How to Write Your Very Own Rodgers & Hammerstein Musical (Take 2)

This may sound familiar to people who have been following my blog for a while. A few years ago after watching an Anna Russell sketch in which she details how to write your own Gilbert & Sullivan operetta, I was inspired to write some notes on a similar approach to Rodgers & Hammerstein musicals, as they also have many common threads. After writing my notes on paper, they disappeared. Finally, in 2018, having not found my notes, I wrote what I remembered of them for the All Things Broadway blog. When that blog went down, I reblogged it here. 

I have recently been going through my papers and finally found the notes! So, as I originally intended, I am adapting them here, based on the actual notes and not just my memory of them. I am also incorporating more points that weren't in my notes, but most of the below points were there.

Ezio Pinza, Barbara Luna, Michael or Noel De Leon, Mary Martin,
in the final scene of the original production of South Pacific (1949)

Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein III wrote multiple musicals, many of which went on to be classics. They had a very distinct style, however, and you can generally tell by listening to them that they are Rodgers & Hammerstein. Inspired by Anna Russell's lesson on writing your own Gilbert & Sullivan operetta, I sat down a few years ago to come up with some important elements to remember when writing your own R&H musical. I put examples in as subpoints below. The examples, of course, are not comprehensive lists.

The plot should tackle some controversial subject. For example, The Sound of Music involved Nazis. Carousel and Oklahoma! involved abuse. Carousel involved attempted robbery and suicide. Oklahoma! involved drugs ("Egyptian smelling salts"), which brought on a hallucinogenic dream that turned into a nightmare. Flower Drum Song had a mail-order bride, illegal immigration, and a striptease. South Pacific involved interracial and intercultural romance (which was more controversial at the time than it is now), racism in general, and a major character who killed in self-defense. The King & I involved slavery and a harem.

The overture must be relatively or extremely long. If there is an entr'acte, it should also be long.

There must be some element of love, no matter how far-fetched.

• The lovers must sing a duet in which one of them sings the first verse and then the other sings the first verse nearly verbatim back to them. 
• "Sixteen Going on Seventeen" from The Sound of Music
• "Ten Minutes Ago" and "Do I Love You Because You're Beautiful?" from Cinderella
• "If I Loved You" from Carousel
• "I Have Dreamed" and "We Kiss in a Shadow" from The King & I
• "People Will Say We're in Love" and "All er Nothin' " from Oklahoma!
• The male lover may be a widowed man with children, though the number of children he has varies. 
• Captain Von Trapp in The Sound of Music
• Emile de Becque in South Pacific
• The main female lover may have a quirky friend who is also in love 
• Carrie Pipperidge (friend of Julie Jordan) in Carousel
• Ado Annie Carnes (friend of Laurey Williams) in Oklahoma!
• At least one of the lovers should go through a short period of time when they are, or look like they are, or think they are, in love with someone else. 
• Laurey Williams and Curly McLain/Jud Fry, as well as Ado Annie Carnes and Will Parker/Ali Hakim, in Oklahoma!
• Sammy Fong/Wang Ta and Linda Low/Mei Li (it's complicated) in Flower Drum Song
• Captain Von Trapp and Maria Rainer/Baroness Elsa Schraeder in The Sound of Music
• A pair of lovers should sing a song dreaming about their life together. 
• "An Ordinary Couple" from The Sound of Music
• "Sunday" from Flower Drum Song
• "When the Children Are Asleep" from Carousel
• The lovers don't always have to marry each other, but that is preferable. 
• Some couples marry, though the wedding may or may not be shown onstage:
• Curley and Laurey (Oklahoma!)
• Julie and Billy, Enoch and Carrie (Carousel)
• Maria and the Captain (The Sound of Music)
• Cinderella and the Prince
• Nellie and Emile (South Pacific) are engaged. 
• Things look promising for Ado Annie and Will (Oklahoma!)
• Some couples do not marry, for various reasons:
• Liesl and Rolf (The Sound of Music) 
• Cable and Liat (South Pacific)
• Tuptim and Lun Tha (The King & I).
• One of the lovers may sing a solo love song. 
• "Younger than Springtime" and "I'm in Love with a Wonderful Guy" from South Pacific
• "Mister Snow" from Carousel
• "The Surrey with the Fringe on Top" from Oklahoma!

