Sarah Lund is a colleague and sorta-long-time-online-friend who wrote the following, which I am honored to share here —-

“Simone is claiming her power to love herself as superior to pleasing other people. Jesus teaches that the greatest calling is to love God and to love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus never said we were put on this earth to please everyone else.

The Gospel According to Simone testifies to the power of healthy self-love to liberate us from the unrealistic and unrelenting expectations of others for us to be perfect. By embracing her humanity, Simone shows us the face of Jesus, the one who was also attacked by angry mobs who said, “this can’t be the one God sent us.”

The criticism and hatred targeting Simone in the aftermath of her decision to withdraw shows how uncomfortable many people are with perceived failure, inadequacy, and imperfection.

Jesus did not live up to the people’s expectations of what a King should be and so they killed him. Humanity does not have the best track record when it comes to our heroes disappointing us.

It is time to stop hurting the very people who come bearing news of a better way to abundant life. Jesus offered us a different way to show love for one another, by sharing all that we have, by caring for the least of these.

Simone offers us a different way to be the world’s greatest of all time by not sacrificing your soul for worldly glory. Instead, she chose to support her teammates, cheering from the bleachers while taking care of herself.

Her humility, authenticity, wisdom, and grace are to be celebrated.”