BAD BUNNY – THE GIFT OF STORY

That which we have heard and known,
and what our forefathers have told us,
we will not hide from their children.

We will recount to generations to come
the praiseworthy deeds and the power of the Lord,
and the wonderful works he has done.         

[PSALM 78:3-4 BCP PSALTER]

I’m going to keep this brief today.

First of all, I identify primarily as a child of God.

Secondly, I was blessed to be born in Puerto Rico and lived there for the first seven years of my life.

Though I’ve lived on the mainland United States ever since, on Sunday, I shared in the joy and honor of watching a fantastic Super Bowl Half Time Show that put my little island on the world’s center stage.

Benito Alberto Martínez Ocasio – Bad Bunny – put on an amazing spectacle of dance, music, and entertainment that told the story of the island, its beauty, its culture, and its dignity.

Everyone loves a good story.

Stories help us to recall facts, organize our thoughts, and make sense of events.

The joy of hearing a story often eases our fears or prepares us for a future uncertainty.

Sunday, viewers witnessed the history, the struggles, and the joys of a people that have endured through a complex relationship with a colonizing nation that has treated them worse than a stepchild for more than a century.

Add to that the natural and weather-related disasters that have ravaged the island throughout its history. Again, the relationship with the United States has not provided any significant advantage. If anything, it has been quite the opposite.

But Sunday, if only for a moment, that was all forgotten, even if not forgiven.

There were watch parties all over the island and throughout the Puerto Rican diaspora. Everyone was beaming with pride.

There are lots of other places to read the reviews of the show. I won’t do that here.

But I’ve borrowed a few photos from other sources that will show the grip that these fifteen or so minutes had on the global landscape.

The two psalm verses at the top are from the second longest psalm in the Psalter. It is a historical psalm emphasizing the importance of passing down knowledge and teachings from generation to generation. 

It also stresses the faithfulness of God. We tend to forget that even in troubled times, God’s abiding presence is near.

Although Bad Bunny’s performance was not a religious one, I would argue that it had a similar effect. He concluded the show with the message: “The only thing more powerful than hate, is love.”

The story could not have been told more impactfully.

Of course there were critics. But prejudice and bigotry did not win the day.

It was joy, and excitement, and love that ruled.

And for that we say, “Thanks be to God.”

Let us pray:
O God, you manifest in your servants the signs of your presence: Send forth upon us the spirit of love, that in companionship with one another your abounding grace may increase among us; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.
(Book of Common Prayer p. 125)