A hate song is an added bonus. The singer may or may not actually hate, but they would like to think so. 

• "Stonecutters Cut it on Stone" from Carousel
• "I'm Gonna Wash that Man Right Outta My Hair" from South Pacific
• "Many a New Day" from Oklahoma!

In lieu of a hate song, or along with it, the lovers might sing a love song trying to convince each other (or trying to make it look like) they aren't actually in love. 

• "People Will Say We're in Love" from Oklahoma!
• "If I Loved You" from Carousel

There should be a song giving advice about what happy or positive thing to do when experiencing negative feelings. 

• "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music
• "I Whistle a Happy Tune" from The King & I
• "You'll Never Walk Alone" from Carousel

A major character may sing a soliloquy, in which he ponders a major decision set before him. His decision at the end of the song determines the course of the rest of his life. He does not survive the show. 

• "Soliloquy" from Carousel
• "Lonely Room" from Oklahoma!

Someone should sing a song trying to convince another character to (or not to) do something. 

• "Happy Talk" from South Pacific
• "Don't Marry Me" from Flower Drum Song
• "Climb Every Mountain" from The Sound of Music

Sometimes, this song has a haunting, wistful melody. 

• "Bali Ha'i" from South Pacific
• "Something Wonderful" from The King & I

There should be at least one song that the whole company (or nearly the whole company) sings, which is accompanied by a dance. 

• "The Farmer and the Cowman" and "Oklahoma!" from Oklahoma!
• "It's a Grand Night for Singing" from State Fair
• "This Was a Real Nice Clambake" and "You'll Never Walk Alone (reprise)" from Carousel

A variation on this would be the company dancing while the two lovers sing their duet to each other, oblivious to the company's presence. 

• "Ten Minutes Ago" and "Do I Love You Because You're Beautiful?" from Cinderella

If the state or territory where the musical is set (if it's set in the US) is important enough to the plot, there must be a song about that state or territory, preferably one which spells out the name of aforementioned state or territory. 

• "Oklahoma!" from Oklahoma!
• "All I Owe Ioway" or "It's the Little Things in Texas" from two versions of State Fair
• "Grant Avenue" (San Francisco, California, USA!) from Flower Drum Song

Characters in the musical may put on a stage production, in some cases a "play within a play." 

• "Honey Bun" in South Pacific
• "Small House of Uncle Thomas" in The King & I
• "Do Re Mi (reprise)" and "Edelweiss" in The Sound of Music
• "Fan Tan Fanny" in Flower Drum Song
• Pretty much the entire plot of Me and Juliet

One group of characters may sing a song about how they don't understand or can't stand another group. It can be men and/or women singing about each other, generations singing about each other, or really any two groups that don't fully understand each other.

• "Stonecutters Cut it on Stone" and "Give it to 'em Good, Carrie" from Carousel
• "Many a New Day" and "It's a Scandal! It's a Outrage!" from Oklahoma!
• "The Other Generation" from Flower Drum Song

An instrumental break accompanied by a dreamy ballet is a plus. This is very important to the plot.

• Oklahoma!
• Carousel
• Flower Drum Song

A major character may teach another character a dance.

• "Laendler" from The Sound of Music
• "Shall We Dance?" from The King and I

Upon thinking they have lost the love of their life, a lover sings a lament about what they believe they have lost. It generally turns out all right.

• "Geraniums in the Window" from Carousel
• "This Nearly Was Mine" from South Pacific
• "Love, Look Away" from Flower Drum Song

The musical should include the word "dope" (as in, foolish person) in there somewhere. 

• "Marry a dope, innocent and gaga" from Flower Drum Song
• "The gentleman is a dope" from Allegro
• "I sit around and mope, pretending I am wonderful, and knowing I'm a dope" from State Fair
• "I'm stuck like a dope with a thing called hope" from South Pacific
• "Because these daft and dewy-eyed dopes keep building up impossible hopes, impossible things are happening every day" from Cinderella

Something should also be "cockeyed" (askew or quirky). 

