When we want to reach out to someone today, most of us send an electronic message – a text, an email, a social network posting.  While these communication methods are easy and efficient, they contain little of the intimacy of the handwritten letter or word.  Handwritten letters, I was reminded this summer while cleaning my parents home, brings an intimacy to the reading…the cast of the letters, the words chosen, the crossed out mistakes…that we do not have with electronic communications.

The art form of the letter is also a means of knowledge sharing…the letters of Martin Luther King, JRR Tolkien, as examples provide insight to what they were thinking as they engaged in civil rights actions, created  new worlds – their letters humanize them.  In recognition of National Handwriting Day on January 23, the sermon will reflect on why handwritten letters, memorabilia, etc., matter and end with a call for engagement with local leaders through writing a postcard.

Topics: Video recording