Cornerstone Magazine: Fall 2014 Volume III Issue II | Page 4

Each Tree Is Known
Lydia Yamaguchi ’13

Letter from
the Editor

When Faith Goes Public
Many of us have friends on Facebook (and in real life)
who are not shy about their relationships. I’m sure you
already have some coupled friends in mind: people who
are very publicly affectionate, who make it easy to figure
out where they are in their relationship—or, honestly,
where they went on their last date. Maybe you gag a little
when you see these posts, or maybe you go through
all their couple photos because you are a masochist
genuinely happy for their fairytale lives. Maybe you’re in
that relationship. Whatever the case, this is a Christian
literary arts magazine, so you know where this is going.
I am not asking whether you have listed your faith
background under Religious Views on your Facebook
profile. I am not even asking whether you post selfies
with memory verses every week. Rather, I am asking
whether you live comfortably in your faith or actively go
out of your way because of it. Faith is not a set of beliefs
but complete a pattern of behavior, public and private,
with a set of beliefs at its foundation. I often find myself
frustrated by the inaction of many Christians, including
myself, who seem to feel that it is sufficient to believe in
a God who will restore the brokenness of this world one
day. This notion is no different from the notion that love is
enough to sustain a relationship without doing anything
about it. In the words of bell hooks, “love is really more
of an interactive process. It’s about what we do not just
what we feel. It’s a verb, not a noun.” Likewise, faith
must be an action—not something we simply have.
To maintain love, like faith, and like all things good in this
world, you must fight, and you must work hard. You must
be public about your relationship, but not simply to prove to
everyone else that you are happy. Faith is not about being
recognized as a “good Christian” to all your friends. You
must be more than active—you must be proactive. Go out
of your way to love your neighbor, feed the hungry, and care
for the broken. The next time you see someone being cruel
to another human being, take it as if they were being cruel
to you. We cannot ignore suffering, especially in situations
where we can affect change. We cannot opt for comfort
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CORNERSTONE Magazine

when others are in pain. We must speak up on behalf of
the silenced in the same way Jesus spoke up for women
and children, stand up for the oppressed the way Jesus
stood up for those who were poor and disabled, include
the marginalized in society as Jesus included prostitutes
and tax collectors among his chosen, and serve others
with humility and compassion as Jesus healed the sick
and broken-hearted. Being public about your faith isn’t all
about convincing Christians and converting non-Christians.
Being public about your faith means living out your beliefs
in a way that makes you vulnerable and uncomf