The Civil Rights movement was attacked for extremism, many "friends of the Negro' advised a gradual, moderate approach, and argued that mass demonstrations and boycotts would only alienate moderate "white" opinion. Meanwhile the Klu Klux Klan and the White Citizen's Councils were organizing violence against men, women and children who stood for voter's rights and access to public institutions.
Martin Luther King, Jr. challenged his listeners with this response; "The question is not whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be. Will we be extremists for hate or for love? Will we be extremists for the preservation of injustice or the the extension of justice?"
Given our cultures capacity to marginalize those who stand against its oppressive norms could you be an extremist for love? Institutionalized religion tends to be a mechanism for conformity, and submission to the "way things are." This despite the fact that most significant religious leaders in all traditions urged non conformity to the prevailing standards of an unjust world. We recall Paul of Tarsus "be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind."
How does liberal religion help us take a personal stand for justice? How does it hinder us in taking that stance?
Overcoming colonialism through faith and action.
I am thinking about these things daily, Clyde ....