• "I'm only a cockeyed optimist" from South Pacific
• "While somersaulting at a cockeyed angle, we make a cockeyed circle round the sun" from The Sound of Music)

It may also include the word "gay" (as in happy or fun). 

• "I feel so gay in a melancholy way that it might as well be spring" from State Fair
• "Younger than springtime am I. Gayer than laughter am I." from South Pacific
• "The games they played were bright and gay and loud" from Flower Drum Song
• "Keep it gay" from Me and Juliet

No matter the subject, the finale must be called "Finale Ultimo."

It's an added bonus if your audience has collapsed in tears by the end of "Finale Ultimo."

• Carousel
• South Pacific
• The King & I

I hope this helps get the juices flowing. Have fun with your new R&H show!

Pardon Me, Sir

The commercials are classic. A car pulls alongside another, in which a man is sitting in the backseat with an fancy sandwich on a plate, with elegant silverware and the works, laid out on a seatback table. The gentleman is spreading Dijon mustard (which he just pulled out a special compartment in the car just for Dijon storage) on his sandwich. In a (usually) British accent, the man in the first car says, "Pardon me, would you have any Grey Poupon?" The man who is eating graciously says, "But of course!" He may or may not hand it to the man who requested it.

I recently found the following poem in my papers. I handwrote it at some point, but did not date it, so I don't know when it was written. I was trying to sound British, but in retrospect, I may have been trying a little too hard. All the same, I hope people find it entertaining. Perhaps it will inspire you to share your Dijon mustard. Also remember, "It's one of life's finer pleasures."

It is best read in a British accent.

Photo by Prostock-studio on Adobe Stock

Pardon me, sir
Pardon me
Could I make just one little request?
Pardon me, sir
Pardon me
Could you tell me, full of zest?
Would—
Oh dear, the traffic light is green!

How I crave it!
Oh to taste it!
My stomach's set
I need it yet!
I hope that gentleman has a bit!

Pardon me, sir
Pardon me
Could you grant one small request?
Pardon me, sir
Pardon me
Of this I do not jest
Would you—
Oh, the traffic light is green!

Oh I crave it!
Oh to taste it!
My tummy's set
I need it yet!
I sincerely hope he won't waste it!

Pardon me, sir
Pardon me
I would like to make a request
Pardon me, sir
Pardon me
If you could tell me, with some zest
Would you have any Grey Poupon?

But of course you do!
But of course!
I thank you, kind sir!
I thank you so very much!
You make me jolly!

Pardon me, sir
Pardon me...

Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité

During the French Revolution, the people called for liberté, égalité, fraternité ! Liberty, equality, fraternity! While I don't agree with their methods (really, the guillotine?), those are important qualities and things we all need to fight for. We all need to be free, equal, and brothers and sisters.

Just 12 years after the US declared independence, French people stormed the Bastille fortress in Paris on July 14, 1789, starting the process of their own declaration of independence from the crown.

Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité
Steven Sauke
Illustration

In 1790, people began to chant and sing, "Ça ira! Ça ira! Ça ira!" (literally, "That will go!", or "It will be fine!") They looked forward to throwing off aristocracy and oppression, and they were optimistic about the outcome, though, again, I disagree with their methods.

In 1792, Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle wrote a war song in the city of Strasbourg called Chant de guerre pour l'Armée du Rhin (War Song for the Army of the Rhine). It called on French patriots to rise up and defeat the oppressors who were causing bloodshed, death and destruction. Volunteers from Marseille sang it as they marched to Paris, thus inspiring the name it has today: La Marseillaise (The Marseillaise/from Marseille). It was adopted as the French Republic's anthem in 1795.

I made the above graphic a few years ago in commemoration of Bastille Day, or le 14 juillet (July 14). It depicts the French flag, along with their slogan Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité, and the fleur-de-lys. Happy Independence Day to France!

