Friday Fruit (03/29/13)

On Fridays, BTSF offers links to other discussions about race & Christianity. It's an opportunity for you to read about racial justice & Christianity from other perspectives, and for me to give props to the shoulders on which I stand...


Weekly Round Up:

• Listening well as a person of privilege: Communicate on their terms, not your own

• What's Wrong With the Term 'Person of Color'

• This... is White Privilege

• A Day in Immigration Court
• Thanks for the rec, John!

• To Chinua Achebe, With Love

• Number of Asian and Latino Writers for TV Are Up

These are some of BTSF's links of interest this week. What are yours?

Feel free to contribute your own links in the comments section, or submit items you feel should be included during the week. Self-promotion is encouraged.

Resurrection and Reconciliation

As Easter approaches, let us reflect on the miracle of Christ's resurrection--a resurrection that reconciled us to God the Father in a way that we could never have done for ourselves.

You see, I know I have messed up in my life. I may not have killed anybody or committed grand theft auto, but I know I have hurt people, both intentionally and unintentionally. Sure, I am 'basically a good person' when I am well rested and not pressed for time, but I have lied when cornered, and wished ill for someone when I wanted to get ahead. I have thought I was better than so-and-so at such-and-such. I have had thoughts in my heart that I wouldn't want to share with my closest friends, let alone a holy powerful God, in any sort of intimate way.

And I know God loves me profoundly, but He also loves the people I have been disrespectful to, or have been scornful of. And He kinda wishes I hadn't done those hurtful things to His children and He would like it if I would make it right with them.

If only there were a way that I could apologize for all of those things, or pay some sort of compensation, so that when I saw God in heaven, I wouldn't be so embarrassed. Some way that when He reflects on the times I have been cruel to my siblings on earth, I could say "yeah, but I did X hours of community service to make up for it!"

But how many hours would be enough? And what happens when, as soon as I finish them, I have another angry outburst at my husband, or become jealous of my next door neighbor. And so I have to compensate for those new hurts too...Ad nauseum. There are simply not enough hours in a day, or days in a lifetime to keep covering my tracks.

Enter scene: Jesus. A guy with all the love of the Father, but all the personal experience of the struggles here on earth. He lived His life without accumulating a list of errors and oops that we all collect, which meant that by the time He died, He had no apologies to make, no compensation He needed to pay for His wrong-doings. He could stand before God, totally unhindered and unembarrassed.

Yet when the time came, He reflected on my failed attempts to apologize for myself, and said to God "blame me for the things she has done. Treat her as though she had lived her life perfectly, and let me spend the rest of eternity writing her apology notes, and repaying the hurts she caused. Let us trade places in Your eyes so that she need not feel the weight of her mistakes, but instead can enjoy her time with You, totally guilt free."



And so that is what they did: Jesus took the blame, and I got the promise that, if I want to, I can spend the rest of my existence enjoying an uninhibited relationship with the One who knows me, and loves me, the best.

Reconciliation: With one hand,
He holds to the Father,
and with the other, he holds to us
as we make the journey

Jesus, in the mean time, is a lot stronger, faster, and more powerful than I am. He managed to take the blame for my issues, and deal with all of the consequences of my mistakes, yet sill make it home in time for Easter dinner. Not only mine, but everyone elses's as well.

Without any mistakes of His own, and having the power and wisdom of the Father, He was ideally suited to take care of business. So much so, that having accomplished it, He too can now stand before God, unhindered and unembarrassed. It was His resurrection that demonstrated this ability, this power, to accomplish what I could not do on my own.

It is this miracle that we celebrate on Easter. It is this trading-places that makes me eternally grateful. It is why I follow Him, and try to take His advice on how to live my life. It was on the first Easter that Jesus reconciled us to God, so that we need not feel shame, regret, or humiliation, only bathe in God's love and caring:

 "But now He has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation" (Colossians 1:22) 

"All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation." (2 Corinthians 5:18-19)

Sisters and brothers, now that we have vertical reconciliation with God, let us work for horizontal reconciliation with each other: "Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." We must continue to Stand in the tragic gap, between what is and what could be. We must remember how Jesus forgave even as He was on the Cross, and learn to forgive one another, be reconciled to one another.

