VIDEO TRANSCRIPTION

Jay:
Good afternoon. I’m speaking to you today as you see folks getting food here at Shepherd Community, but I want to talk to you about another issue. I want to talk to you about today that our hearts are breaking, including mine as we see the tragedy of America today. The country that is divided, it is broken. It is full of hate. There’s an old Christmas song we sing that hate mocks, the song of peace on earth, goodwill to men. And we’ve seen lots of evidence of hate. Hate that leads a man to put his knee on another man’s neck. And he dies. Hate that Sees someone start a fire in someone else’s business, people shouting at each other. We’re a country torn apart and our heart breaks. And maybe we say, well, I don’t know George Floyd. I don’t, but my heart breaks. Jane and I are privileged to have six grandchildren. And I love them.

Jay:
Five of the six grandchildren are biracial, but I want you to know, I don’t look at them by the color of their skin. I look at them and say, they’re mine. They’re part of me. I love them. And I want you to know I would do anything for them. And if anyone wanted to hurt them, I would do everything I could to protect them, as I would my kids and their spouses. As I would for my wife. George Floyd is part of me as well. At the foot of the cross we are all brothers and sisters. Jesus says in the book of John “love others, as I’ve loved you.” Silence is complicity. Silence is saying, “I’m going to ignore this”, and we can ignore it. No longer. It’s wrong. Hate is wrong. And we have to do better.

Jay:
It isn’t a program we need. It is people in relationship with others. It’s people reaching across their comfort levels. It’s people making friends with someone who’s different than they are. We have to do better. It’s more than just my six grandkids. It’s more than the 400 kids in the programs at Shepherd Community. It’s every kid in Indianapolis. It’s every kid in Indiana, every kid in the United States. It’s every kid in the world. We have to do better. Martin Luther King says, “darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that.”

Jay:
And then he said, “I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.” I don’t want any mom to worry if her child will come home safe. I don’t want any spouse to worry if their spouse will come home from their job. Hate is wrong and mocks the song of peace on earth, goodwill to man. It is for us and what we’re trying to do is to invest in the future of our kids. What leads to the incredible pain that we’re seeing lived out in America is people who feel like they have no other options. They feel like they have no other hope. And we do have hope. We know scripture says, “I know the plans I have for you. Plans for you to succeed in prosper.” Will we work together to make that possible for every child?

Jay:
Will we say “I’ll be silent no more”. Hate in whatever form it is, is wrong. And I’ll stand for it no more. Will I search my own heart to find my own biases and address those? You say “well Jay, what can I do?” Well, I’m going to tell you the work we’re doing at shepherd each and every day is going to continue to attack that hate. We’re going to invest in kids’ lives. We’re going to invest in families and we appreciate your help in doing that. Racism has no place. Hate has no place, and we can be silent no more. Will you continue to join with us in investing in the lives of some students here? Will you reach across the aisle today and make friends with someone it’s not a program, it’s an individual responsibility to make change and to speak up and to love. Love will speak volumes. There’s an old song we sang as kids at church. It said “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world.” Shouldn’t we?