Holy, Holy, Holy: Glorious Visions of an Awesome God

Jerusalem, c. 742 BC

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another:

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty;
the whole earth is full of his glory.”

At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.

“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”

Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”

And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

- Isaiah 6:1-8 

So wrote the prophet Yesha'yahu (who we know as Isaiah), recalling his vision, likely in the temple in Jerusalem. His words would have a profound impact down through the centuries.

Patmos, Greece, latter half of the First Century AD

As he sat in prison on the Greek island of Patmos, Yochanan bar-Zebadya had a lot of time to reflect on his long and eventful life. He and his brother Yacov had followed a dynamic rabbi named Yeshua who had turned their lives around, calling them from a life of fishing into one of spreading a revolutionary new message that the Kingdom of God was at hand, and the promised Messiah had come. Three years later, he stood before the cross of his beloved rabbi, who entrusted His mother into Yochanan's care. Three days after that, he got the shock of his life when he was told that Yeshua's grave was empty! He and his friend Shimon "Petros" bar-Yonah rushed to the tomb and found it empty. Yochanan believed a miracle had happened.

As the years passed, he witnessed Yeshua (who we know as Jesus) return to life and ascend into heaven. His brother Yacov (James) was beheaded for his faith. According to tradition, his friend Petros (Peter) was crucified upside-down. Tradition states that Yochanan (John) was the only one of Yeshua's disciples who would die of natural causes. Jerusalem fell to Rome in AD 70, just as Yeshua had predicted. Nine years later, Mt. Vesuvius erupted, burying the Roman cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum and others in lava and ash and causing massive loss of life. (The date of his imprisonment is disputed, but if it was in the AD 90s as tradition states, it would have been after these events.)

Now, in prison on Patmos, Yochanan received a vision from God with a charge to write down what he saw and send it to seven churches. God had an individual message for each church, and prophecies about what was to come. The book of Revelation is the result. As he stood in God's throne room in his vision, he recalled:

After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and ruby. A rainbow that shone like an emerald encircled the throne. Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads. From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. In front of the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirit of God. Also in front of the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal.

In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back. The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle. Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stop saying:

“‘Holy, holy, holy
is the Lord God Almighty,’
who was, and is, and is to come.”

Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:

“You are worthy, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
and by your will they were created
and have their being.”

- Revelation 4 

Hodnet, England, early 1820s

Portrait of Reginald Heber
Painting by Thomas Phillips
Oil on canvas
c. 1822, British Library

Reginald Heber was Anglican vicar of Hodnet in Shropshire, England. An accomplished poet and man of God, he set out to write hymns based on dates in the Church calendar. His most well-known hymn was written for Trinity Sunday, 8 Sundays after Easter and the Sunday following Ascension Sunday. (This year it falls today, June 4.) Recalling the visions of Isaiah and John, he set out to write about the mystery of the triune (three in one) God, also known as the Trinity. He wrote:

Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty!

Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee...

Holy, Holy, Holy, Merciful and Mighty!

God in Three Persons, Blessed Trinity!...

Holy, Holy, Holy! All thy Saints adore Thee,

Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea.

Cherubim and seraphim, falling down before Thee,

Which wert, and art, and ever art to be!

Holy, Holy, Holy! Those the darkness hide Thee,

Though the eye of sinful man thy glory may not see,

Only Thou art Holy, there is none beside Thee;

Perfect in Power, in Love, and Purity! —

Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty! —

All thy works shall praise thy name in earth & sky & sea.

Holy, Holy, Holy, Merciful and Mighty!

God in Three Persons, Blessed Trinity! —

Heber would later be called to minister in Calcutta, India, where he would spend the rest of his life. He passed away of heat stroke in 1826. His hymns were published shortly after his death. The above is typed based on his manuscript.

Over the years, his lyrics have largely remained intact, though the last line of the second verse has changed from "ever art to be" to "evermore shalt be."