Friday Fruit (3/22/13)

On Fridays, BTSF offers links to other discussions about race & Christianity. It's an opportunity for you to read about racial justice & Christianity from other perspectives, and for me to give props to the shoulders on which I stand...


Weekly Round Up:

• Listening well as a person of privilege: Solidarity first, collaborative problem-solving later

• Kimani Gray

• Black President. Latino Pope. Evangelicals Are You Paying Attention?

• Urban Legends: Rethinking Inner-City Ministry

• If March Madness Were Based on Black Grad Rates, Who Would Win?

• Why Jail Is Not the Answer for Youth Crime [Video]

These are some of BTSF's links of interest this week. What are yours?

Feel free to contribute your own links in the comments section, or submit items you feel should be included during the week. Self-promotion is encouraged.

Kiss me! I’m an Immigrant

Please welcome back Rev. Marty Troyer, pastor of Houston Mennonite Church, on whose site the original version this post was published. In honor of St. Patrick's Day, he takes us through some reflections on how 'minority status' has changed over the past 200 years in the United States: 

We’ve come a long way, haven’t we?

Every year, St. Patrick’s Day parades all across the country kick-off revelry surrounding all things Irish. The day began as a religious holiday for Christians to celebrate the life of one of our saints, Patrick. But now everyone’s going green: leprechauns, pinching, luck, Guinness, kissing, wearing green. But it certainly hasn’t always been this way.

In the 1800’s Irish immigrants weren’t celebrated, though their hard working hands did the manual labor “we” were unwilling to do. Rather, they were derided, threatened, opposed and run out of town in every state in the union. Unwelcome in America because of their religion, non-whiteness (yes, the racial category of “white” was much narrower at the time) and slowness in assimilation (the previously mentioned St. Patrick’s Day celebrations empowered Irish immigrants to survive in a hostile culture), the Irish were the target of a nativist, xenophobic movement known as the Know Nothings, or, ironically “The Native American Party.”

Perhaps we haven’t come so far after all. Arizona’s SB 1070 (and copycat laws in other states) has been made into law. Congress is has had hearings on terrorism by American Muslims thanks to Peter King from New York. The message is clear: you are unwelcome in America because of your religion and slowness to assimilate. They follow Prime Ministers Angela Merkel of Germany and David Cameron of the UK, who said in recent years that the multicultural experiment has utterly failed.

This anti-immigrant fervor advocates for a “melting pot” approach where racial/ethnic/religious minorities must assimilate into the dominate culture mythically referred to as “we.” But who is this “we” anyway? And why are “we” so sure “they” aren’t part of “us”? And since when does Representative King get to decide who “we” are?

The 'Know Nothing' party’s
 nativist “ideal” 

Jesus ran into this same exclusivist attitude many times. In fact, Luke says his first public sermon nearly got him killed just for mentioning God’s acceptance of the “outsider.” The “they” in Jesus culture, more than anyone, were an ethnic-religious minority group known as the Samaritans. And when Jesus was once asked who our neighbors are that we’re supposed to love, he answered with a story. The story unmasks two insiders who have no regard for human suffering or rights even for another insider; but it highlights an outsider Samaritan who embodies what it means to be a good neighbor. Where once animosity and hatred separated the “we” from the “they,” the essence of Jesus’ mission and ours is to break barriers and form friendships.

The Bible we Christians read is clear on this point, we are to love the stranger among us because we were once strangers. And who among us, except of course the true Native Americans, wasn’t once a stranger in this new world?

So I’ve got a couple invitations for you this week. Let’s see St. Patrick’s Day as a reminder of our collective ability to turn from exclusion to embrace. Let’s celebrate that the “they” who were once “they” are now part of our “we.” And this week, I invite you to tune out the anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant, anti-neighbor rhetoric and listen instead to a familiar voice of reconciliation and welcome: Saint Patrick’s.

When he was fourteen, Patrick was victim of the unthinkable tragedy of being kidnapped from his home and stolen away to Ireland. He later escaped his captors and returned home. Within several years he responded to Christ’s call on his life and returned to Ireland not to seek revenge but for reconciliation with his captors. He lived the rest of his days sharing Christ’s love for all people in Ireland.

