Defiance Lived Out
“If we do act, in however small a way, we don’t have to wait for some grand Utopian future. The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory.”
—Historian Howard Zinn
Last fall, I interviewed a woman who immigrated from Holland some years ago. Now in her nineties, Titia Bozuwa was eight years old when Hitler’s troops stormed into her community, accompanied by scores of tanks and infantry. A mere child, she nevertheless recalled vividly when she and her family fled as the troops approached her region, only to return when it was clear that there was no safe refuge from the invasion’s impact, for her family as well as scores of others. (Bozuwa: In the Shadow)
Titia and her family lived during the German occupation in Breda, Holland, not far from the Belgian border. After invading the Kingdom of the Netherlands in May of 1940, the Germans quickly took control of the Dutch press, enforced censorship, and relied on disinformation to perpetuate Nazi propaganda. Abrupt abductions and arrests became commonplace. Titia recounts when a close Jewish childhood friend and classmate suddenly disappeared, along with the rest of her family. Fears of former neighbors turned collaborators infiltrated everyday conversations, coupled with the sound of German boots marching by their house every morning. An observant child, Titia became aware of a tense undercurrent that permeated every aspect of their lives. For the enemy not only sought control over one’s activities, they wanted nothing less than absolute allegiance.
It is therefore not surprising that years later, when writing her second book about Holland’s occupation, its title had only one word.
Defiance
An astonishing success, Sun Day, on the weekend of September 21, involved more than 500 events across the country, captured by images from Vienna, Virginia; Flagstaff, Arizona; Indianapolis, Indiana; and a large festival in Portland, Oregon. That day, a Sun Way pilgrimage wound through Boston’s city streets, a rousing crowd gathered in New York City, household basement demonstrations demystified heat pumps and solar inverters in South Carolina, Wisconsinites provided solar tours of their state’s capitol, and a marvelous dance was choreographed around solar panels at Middlebury College. (McKibben: “The Sun Shone”)
On Sun Day, people joined together for an act of proclamation. Carrying banners and signs, collective singing and music abounded, while numerous organizations, along with representatives and activists from diverse faith backgrounds, gathered to encourage people through testimony and prayer.
Indeed, the celebration of Sun Day represents an act of defiance!
Writes Bill McKibben in his book, Here Comes the Sun: A Last Chance for the Climate and a Fresh Change for Civilization: “… our liberation and our destruction are arriving at precisely the same time, offering us a remarkable choice. Everything is going wrong, except this one big thing. Our species, at what feels like a very dark moment, can take a giant leap into the light. Of the Sun.” (pg. 9)
Tragically, human history has witnessed rapacious cruelty, unbridled ambition, and widespread violence. Nor should it be surprising that excruciating episodes in history record unparalleled incompetence. Past, present, and future generations, and particularly, our entire ecosystem, have suffered egregiously and will continue to do so because of this.
However, our collective history has also been redeemed, more often than not, even in the darkest moments. Observes author and theologian Hanna Reichel, concerning hope: “[The end of the world we once knew]…has already come. Our hope cannot remain tethered to conditions that sustained it for so long.…It must be transformed. None of this is unprecedented; what is unprecedented is that today it is we who have to do the hard work of [unmasking the disinformation], grieving and picking up the pieces, holding them to the Sun, and seeing new refractions of light in their edges.” (pg. 135)
So, as people who are summoned to take a giant leap into the light of the Sun, as those beckoned to pick up the pieces and hold them to the Sun, so that new refractions of light will be revealed, what are we to do in such a time as this? As people of conscience, graced with the collective wisdom of the many who have gone before us as well as those who labor with us now, here are three guideposts to help us remain anchored in the light:
First, it is not enough to know that renewable energy from the Sun is abundantly available, continuous, and completely free. What we must understand in our bones is that energy from the Sun is, as Bill McKibben points out, diffuse. (Here Comes the Sun, pg. 181) Solar energy cannot be controlled, concentrated, or hoarded. It is grace, unmerited and freely given.
Unlike fossil fuels, solar energy is a universal source. It covers the planet, benefiting everyone, not just billionaires and oil executives. It is available to the Nigerian woman carrying water to her distant village, as it is to the citrus grower in southeast Florida. It doesn’t discriminate based on race, language, nationality, occupation, or religion. It doesn’t give a hoot if you’re a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat, fierce Independent, staunch Republican, or core MAGA supporter.