Years later, one John Bacchus Dykes would compose a tune he named "Nicaea," which he wrote to set Heber's lyrics to music. Along with his submission for the first edition of Hymns Ancient and Modern (1861), Dykes wrote:

I am sorry that I knew nothing of the musical arrangement of the work till just now. I should have felt so happy if I could have, either in the way of suggestion, or otherwise, rendered any little aid whatever to the musical committee. I understand that you are now in an advanced state of progress. However, I just send up these slight contributions, in case they may be of any service. The “Dies Irae” has given me much anxious thought. … The other tunes I have at different times written, finding myself unable to discover suitable music for the hymns. Some of them are sung in the Galilee of Durham Cathedral and are very popular.

This is one of my favorite hymns. It is deeply meaningful, and I sometimes get chills thinking of Isaiah, John and others who were given visions of standing before God's throne, praising Him, casting down their crowns. The song mentions angels (cherubim and seraphim), but John and Isaiah (and others) were there as humans, observing and interacting. In both visions mentioned above, John and Isaiah received a charge to spread the word of what they had seen. John was assigned 7 specific churches to tell. Isaiah volunteered to go tell the news. Reading about these visions, and singing about them, I can imagine myself standing in God's throne room, in awe, though I'm certain my imagination doesn't come close to the awesome reality of the glory. Someday I look forward to being there along with my dad, my grandparents, so many friends and relatives I have lost, as well as the heroes we read about in the Bible and down through the ages. All of us bowing before our Creator and shouting, "Holy! Holy! Holy!"

https://songsandhymns.org/hymns/detail/holy-holy-holy

https://www.hymnologyarchive.com/holy-holy-holy (This includes Heber's manuscript and Dykes' submission for the hymnal.)

https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-holy-holy-holy-lord-god-almighty

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reginald_Heber

Honored Glory

HERE LIES IN HONORED GLORY A COMRADE IN ARMS KNOWN BUT TO GOD

I was deeply moved by this inscription to the unknown soldier in the American Cemetery above Omaha Beach in Normandy, France when I visited in 1999. So many were lost on D-Day, and in many other wars. I made this graphic in memory of the unknown soldiers that we have lost. Each photo is from a different war. 

Honored Glory
Steven Sauke
May 27, 2013
Illustration and Historical Photos

Today is Memorial Day. Today we remember the heroes we have lost over the years in so many wars. Whether or not we remember their names, we honor their memories. May their memory be a blessing.

Uff da!

Uff da!

This is an all-purpose exclamation in Norwegian. The older I get and the crazier this world gets, the more useful it becomes. It doesn't have a direct translation in English, but we have a lot of phrases that cover some of it, just not the full scope. These are just a few:

• Good grief!
• Oh my!
• Oh no!
• Bless your heart
• What a mess!
• What a nightmare!
• That's hilarious!
• You've got to be kidding!
• That's so silly!
• Yikes!

Uff da!
Steven Sauke
Illustration

I made this graphic a few years ago in commemoration of Syttende mai, or May 17, Norwegian Independence Day. It features part of the Norwegian flag and, well, uff da!

Kyler

A few years ago, I joined a gym and lost a lot of weight (all told, 80 pounds). I blogged about it back in 2014 here. Kyler was one of the trainers there, and he was particularly helpful and encouraging. Once LA Fitness bought out Vision Quest, he made the leap to working at LA Fitness, and helped me get signed up there. I made an illustration of him:

Kyler Clem
Steven Sauke
Illustration
2013

2023 Update

They'll Know We Are Christians by Our Love: Striving for Unity

A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

Jesus Christ, John 13:34-35

The 1960s were turbulent times. John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963. Racial tensions were high. Malcolm X was assassinated in 1965. Martin Luther King was assassinated in 1968. Protests abounded regarding the Vietnam War, a devastating war which extended into the following decade. Many longed for peace, while others took the law (or their warped view of it) into their own hands. In alliance with Russia, Cuba threatened the US with ballistic missiles. The Cold War raged, and would continue until 1991. There was so much more that happened in that decade. 

