“thy word have i hidden in my heart…(number 6)” — PRINT

what does it mean to hide the word in one’s heart? and is there occasion for critique? this week in my black religion and philosophy course, i talked a bit about nancy ambrose, howard thurman’s grandmother, and how she vowed, if she ever became literate, to refuse to read paul because his words were used against enslaved folks. she created her own canon, engaged in critical reading practices of the text. i’m tryna work through a similar kind of process, thinking about texture and color and critique. scripture, in general, is often used against the flourishing of life. it is often used to encourage and sustain. it can be read variously and we have to choose critical and generous engagement, but this will be grounded in the world we wanna make and allow to flower and unfold together. nancy ambrose practiced otherwise possibility when thinking about scripture. she unsettled it, made it contingent. i’m hoping to do the same, to honor it while thinking and feeling with and against it. i’m hoping to bloom. for us all to bloom.