I grew up in a Republican household that admired Billy Graham also. Eisenhower and Graham had what could be called a “generous orthodoxy.” What happened to the party and to evangelical Christians politically since then is hard for me to fathom.
You will love The Quotidian.
And you will also find Malcolm Gladwell’s podcast about Chester Wenger, found here under “Generous Orthodoxy,” interesting. I listened through tears. https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/revisionist-history/id1119389968?mt=2
This is great, Shirley. Kudos to John Ruth for his prescience in knowing that Hillary might one day become the female president. This kind of knowing helps to keep my mood light in these trying times.
Glad to be part of what brings a little sunshine into your life today, Joan. Looks like it’s a great day to take in a little bit of literal sunshine also. Enjoy!
Shirley, I’ve been enjoying your posts but never made a comment before. Your question about meeting world leaders reminded me of our experiences. My husband, Erwin, and I served as Mennonite missionaries in Brazil when Jimmy Carter was elected president. His wife, Rosalyn, went to Brazil without him. Americans were invited to the embassy to meet her. Her soft southern accent surprised me. We had only seen them on TV with Portuguese translation covering up their voices. She shook hands with most of us there.
Some years later we served in Botswana. Vice President Al Gore passed through and we saw him at the airport. He shook hands with those of us along a fence. In 1999, President Clinton and Hilary also came to Botswana. All Americans were invited to a reception at the State House, the residence of the Botswana president. Along with about 5,000 people from other countries, we milled about the large enclosed grounds, helping ourselves to finger foods served on large platters under white tents set up on the grassy area. The Clintons arrived late, coming from South Africa. He only spoke briefly, suffering from a bad cold. I don’t recall that she spoke. We made no attempt to be among the few who shook hands with the Clintons. From there the Clintons went on to the game park in northern Botswana made famous by Elizabeth Taylor.
It is interesting that it has only been while we were overseas that we’ve had opportunities to see such representatives of our home country!
Hi, Angela, and welcome to this space, where I always learn more. Your point about seeing famous people abroad is excellent. Come to think of it, we saw the Clinton limo speed through a London street, and Betty Friedan came to Haiti to speak back in 1981 when we were there.
When we live abroad, we are part of a small group of ex-pats. In this country, we are just one of 300 million.
Thanks for sharing your stories! Are you watching the Olympics in Brazil with special affection, aided by your memories? I also imagine that your heart breaks for the poor and protesting?
During the 1970’s I met Betty Friedan (a founder of the National Organization for Women) and as a staff person met numerous National Board Members, all already successful in their own right. I have never met Hillary in person. However, when working on food justice issues we collaborated with Marion Wright Edleman’s group CDF around the time Hillary was working with them. The political situation today reminds be of the Civil War period when family’s were often split. My family siblings group is split 50:50. Hatred ag. Hillary runs deep for many of my brothers without having facts to base it on.
Audrey, I hesitated before writing this post because of the increasingly bitter and irrational and sometimes violent acrimony we are witnessing in the media. I don’t want to add to that spirit in any way. I’m sure John Ruth would not want to do that either.
I too am reminded of the Civil War period some days.
How can I love in a time of hate? I want to treat my COUNTRY the way those anonymous women above treated the “President’s Wife”– with whispers of encouragement and promises to pray.
Very interesting perspective, Shirley. I just came from Fort Scott, KS. where I visited my mother, and the community center had displayed full wall displays of all the candidates running at local, state and national levels.
I was interested to see this same photo of Hillary, but with a very different account. I was near enough to a group visitors from Pittsburg State University to hear their comments on each of the candidates’s pictures.
One retired philosophy professor pointed to Hillary’s picture and said she was sorry when she read Hillary’s comment in her book when she said she was always proud to be named after Sir Edmund Hillary and took it has destiny to always aim for the highest mountains in life.
Unfortunately, the speaker continued, Hillary was born six years before he had climbed the mountain.
There are many reasons there’s such distrust for BOTH of the pres. candidates.
Very interesting, Marylin. You are right about the Sir Edmund fib. Here’s a very compelling piece of research at Snopes.com which confirms the philosophy professor’s observation. http://www.snopes.com/politics/clintons/hillary.asp
I am quite aware, and uncomfortable with, a number of Clinton’s flaws as a candidate. I even voted for her opponents Obama and Sanders in the primaries. But I also see her as a far better choice than that other person.