To all the Christian readers in this amazing country of beautiful multicultural diversity: “Go and do likewise.” Perhaps our political leaders don’t believe in diversity of cultures, but our God does. Wouldn’t it be great if we Christians were known not for our exclusivity, but for our ability to “love the stranger as you love yourself”?


To all my Muslim and Latino/a (and Irish!) readers I say welcome home! This land is your land, this land is my land. Forgive us for our sins, we don’t know what we’re doing. I so deeply regret that you have been shaken by being “vilified, questioned and even legislated against” by people who claim to worship the prince of peace. But stay strong in your faith, and together we’ll get it right. This Christian pastor is glad you’re here.

Note: I’m actually not Irish, I’m Swiss/German through and through. As a Mennonite with Germanic roots, this story could just as easily be told through the lens of our own stories of immigration.

Friday Fruit (3/15/13)

Bishop Minerva Carcaño

On Fridays, BTSF offers links to other discussions about race & Christianity. It's an opportunity for you to read about racial justice & Christianity from other perspectives, and for me to give props to the shoulders on which I stand...


Weekly Round Up:

• Can’t We All Get Along?

• Listening well as a person of privilege: Recognize that the rules are different for you

• The Bible Series and Our Racial Perceptions

• See also: Black Samson and White Women on the History Channel

• Juries Twice As Likely to Demand Death Penalty for Black Defendants Than White

• An excellent resource for multicultural children's books
• Thanks for the rec Carolyn!

• Methodist Bishop Minerva Carcaño On Front Lines of Immigration Battle

These are some of BTSF's links of interest this week. What are yours?

Feel free to contribute your own links in the comments section, or submit items you feel should be included during the week. Self-promotion is encouraged.

Is Justice New?

There is a tremendous wave of white Christians newly on fire for justice, growing in passion and energy. Some of us once felt justice work competed with the message of the Gospel, but are now understanding that they go hand-in-hand (see post: The Social Gospel Saved My Soul). We are proclaiming God's heart for justice and bringing resources of time, money, and voice to many issues of injustice in our time.

But let us be cautions in labeling the Christian justice moment as 'new.' It may be new for young Christians. It may be new for some Christian denominations. It may be new for Christians of privilege (particularly white Christians). But Christian justice is not new.

Those whom we marginalize in our societies have always been central to the heart of God. King David declared that "the LORD secures justice for the poor and upholds the cause of the needy" (Psalm 140:12) and John the Baptist insisted that "anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same” (Luke 3:11).

Indeed, the very beginning of Jesus's ministry was marked with the words "He has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free" (Luke 4:8).

St. John Chrysostom

Since then, generations of bold Christians that loved Jesus have paved the way for the work justice on earth. Clement of Rome (c. 96 AD) testified that Christians were selling themselves into slavery to raise money to feed the poor. In the 4th Century, St. John Chrysostom asserted: “not to enable the poor to share in our goods is to steal from them and to deprive them of life. The goods we possess are not ours but theirs...That which is due in justice is not to be offered as a gift of charity."

More recently, representatives of the the Church have continued the tradition of Christ-driven justice in the modern world. John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement, was a prominent advocate for prison reform and abolitionist movements in the 18th-century and it was a Christian that coined the term 'social justice' in the 1840s.

Others, like John Ryan, Dorothy Day, Geoffrey Griffin, Toyohiko Kagawa, and Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez, stewarded Christianity's justice advocacy in the 20th century. The Chicago Declaration of Evangelical Social Concern was written in 1973, with the formation of Evangelicals for Social Action that same year.

Prathia Hall

Many clergy and churches were at the forefront of civil rights movement, though they often had to compensate for the silence of other Christians at the time. Besides the obvious, the compelling stories of Ralph Abernathy, Prathia Hall, Howard Thurman, Cecil Williams, John Perkins (and many others) offer inspiration and guidance for our work today.

All this to say, there are many shoulders on which contemporary Christian justice advocates stand. Christ's people have a long history of leaders who have combated injustice. White Christians in particular need to honor them and learn from them as we go about our work today. Listen to their concerns and advice. Study their movements and strategies. Avail yourself of the richness of the saints that have gone before.

