Sublime
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What person who does what this woman does has not been there? How I admire them and cherish them. I see them each day, serving in a variety of ways, dealing with the heartbreaking realities of the poor: frustration; violent transference; physical and mental sickness; rejection; police harassment; loneliness; hunger for food, friendship, and purpose
... See moreGary Smith • Radical Compassion: Finding Christ in the Heart of the Poor
After dinner, Andy and I stopped by a bookstore that was next to St. Mark’s Comedy Club. Unorganized, lots of underground poetry, ended up getting “Thus Spoke Zarathustra” and a preface to Plato. I asked the guy if they had any Ed Sanders (his Tales of Beatnick Glory shaped my sense of history of this neighborhood). They had that same book, signed,
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The reality of homelessness, inadequate housing, and the lack of affordable housing is a national disgrace. This reality undermines the life and dignity of so many of our brothers and sisters who lack a decent place to live. It destroys lives and families. The crime of homelessness is not that people live in filthy camps under bridges, or that fami
... See moreGary Smith • Radical Compassion: Finding Christ in the Heart of the Poor
God, I pray first of all for the brothers and sisters in this jail, that you might strengthen them. I pray for the people who come to the Downtown Chapel to get something to eat and for the staff that provides for them; I pray for all the poor; I pray in thanksgiving for all the people who help me here and for Father Gary, who comes to see me. Plea
... See moreGary Smith • Radical Compassion: Finding Christ in the Heart of the Poor
Medium • 11: Post-traumatic urbanism and radical indigenism
Hatred is depressing—it is of course depressing to be hated, but it is also depressing to hate. The erosion of the social safety net means that more and more people are at a sudden breaking point, and there are few messages of authentic comfort to offer them in these pitiless times. One is done in by disease, by isolation and despair, and by life c
... See morenewyorker.com • Anthony Bourdain, Kate Spade, and Preventable Tragedies
Ersatz third places can also be expensive, so think Soho House. So people who can't afford to hang out in one of them have to make do with under maintained, bare minimum public places. Oldenburg notes men drinking beers outside convenience stores in the parking lot because there's no seating actually inside the stores or teens gathering in a local
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