Might Ms. Clinton simply have been saying she has “the same name as” Sir Hillary?? The professor wasn’t there when she said what he said she said, right? And I don’t suppose he had any reason for wanting to prove she was lying? We all know that we ordinary people in ordinary time don’t have to watch our verbs, vibes, and nuances as carefully as Hillary has to. If she forgets to clarify something or be much more exacting than anybody else – in politics or in the public eye – she gets criticism from every direction. I’m soo0 tired of the bias against her. Yep, she’s strong – even though – GASP!! – she’s woman. How refreshing it would be to have a woman – a woman like her – in the oval office! Of course, if she makes it that far, the rhetoric against her will only get worse. Worse, it will always be repeated ad nauseum.
I love your passionate defense of Hillary, Audrey. I quite agree that none of us could stand the minute scrutiny of every word, smile, nonsmile, twitch, or stumble that she has had to endure. No wonder she is guarded.
My major concern is certainly none of the little slips of the tongue but her hawkish foreign policy.
She is doing lots of things right in this campaign. And I hope she is our next president.
Amen, Sister!! But we may as well start battening down the hatches now – we’re going to hear a lot more nasty rhetoric aimed at her – and not just until she’s [possibly/hopefully] elected. I have not been able to figure out why there is so much dislike (read: hatred – much of which comes from churched people) against her. This is 2016 – surely, it has nothing to do with her gender?? or, because her gender and her strong, decisive, reallyreallyreallly smart mind are linked? Please tell me we’ve come a longer way than that??
Good conversation going on here among God’s children. Every one of us is a child of God, each made in God’s image. God pours love on each of us. I try to remember that I am called to love my neighbor, even the political candidate whom I hope will not become our president. The choice is obvious to me, and I’ll vote in November!
Karen, thanks for joining the conversation and for the reminder of the calling to love regardless of political position. The choice is obvious to me too!
This week as I watched the PBS series on American presidents, I remembered that I shook hands with (then) Sen. John Kennedy as a high school senior. During his campaign for the presidency, our class took a field trip to a political rally in Salem, Oregon. We students were in the line of those waiting to greet him. He must have been exhausted because what I remember most is how impersonal he seemed, how mechanical the exchange. His eyes never focused on us. Later I came to admire him greatly, though he was a person of many flaws (as we all are).
While serving in Jamaica with Mennonite Central Committee, our family waited along a highway to greet Queen Elizabeth II as she came to visit. We caught a glimpse of her inside her car, smiling, and waved at her as the motorcade drove toward Kingston. We didn’t get invited to any receptions — though we managed to get a snapshot of her wave!
Isn’t our preoccupation with celebrities an interesting thing? The more I come to know people, the more I’m aware of our shared humanity — foibles and all.
Foibles indeed, Marlene. But oh what interesting stories. Thanks for adding yours.
They say that Bill Clinton has the ability to make you think he sees you all the way to your soul if he ever shakes your hand. Even my Elkhart County Republican Rotarian friends who got to meet him were mesmerized by this power of his.
And can you imagine spending your life waving to crowds and performing ceremonies? The movie Queen was a good one to help us commoners understand the weight of the crown.
During my 24-year teaching career at the Spence School, I had the opportunity to meet many famous people. One of my all time favorite “moms” at parent-teacher nights was Geraldine Ferraro, who in 1984 was the first female vice presidential candidate representing a major American political party. I think you have called it correctly that the hostility is in large part a gender issue. At the time of Geraldine’s service in congress and as VP candidate, there was raw contempt for this powerful woman. When her name came up in a recent conversation, there was visceral hatred on the part of some participants. Every human being has flaws, but a powerful woman is allowed none, it seems.
How interesting, and what an excellent conclusion, Erma. Powerful women are especially vulnerable when they are running for office and therefore can’t hide their ambition.
I’m interested in what drew you to Geraldine Ferraro. You had an opportunity to see her up close and in a more intimate setting than most people. Thanks for sharing the story.
I love it, Shirley. If we call the Dalai Lama a celebrity, which he is, and a politician, which he’s been as the political leader of Tibetan people, I’ve had the privilege of knowing him–although he would not recognize me in a crowd. I haven’t tried to meet a well-known U.S. politician for many years, but was deeply moved by Robert Kennedy when he spoke on the Cornell campus in the 1960s.
