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July’s Common Reading & Sharing Opportunity
July 30 @ 12:00 pm - 2:00 pm
An unforgettable true story about the potential for mercy to redeem us, and a clarion call to end mass incarceration in America — from one of the most inspiring lawyers of our time.
Desmond Tutu wrote, “Bryan Stevenson is America’s young Nelson Mandela, a brilliant lawyer fighting with courage and conviction to guarantee justice for all. Just Mercy should be read by people of conscience in every civilized country in the world, to discover what happens when revenge and retribution replace justice and mercy. It is as gripping to read as any legal thriller, and what hangs in the balance is nothing less than the soul of a great nation.”
Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson is a memoir and non-fiction book that sheds light on the systemic racism and flaws within the US criminal justice system. It shares Stevenson’s experiences defending vulnerable clients on Death Row and his work to create a more just society.
This book was chosen as a primer to learn about the difficult odds for those leaving prison and how we might engage to be of support. “I am persuaded that the opposite of poverty is not wealth; the opposite of poverty is justice. We are all implicated when we allow others to be mistreated. An absence of compassion can corrupt the decency of a community, a state, an entire nation. Fear and anger can make us cruel and abusive.”
Book: available for sale in the Cathedral Bookshop and online
Video of the author speaking about his book: https://www.youtube.
You can join in person or on Zoom:
Discussion: Heritage Room, Tuesday, July 30th. Bag lunch and discussion noon-1:30.
Zoom discussion: July 30th 7–8:30 pm. https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87918442086
Facilitator: Linda Brandt, Lay Leader of Saint Mark’s Call to Serve