Dear Long Weekend Spenders:

When policy or politics seems to be careening out of control, I often take comfort in history, finding how we have endured even greater upheavals in past disasters. It’s a technique found in several Psalms (41, 61, 71, 91, 140 and others), where the author reminds the reader of God’s help and provision during great calamities of the past, concluding that God will surely be present for us now. Perhaps the best hymnological example is “Our God, Our Help in Ages Past,” where Isaac Watts (1674-1748) paraphrased Psalm 90 into a glorious congregational song (sample here). A more contemporary example can be found in Tom Trenney’s soulful hymn, “God Wouldn't Bring You This Far to Leave You” (2022, sample here). I find singing this affirmation even more reassuring than reading it.

So with survivorship in mind, my musing today turns to Black Friday, the annual retail frenzy spurred by an extra day off after Thanksgiving. It seems exploitative to pin a day of spending immediately after being loosened up by a day of thanks, but it’s the same logic that in worship places the offering right after the sermon and prayer. Like so many traditions,