In fact, the Sun couldn’t care less if you don’t believe in renewable energy. For no matter your political persuasion, your ideology, your beliefs and convictions, no matter if you’re doing all that you can to derail if not destroy the availability of clean, prolific, and diffuse energy, the Sun keeps doing what it has been doing for billions of years, pouring out its energy—every second of every day, 365 days a year, year after year.Second, as emphasized by author and public theologian Rev. Dr. Jim Antal in his Sun Day sermon, “There is a close relationship between adherence to the truth and freedom.” Concerning the actions since Trump assumed office, he continued, “No one should be surprised when an authoritarian leader orders the deletion of vast amounts of government data—including CDC health records, Department of Education statistics, global warming data, labor reports, and census data—the ‘people in charge’ believe they are forever changing not only the traceable history, but the facts themselves and reality itself.”
Reinforcing Antal’s connection between adherence to the truth and freedom, Timothy Snyder, American historian and author, writes in the context of Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election, “Big Lies demand violence, since they command the faith of some, but cannot overcome the common sense of lived experience of others.…By generating distrust in institutions, [the net effect is that] only violence can restore the righteous order of things.…But it is also important to remember that the deliberate generation of an alternative reality is itself incompatible with democracy.Third, Hanna Reichel writes, “All of us must keep living despite what feels like the end of the world.” She continues, “Many things will [and are] happening at once. It will feel like a storm…and while it is not easy to stay calm in a storm, it is necessary. Don’t let the storm control your emotions. Don’t let the storm direct your response…. Don’t let the storm steal your focus.” (pgs. 5 & 9)
And so, we return to this word, defiance. To defy something is not to yield. It doesn’t mean that you and I are not afraid, or that the fear isn’t real. It is. But as with other terrifying things you and I may have coped with—a cancer diagnosis, bankruptcy, a sudden divorce, a home destroyed by fire, the loss of a loved one—we don’t have to allow it to consume us, as tempting as it may be.
Ultimately, we alone choose to whom we consent and on what we will stake our lives. Take heart! The Divine One summons us to live our lives in such a way as to testify to a more enduring and universal truth. An uneasy truth, but at the same time, it illuminates. A truth challenged on all sides, but one that holds us firmly. A truth that shines as brightly as our closest star, the Sun. The Sun, which shines on in us, now and always. Amen.
You can also read this essay on our website.
Annotated Bibliography
Antal, Jim, “Celebrating the Truth About Creation and More,” Sermon at Old South Church, September 21, 2025. The Rev. Dr. Antal serves as Special Advisor on Climate Justice to UCC General Minister and President, and is a member of the Third Act Faith Coordinating Committee.
Bozuwa, Titia, Defiance (Portsmouth: Piscataqua Press, 2017). Though a work of historical fiction, the author pays tribute to those who defied the German occupation.
Bozuwa, Titia, In the Shadow of the Cathedral: Growing Up in Holland During World War II (Sanbornville: Triple-Tulip Press, 2004). During our interview, the author shared the challenges of speaking from the perspective of a child, but seen through the lens of time and history.
McKibben, Bill, Here Comes the Sun: A Last Chance for the Climate and a Fresh Change for Civilization (New York: Norton & Co, 2025).
McKibben, Bill, “The Sun Shone Across America,” The Crucial Years, (Substack) September 21, 2025. Given the overwhelming success of Sun Day, thanks to Bill McKibben for providing highlights.
Reichel, Hanna, For Such a Time as This: An Emergency Devotional (Grand Rapids: William Eerdman, 2025).
Snyder, Timothy, “Life as a Lie: Trump, Santos and Putin,” Thinking About… (Substack), January 24, 2023.
Zinn, Howard, You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train: A Personal History of our Times (Boston: Beacon Press, 2002).
About Jessica McArdle
An ordained minister with the United Church of Christ, Rev. Dr. Jessica McArdle has served on the Southern New England UCC’s Environmental Ministries Team for several years. She was co-creator of Third Act Faith’s virtual Sun Day Liturgy with Martin Wagner. Dedicated to nurturing preaching in a climate-changed world, Jessica facilitates Eco-Preacher cohorts through The BTS Center in Maine. She posts at thespiritualactivist.blog.
“Going Deep” is one of two newsletters published by Third Act Faith. Our other newsletter, Third Acts of Faith, provides our members and subscribers with the month's latest “News & Views.” It is usually published on the third Thursday of each month.
You expressed so well what we are facing. Thank you! Please read about the strong message of the Catholic Bishops of the global south on the climate crisis in preparation for COP30: https://markrfaithreasonhope.substack.com/p/when-the-bishops-of-the-global-south?r=60cvvx. And please consider signing up for an hour of prayer during the COP30 sessions: https://signup.com/group/961924068053.