Here’s my (unscientific and biased) take on a major reason why Hillary Clinton is more despised than other politicians who have done much worse than she’s done. Of course, she’s a woman and we have so many hidden biases that we won’t admit. Also, in our culture and probably in most, if a man betrays and shames his wife publicly, it must surely be her fault. The man is a bit of a Romeo. She’s the shrew he needs to escape. “She deserved it.” So, I see archetypal forces at play as well as the fact that she’s been in politics a long time and sometimes made poor choices. My two cents!
Elaine, I can tell your have been deeply influenced by the Dalai Lama. I think everyone who meets him recognizes his presence. And you and Vic had a much more than casual acquaintance.
And about Clinton — surely there are archetypal images in our (mostly unconscious) minds when we look at all candidates. The harpy/shrew image is right there under the surface for any woman whose story can be made to fit it.
Thanks for offering your two cents. I would always consider your thoughts worth more than that!
I had a life-changing brush with Imelda Marcos last year when I sang in a chamber choir at her family home for a Christmas dinner. As a child I had perceived her to be a monster–injustice incarnate. So, when she sat in her chair, 5 feet in front of me, and our eyes met during the music, I thought I would be repulsed. But I wasn’t. She was shriveled, sad, and I realized how easy it is to judge others based on small bits of information that we gather. That night, music brought Imelda and I together in a common human experience, and I gave thanks that God sees our full hearts and is slow to judge. I endeavor to do that too.
Karin, I hate to admit my ignorance, but when I read this story, I had to google Imelda Marcos. Not because I didn’t know the name, but because I thought surely she is not living. But there she was in living color across the room from you last year, listening to you sing in her small, sad body. You made us feel empathy also. Thank you.
That is what the women were doing with Hillary Clinton in 1999. May we all find more empathy and less rage.
Hi Shirley, thank you for this post and your question that invites our sharing. I have had the blessing of my children singing for Nelson Mandela and his wife, Graca Machel, during which he shook the hand of my youngest daughter. My youngest son, now a Goshen College senior just returned from Senegal, got to shake Senator Obama’s hand in 2007 when he campaigned for a suburban Seattle congressional candidate. And courtesy of my extroverted husband, I’ve shook the hand of President Carter and met too many celebrities to name. I am actually embarrassed to name them, courtesy of my introversion!
Jennifer, welcome to this page. Introverts can thrive online, and I love following you and your lovely family. Hi to Malcolm and best wishes for his senior year at Goshen College!
Nelson Mandela, Barack Obama, Jimmy Carter, and many more. You have met some of the very best. And you are one of the very best.
Now I’ve made you blush. But that’s okay. No one can see. 🙂
Such interesting comments. As I think about influential people I have met, my eyes fill with tears as I think of my maternal grandmother…limited education, no status in this world, widowed at a fairly young age, but so in love with Jesus and fellow human beings that it was difficult to criticize another person in her presence.
Wow, Myron, what a wonderful description of your maternal grandmother: “so in love with Jesus and fellow human beings that it was difficult to criticize another person in her presence.” I’m inspired by her to inspire my own grandchildren in the same way. What an epitaph! Thank you so much for sharing these words.
RE: Elaine Mansfield’s post, I think another take on Hillary has to do with her willingness to put up with the embarrassment and “shame” when dealing with the philandering President. I wouldn’t vote for Trump if you gave me a suitcase of unmarked $100 bills, but,I’d like to know if she really loved Bill enough to forgive him or did she turn a blind eye with an opportunist’s view of the future. If that’s the case, I think her pro women stance is built on shifting sand.
Norah, you raise a question many Americans have, and it goes beyond her personal marriage decisions to the issue of the role calculation and ambition have played in her career. We have no way of knowing her internal dialogue, but we can observe her outward behaviors. Trouble is, they seem to go in opposite directions.
