Why Are You So Angry?
BODY/BREATH
Sit in a comfortable seat with your back supported. Slowly breathe into your nose and out your mouth. Breathe deeply from your belly rather than your chest. Repeat breaths as long as necessary. Scan your body and release any tension you notice. Relax and trust.
READ
"Be angry, and do not sin; ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent.” – Psalm 4:4
“But anger expressed and translated into action in the service of our vision and our future is a liberating and strengthening act of clarification…...Anger is loaded with information and energy….Focused with precision it can be a powerful source of energy serving progress and change.” – Audre Lorde
QUESTION
Do you acknowledge your anger? What is it saying to you? Do you take it seriously? Who can hear, hold and honor your righteous anger without apology or needing you to tend to their feelings? Where can you feel angry and still be heard? How do we use and experience our own anger at white supremacy, misogyny, homophobia or any systems of oppression? How do you acknowledge and support the anger of others in healthy and constructive ways?
REFLECTION
I feel so misunderstood, especially when I express my righteous anger. For people who live in the margins of society, there is plenty to be angry about, and we do ourselves and others no favors to deny, ignore, dismiss, or hold on to this feeling. I am convinced we are killing ourselves, poisoning our bodies when we don’t allow our bodies to metabolize or express our anger.
So please, let’s not hurry to make our anger go away, but neither should we let it fester like malignant cancer cells eating away at our bodies. Let’s invite anger in like a friend and listen to what she is telling us. For me, I welcome my anger every damn day, and I use it to do good. As Audre Lorde once wrote, “My anger has meant pain to me but it has also meant survival, and before I give it up, I’m going to be sure that there is something at least as powerful to replace it on the road to clarity.”
PRAYER
O Holy One, help us to embrace our anger and use it for good.
