Grief Is a Form of Patriotism, Too.

A Reflection for the Fourth of July and America’s 250th Birthday.

This 4th of July, many of us won’t be waving flags or watching fireworks. Not because we hate our country, but because we love it too much to pretend everything is fine.

When we see the powerful wield their influence to harm the poor, when policies are passed that will strip people of healthcare, housing, safety, and dignity, when we watch the planet ravaged for profit, when cruelty is packaged as strength and injustice paraded as “God’s will,” our hearts break. And that heartbreak is holy.

Grief is a form of patriotism, too.

Lament is an honest form of love.

We mourn because this is all just a continuation of our nation’s sins of the past. We mourn because we believe this country can be better.

We lament because we believe the words “liberty and justice for all” should mean something for all.

We grieve not because we’ve given up,

but because we still care.

True patriotism isn’t celebration without conscience. It’s not about believing we are greater than all other nations. It’s about holding our nation accountable to its highest ideals. It’s about refusing to settle for freedom for the few while millions are pushed aside, unheard, and unseen.

It’s praying, protesting, speaking, and serving

until justice is no longer the exception, but the norm.

So on this 4th of July, if you feel more like weeping than cheering, you are not alone.

There is room at the table of hope for tears, too.

Because our grief is rooted in love. Because we still believe in a freedom that includes everyone.

And that is its own kind of celebration.