I believe she does love her husband and definitely her daughter and grandchildren. And he has been as much a drag as a help to her political career. Her passion to help women and girls has been with her from the beginning. This old article from the New York Times shows how complicated she was even as she entered adulthood. She’s complicated still. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/05/us/politics/05clinton.html?_r=0
I am just a Canadian however as your neighbour I would definitely NOT advocate for the Clintons. Hillary/Clinton are worst than the other Globalists in that they are out and out greedy selfish liars according to my research. Their charity is NOT a charity for hardly anyone but themselves. They are bums! I would not let either of them into my bathroom. They are the worst crony capitalists out there, except for maybe the Rothschilds and the Rockefeller’s etc and the upstart George Soros etc. When I think about Clinton, nothing she could ever say or do (short of complete repentance in front of God) could make up for the fiasco’s when she was the First Lady and especially when she was Secretary Of State. Clintons charge of Benghazi and Libya was/is absolutely outrageous and a complete disaster. The destabilization (divide and conquer war tactic) used in the Middle East and now in Europe by the Greedy Globalists is one of Satan’s greatest tools because it entices the demons on both sides of a dispute to act against each other simultaneously to accomplish satan’s goals… (They are doing his dirty work) Please do your research and due diligence BEFORE even bothering to vote. Clinton’s email practices and favors given to the Chinese Communists and the Saudia Arabians while Secretary Of State appear to be downright treasonous.It is evident the laws of USA and Justice do NOT apply to the Clintons and the like. It is painfully obvious that the Clintons have the goods on their co-globalists and have insured they will not “go down” alone. To big to fail and too big too jail is a fraud! The truth will be exposed no matter what anybody does or does not do. Both Obama and especially Clintons immigration plans and policies are a complete slap in the face of all law abiding taxpayers of the USA and what is happening in Germany Economy will happen next in the USA. We have the same disastrous politically correct campaigns being waged here in Canada. It would make me ill if I was NOT free. The Clintons and the like do not appear to have a genuine caring bone in their body. No matter how much lipstick one puts on a _______, it will always be a _______! Sorry folks but I do not see anything redemptive in these politicians whatsover…they have the same freewill we do and they have purposely chose to serve satan and they show no remorse. In fact their own fruits/evidence shows that they do not even have a conscience any more. We must be on Gods side and hold Trumps feet to the fire of Truth and Freedom after he is elected because he will become a politician. Debating about “red vs. blue is a scam since both sides are controlled by satan. Male vs female or black vs. white etc. etc. is just falling into the trap these globalists have set for us…because; when we as a society are all devastated by our own infighting…these globalists and satan already have their “solution” (which the foolish ones will beg for) waiting for us in the wings! Antichrists are everywhere nowadays, but woe onto all of us when the curtain is pulled back and the puppetmaster reveals himself. This is exactly why our ancestors did NO get involved in politics. The only reason I must speak out is the fact that the TRUTH is so obvious to me and I feel so bad for those of you who have not done due diligence. You cannot play with fire or you will get burnt. Satan is the great deceiver and nothing that satan has to offer will bring us anything good whether it be brought to the table by Clinton or some other politician. None of these people work for free…(the love of money and the lust for power are satanic) they are NOT our servants…We are their servants if we do not make the right freewill choices! We should not accept anything satan offers. We actually become their slaves if we do NOT follow Jesus and serve God. I passionately urge all of you to pursue the Truth and follow Jesus and NOT any man or woman.
Please beware that satan’s actual and genuine candidate may be the one who is waiting in the wings behind Clinton right now.
I am sorry if I have offended anyone in this response, but i confess that The Truth means more to me than anything, because that is the only way WE can become free. By Delmer B. Martin
Isaiah 59:2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
Romans 1:24-27 24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: 25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
Delmar, I just returned from our annual family vacation and saw your comment. I didn’t intend this post to be an endorsement of Hillary Clinton but rather an interesting find in another writer’s work before the U.S. elections heated up. As you can tell from reading the comments above, however, I find many things to admire about Hillary Clinton. Not everything. I don’t like her hawkish foreign policy. I agree that she has made some mistakes with either the appearance of or the reality of “pay to play” with the Clinton Foundation. Her opponent is much worse, however.
One thing I agree with you about is that this election makes the old Mennonite position of not voting one I understand and even admire. The rhetoric on both sides makes me tired and sad.
I agree with your personal sentiments except for Trump being worst than Hillary. Based on my own research Trump still has an opportunity to redeem himself of his past sins and potentially prove that he can become a good public servant, whereas Hillary and Bill have had centuries of time to be good public servants and most EVERYTHING I have researched shows how they have embraced satan and his hatred for God and common mankind overall. I would urge you to do more research but I think being a Christian friend is more important. The rhetoric of both sides IS “the fruits” of who is really running the show (satan)and I wholeheartedly agree with you that it is sad and tiring…even my own opinion to you. I confess I never voted, even when I was an atheist many many years ago and I certainly CANNOT vote in any elections nowadays. My ministry is speaking truth to power and anyone that cares to listen.
