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At the British royal wedding in 2018, we saw (on TV) something extra along with the pretty flowers and hats. We heard a sermon that’s echoed around the world, from Rev. Michael Curry, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church.

Bishop Curry told us all that there’s power in love – power to change the world. He said, “Love is not selfish and self-centered. Love can be sacrificial, and in so doing, becomes redemptive. And that way of unselfish, sacrificial, redemptive love changes lives, and it can change this world…When love is the way, we know that God is the source of us all, and we are brothers and sisters, children of God.”

When love is the way, we are set free from fear, greed, envy, and hatred. When love is the way, we are all set free. What can we do to help bring that day about? Let’s not wait for someone else to go first. Let’s make a point of acting and speaking in love and generosity and fearlessness ourselves, no matter where we are, no matter who’s around us. Let’s give it a try – and change the world.

This message is excerpted from “What can we do to bring about a loving world?” by Audrey Novak Riley from the June 28, 2024, blog of the Women of the ELCA. Today we commemorate Columba, 597; Aidan, 651; Bede, 735; renewers of the church.