Wisdom from the Margins, and the Greater Common Good

Bill Grace is an author, motivational speaker, consultant, and social justice and human rights leader. His recent book The Rock is a highly recommended, visionary work, urging us all to commit our lives to the greater common good. Bill’s work is key to turning the tides towards a common vision of social justice in which we recognize our inherent interconnectedness and the vital role that each of us play in this journey.

Grace cites Ambrose Redmoon who said, “Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.” He goes on to say that “courage begins with recognizing our fears and continues with our stepping into them, saying, “I am afraid and I will move ahead anyways because I know what is right.” Complementing these reflections on fear and forward movement is visionary and activist, former leader of Burma, Aung Sun Suu Kyi, who was placed under house arrest for years after facing death by the opposition military junta of Burma who were threatened by her democratic leadership. Suu Kyi is a study in inspiration and leadership – she gave up most everything, including her husband, children and freedom, in the interest of honoring and protecting her country. Suu Kyi said that, “courage comes from cultivating the habit of refusing to let fear dictate one’s actions – ‘grace under pressure.” She mastered this, and there is so much we can learn from her fearlessness and grace. Fear is not to be avoided; it is often the most powerful teacher and ally. If we can have the courage to walk through the fire, to slay the dragons of fear, doubt and despair, we have every potential to contribute to the greater common good.

Grace goes on, quoting Cornel West, “Justice is what love looks like in public.” I love this quote! Grace discusses existential freedom, the freedom to be fully present and fully responsible for one’s life, and to live life focused on a purpose greater than one’s self. This reminds me of the many times that I have been reminded that there is no safety in silence. When we are quiet about what we believe in, when we silence the voice for justice that is within each of us, we dishonor ourselves, those around us, and the world which desperately needs all of us, our service and our best selves. As Marianne Williamson says, “by letting your own light shine, you unconsciously give others permission to do the same.”

In systems of the oppressor and the oppressed, which is not a duality, but which we all experience to some extent within ourselves, Grace says that people “realize there may well be a price to pay for challenging the system and that they are already paying a price for their passivity.” Thus, it is up to each of us; which price are we willing to pay? The price of silence, of making concession after concession until you don’t know who you are any more, of a silent death, or the price of shining the light, using your voice, and standing up to injustices. Paulo Coelho talks about the risk of following your dreams, and states that the greater risk is never trying, of never living up to your potential. It is the same concept, we risk by standing up and speaking our minds, we risk by following our dreams and living our most authentic lives – but at a certain point, there is simply no other choice. There is nowhere left to hide.

Mary Oliver said that, “There was a new voice, which you slowly recognized as your own, that kept you company as you strode deeper and deeper into the world, determined to do the only thing you could do – determined to save the only life you could save.”

Save your own life. Use your voice, discover it, express it, and use it to proclaim your own vision.