Anabaptist’s and Mennonites and Amish were not even allowed by their governments to vote for many years from 1500 to – in some counties like Prussia 1867 because they lost their citizenship when they became Anabaptist and thus the right to vote, own property have estates, give inheritances etc.
Today my old order Mennonite and Amish friends and relatives do not vote because of; John 18:36 and Psalm 146:3 and Matthew 6: 24-27 and Psalm 94: 20-21 etc.
The satanic problem I see with our so called democracy here in Canada and even your constitutionally limited representative democratic republic is that by freewill satan has temporal control of most of the processes and most of the decisions. God and The Bible are virtually being ignored and your constitution is being fatally eroded and ignored most times it seems and in Canada where all we have is a so called “democracy” the truth is that 51% can vote and the other 49% will become their slaves. It is like the parable where 2 wolves and a chicken got together for a vote as to who would become the next dinner… Even if just the Golden Rule was followed everything would be different nowadays, but I fear nothing is done truly Biblically anymore.
We believe that those who rule over us according to Gods purpose “Protect the Good and punish the evil” as found in Romans 13 and in obedience with Acts 4:19 and Matthew 6:24 and John 18:36 and Matthew 20:27 I have some old 1800’s Mennonite Ministers Manuals in my possession and they stress obedience to God First and Foremost…and radical pacifism towards GODS Purpose in government The old order Mennonites and old order Amish maintain this pacifism and submission perspective to the radical decree where they are unified that there be no voting or involvement as politicians/ in war/ or even as justice officials among their members. In addition it is believed that true Christian brothers and sisters cannot remain united Biblically if they become involved in politics. I agree!
The only ONE individual that can make a real good difference is Jesus. The truth is that those who control politics and politicians are the Globalist and Corporate elite who run the world by their own deliberate freewill choice in that they serve satan and NOT God. It is these elite that control both parties in all countries, both men and women, both black and white, etc. etc. These elite maintain control of the politicians and the processes and the laws and regulations made…they control the mainstream media, so called justice system, education, healthcare and mainstream religions which is the really critical one. Also it is as the Bible says “the LOVE of Money is the root of all evil” and for the really scary elite they have sacrificed their souls also for raw lust for worldly power. Mennonite or not, this is why I cannot vote for any of them, locally or nationally.
I see the whole world as being willingly consumed by evil and so the best thing we can do is separate ourselves as much as possible from “it” and “them” for all the right and good reasons.
PS I absolutely love your newer blogs where you are dealing with the beauty of aging (JUBILACION)! I believe this is YOUR MINISTRY! Keep up the GOOD work Shirley !
As all the old order Mennonite worship services (I remember so well) ended with the benediction from Numbers 6; “24The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:25The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:26The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.”
Best Regards;
delmer
Shirley,
You should be a charter member of the diplomatic Corp. ?
[…] On the wall? I have chosen another kind of leader to take with me. A woman. No, not Hillary (though you can discover what I think of her here), […]
John 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
I believe in the truth of this verse, Delmar. The truth makes me free to love you and even to love my enemies.
Won’t it be glorious when we understand the true mystery of I Corinthians 13?
12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
Yes God is LOVE! I Corinthians 13 and this is true whether people believe in it or NOT and NOTHING can stop HIS Purpose being fulfilled. In the meanwhile we humans were given the gift of free will, so our work is cut out for us, more than ever in this so called modern world!
I’m re-reading these comments, Shirley, on “the morning after” – better stated, perhaps, as “the MOURNING after”. Don’t know about the rest of your readers, but I’m in mourning. I won’t even try to enumerate the ways in which, by electing this egotistical, self-important man, we have disrespected ourselves and our nation.
Audrey, I too am mourning and seeking to ground myself this morning in the rock of my faith which fortunately does not expect ultimate fulfillment in politics. My latest post shares some places I am going for both solace and strength. I hope it brings a little to you also. Here’s a song I didn’t include in the post, but it fits your idea of the mourning after. Blessings and peace to you and to all of us. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYl3gICWNJE