It was during this time that the Catholic Church held the Second Vatican Council, from 1962 to 1965. Pope John XXIII called it to consider updates to the Church in response to an increasingly secularized world. How could they best reach out to a changing and very turbulent world in need of a Savior? Among many subjects they discussed and conclusions they drew, one of them was that "The restoration of unity among all Christians is one of the principal concerns of the Second Vatican Council." This reversed a previous position, where they were less accepting of non-Catholic Christians.

Photo by New Africa on Adobe Stock

It was following the Second Vatican Council that Catholic priest Peter Scholtes, who served at Chicago's St. Brendan's Parish, needed a song for his youth choir to sing for a series of ecumenical and interracial events in 1966. With people of multiple denominations and races joining together, this song needed to address unity among Christians, without regard to differences. His search came up empty. So the natural solution was to write one!

Inspired by John 13:35 (above), Scholtes wrote:

We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord;
We are one int he Spirit, we are one in the Lord;
And we pray that all unity will one day be restored.

And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love,
yes, they'll know we are Christians by our love.

We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand;
We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand;
And together we'll spread the news that God is in our land.

And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love,
yes, they'll know we are Christians by our love.

We will work with each other, we will work side by side;
We will work with each other, we will work side by side;
And we'll guard each man's dignity and save each man's pride.

And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love,
yes, they'll know we are Christians by our love.

All praise to the Father, from whom all things come;
And all praise to Christ Jesus, His only Son.
And all praise to the Spirit who makes us one.

And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love,
yes, they'll know we are Christians by our love.

This also calls to mind the words of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, shortly before His crucifixion:

My prayer is not for [the disciples] alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

John 17:20-23

Since the 1960s, the world has changed. You can see my "Days of Yore" series the past couple months to see some of the ways, but there have also been social and political changes. While integration has come a long way since the 1960s, we have so far yet to go. Many white people claiming to be Christian see someone with a different skin color, wearing a hoodie, or in some other (usually illogical) way "looking threatening," and rather than reach out and help, or mind their own business, decide to pull out a gun. Or they may choose another way to harm or murder someone. Families have been ripped apart at our Southern border. So many names over the years have joined the list of people being killed for their race, sexual orientation, and other reasons (many, though not all, by people claiming to be Christians). Breonna Taylor. Matthew Shepard. Elijah McClain. George Floyd. Ahmaud Arbery. Atatiana Jefferson. Stephon Clark. Charleena Lyles. Philando Castile. Pulse Nightclub. The January 6 insurrection. Charlottesville. Tree of Life Synagogue. Victims of multiple forms of bullying driven to suicide. Victims of egregious conspiracy theories. This barely scratches the surface. Is this the love and unity Jesus taught and commanded?

We are ONE. We are called to LOVE. As Christians, we can and MUST do better. We must work together to bring about unity.

I stand firmly in solidarity with my siblings of all shapes, sizes, colors and persuasions. We must love. Not kill. Love. Not rip families apart. Love. Not mock and jeer. Love. Not bully. Guard each person's dignity. Not tear it to shreds. We can disagree on things, but that doesn't let us off loving.

Let us pray and strive for unity! Christianity has gotten a bad name because far too many "Christians" have forgotten God's most important command: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and Love your neighbor as yourself."

Another good one to remember: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Vatican_Council
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1960s
https://pscholtes.com/obituary.htm
https://hymnary.org/person/Scholtes_P
https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/articles/history-of-hymns-theyll-know-we-are-christians-by-our-love
https://wordtoworship.com/song/14526

Tu déchires !

Je croyais que tu devais le savoir. Ça, c'est pour toi. Oui, pour toi, la personne incroyable qui lit ceci. Tu es génial ! Ne laisse personne te dire le contraire.

Tu déchires !
Dessin, stylet sur Samsung Note
Dessiné en Adobe Draw
Steven Sauke

¡Eres la máxima! ¡Eres el máximo!

Creo que debes saber. Esto es para tí. Sí, para tí, la persona increíble que lee esto. Eres una persona impresionante. No dejes que nadie les diga lo contrario.

¡Eres la máxima! ¡Eres el máximo!
Dibujo, lápiz óptico en Samsung Note
Diseñado en Adobe Draw
Steven Sauke