November 20

On this day in 284, the Roman army proclaimed Diocletian as Emperor. He would go on to lead the most extensive persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire, from 303 to 311. Today is also the feast day of several saints who were martyred by Diocletian for refusing to renounce their faith, including the saints Ampelus, Gaius, and Agapius. Agapius was arrested and tortured on four different occasions. 

Today is also the birthday of Pauli Murray, in 1910, who was a poet, activist, and lawyer who fought segregation. She was also the first African-American woman to be ordained as an Episcopal Priest. She coined the term “Jane Crow” to refer to the academic discrimination against black women that she experienced. She has posthumously been described as transgender, and reminds us of the liminal spaces many of our faith heroes live in even as they work for a more humane world.

Today marks the death, in 1910, of Leo Tolstoy, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest novelists of all time, and whose faith led him to Christian pacifism. 

Today is also the Transgender Day of Remembrance, which honors the memory of those who have died from acts of anti-transgender violence. 

Reflection

Leo Tolstoy wrote: 

“The history of mankind is crowded with evidences proving that physical coercion is not adapted to moral regeneration, and that the sinful dispositions of men can be subdued only by love; that evil can be exterminated only by good; that it is not safe to rely upon the strength of an arm to preserve us from harm; that there is great security in being gentle, long-suffering, and abundant in mercy; that it is only the meek who shall inherit the earth; for those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword.”

Leo Tolstoy

The Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray wrote: 

“I intend to do my part through the power of persuasion, by spiritual resistance, by the power of my pen, and by inviting the violence upon my own body. For what is life itself without the freedom to walk proudly before God and (hu)mans and to glorify creation through the genius of self-expression? I intend to destroy segregation by positive and embracing methods. When my brothers try to draw a circle to exclude me, I shall draw a larger circle to include them. Where they speak out for the privileges of a puny group, I shall shout for the rights of all (hu)mankind.”

Pauli Murray

and:

“In not a single one of these little campaigns was I victorious. In other words, in each case, I personally failed, but I have lived to see the thesis upon which I was operating vindicated. And what I very often say is that I’ve lived to see my lost causes found.”

Pauli Murray