Beyond Thoughts and Prayers: The Rituals of Freedom

Oct 27, 2025

Liz Theoharis and Charon Hribar, co-editors of *We Pray Freedom*, are dedicated leaders in the faith-based anti-poverty movement. They explore how liturgy can be a powerful tool for collective resistance, emphasizing the importance of 'praying with your feet.' Through personal stories and examples like a memorial liturgy for the unhoused and reimagined Las Posadas, they illustrate how rituals can embody hope and challenge injustice. The discussion also addresses the ongoing 'war on the poor' and the resilience found in community organizing and celebration.

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ANECDOTE

Early Grassroots Organizing Roots

Liz describes grassroots anti-poverty organizing starting in college in Philadelphia.
Her work included moving with homeless families into abandoned housing and founding the Kairos Center.

ANECDOTE

From Steel Town To Liberation Theology

Charon recounts growing up in a steel town and finding liberation theology in college.
That formation led her to grassroots organizing and founding work with the Kairos Center.

INSIGHT

Prayer As Mobilizing Practice

Prayer in the book is a mobilizing practice, not passive wishful thinking.
Liz and Charon frame prayer as collective organizing that builds power and action.

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Brad welcomes Liz Theoharis and Charon Hribar, editors of We Pray Freedom: Liturgies and Rituals from The Freedom Church of the Poor. Both guests are key leaders in the faith-based anti-poverty movement and longtime organizers with the Poor People’s Campaign. Together, they discuss how liturgy and ritual can be reclaimed as acts of collective resistance, solidarity, and hope among the poor and dispossessed.

The conversation weaves through Liz and Charon’s personal journeys—Liz’s formation in faith-driven social justice work and Charon’s discovery of liberation theology growing up in a steel town—and traces how decades of grassroots organizing through the Kairos Center inspired this new book. They explore how faith traditions, particularly Christianity, can serve as public, justice-oriented practice rather than private belief, what it means to “pray with your feet,” and how ritual itself can be political.

Drawing from We Pray Freedom, the guests share powerful examples: a memorial liturgy for unhoused people at New York’s Potter’s Field, a reimagined Las Posadas led by migrant communities, and multi-faith celebrations like Diwali and Passover that embody joy, resilience, and defiance. They also address the current “war on the poor” in the U.S.—from healthcare cuts to attacks on education—and highlight how communities continue to organize, resist, and find joy together.

This episode is both a spiritual and practical conversation about how worship, art, and music can sustain movements for justice.

Resources Mentioned:

We Pray Freedom: Liturgies and Rituals from The Freedom Church of the Poor – available via Bookshop.org and major retailers
Companion site: weprayfreedom.org (includes songs, liturgies, and other materials)
The Kairos Center: kairoscenter.org | @kairoscenternyc

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