Fools Mission is pleased to direct you to a new blog by our retired leader and co-founder, Thomas Atwood! Fool’s Tales: cultural criticism, social justice, humor, arts, and the archetype of the fool is now live and features a thoughtful and provocative new essay on our recent presidential impeachment process, Impeachment, illusion, and the Godfather … Read more
In the past, I’ve described Fools Mission as a “radical” social experiment; yet I’ve recently come to think differently about that language. The original sense of the word radical comes from French and Latin: “of or pertaining to the root, having roots.” One possible image is a return to foundational ideas or principles in the … Read more
On April 7, 2018 I had the experience of a lifetime. My clown alter-ego, Alfonzo the Conjuring Fool, was blessed with the opportunity to sing A Simple Song from Leonard Bernstein’s Mass in memory of Kay Jorgensen, Co-Founder of the Faithful Fools Street Ministry in San Francisco. Kay had transitioned from this life on January … Read more
The prophet Isaiah said, “The wolf shall live with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat; The calf, the young lion, and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them.” The following essay was written by Victoria Battistini, the 10-year-old daughter of Ivonne Battistini—both members of the … Read more
Brandon Scott once wryly observed that most of what passes for Christianity is actually Neo-Platonism. And like Christianity, Platonic ideals of Truth, Beauty, Good and Evil are sure taking a beating these days. Ideals don’t readily translate into the real world, and when we do encounter a singular moment of beauty or truth, we savor … Read more
I was so pleased to be invited to deliver a sermon at the worship service of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Sunnyvale, California on August 7, 2016. In light of the results of the 2016 election, I felt motivated to post it here, as well. I hope that you find some comfort and hope, along … Read more
Editor’s Note: Fools Mission is delighted to include this essay by Sam Dennison, Resident Fool with the Faithful Fools Street Ministry in San Francisco. Last month Sam won the Great American Thinkoff, a debate contest held annually in New York Mills, Minnesota. She defended the “Yes” position in response to the proposition that “Wealth Inequality … Read more
For years, Fools Mission has dragged its feet on incorporating as a nonprofit charity. Would our Spanish-speaking friends accept this? Would they help write our mission statement? Would rules against “self-dealing” prevent recipients of financial assistance from sitting on the board, thereby reinforcing power relationships that make us uncomfortable? Would corporate governance ruin the egalitarian … Read more
In Trickster Makes This World: Mischief, Myth, and Art, author Lewis Hyde brings to life the playful and disruptive side of human imagination as it is embodied in trickster mythology. One of the characters, from Native American mythology, is Coyote. Over and over again, Coyote turns the tables on his predators and escapes becoming prey. … Read more