It is important that we acknowledge these seasoned leaders (particularly role models of color), because failing to do so undermines the very message of solidarity the we attempt to claim (see post: White Savior Complex).  Let's celebrate, and not forget them. Christians have made grave mistakes when it comes to our stand for justice in the past, but we have also accomplished great things in Christ.

Cecil Williams

Also, know that it is okay to gain inspiration and wisdom from laborers of justice that do not profess Christianity. We have a lot to learn about loving Christ's people, and sometimes non-Christians have been better than us in accomplishing it. 

Justice is not a fad. We don't (or shouldn't) participate because it's trendy. Some of us have the privilege to come and go from these movements, but many others will always be affected (whether or not it's what today's keynote speaker is addressing). Justice is hard, daily, persistent work. It hits close to home. It exposes our own sins. We must be in it for the long haul, not just while it's popular. 

I know I've just grazed the surface. Who has inspired you as a Christian committed to justice? Who do you wish I had included?

Friday Fruit (03/08/13)

UMC's Jorge Lockward

On Fridays, BTSF offers links to other discussions about race & Christianity. It's an opportunity for you to read about racial justice & Christianity from other perspectives, and for me to give props to the shoulders on which I stand...


Weekly Round Up:

• Developing Multicultural Churches in the United States
• Thanks to Brittany Browne for the submission!

• Do Cops Make Schools Safe? Students Answer [VIDEO]

• The Good, Racist People

• What if Halle Berry were 'good-looking for a white girl'?

• Wealth Distribution: Ideal, Perception, and Reality [VIDEO]

These are some of BTSF's links of interest this week. What are yours?

Feel free to contribute your own links in the comments section, or submit items you feel should be included during the week. Self-promotion is encouraged.

'I have called you by name, Quvenzhané'

Names are important. They are integral to our identity and self-worth. Throughout the bible, names signify heritage and history (Moses, Samuel), and are given to mark moments of great significance (Abraham, Israel, Peter, Paul). This is why it's so meaningful when we hear God say "I have called you by name" (Isaiah 43:1)

And yet, when Quvenzhané Wallis, the youngest actress ever nominated for an Oscar, had her moment on the red carpet, the media could not give her that same grace. Instead, they took it upon themselves to give her nicknames (and vulgarities).

They might have addressed her with a respectful 'Miss. Wallis.' Or politely asked how to pronounce her first name. Or best of all, they might have done the research ahead of time to learn how she preferred to be addressed. Instead she was called 'Q,' 'little Q,' 'Miss Q.' An AP reporter even decided "I'm just going to call you Annie," to which Wallis replied "My name is not Annie. It’s Quvenzhane."

Tracy Clayton notes that "Refusing to learn how to pronounce Quvenzhané’s name says, pointedly, you are not worth the effort...You will be who and what I want you to be; you be who and what makes me more comfortable....only on my terms" She also notes that Hollywood has managed to master names like Zellweger, Galifianakis, and Schwarzenegger. 

That this happened to a famous movie star should be no wonder when we routinely commit such indignities in our daily lives. Names given to some black children are mocked as being 'made up' or not 'real' names. White folks will substitute them for names that are more familiar to our own culture.  It shows that we think very little of a person when we will not bother to learn or respect their name. Why not celebrate the richness of deeply personal and beautiful names, instead?

StoryCorp's 'Facundo the Great'

Similarly, we anglicize Spanish names rather than pounce them as given (David, Paula; check out this great StoryCorps video) or we are unduly confused by traditions of multiple last/middle names. Folks of East Asian heritage sometimes just give up and simply choose an 'English name' to save themselves the trouble. Even holy names that are not Judeo-Christian can inspire fear and hatred in some. 

White ridicule of black names can be traced to days when slave owners replaced the given-names of their enslaved African people with European names that they could more easily manage (and even then, it was likely to be the diminutive Ben, rather than Benjamin). Might these new enslaved people have felt much like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, being persecuted in a foreign land and forced to take on name from their captors? 

Our biases continue to have serious implications today. It's been well established that when judging resumes, employers will turn away equally-qualified candidates with non-white names. Likewise  a teacher's respect for a student drastically affects how that child will perform on tests. Yes, I have sympathy for teachers on the first day of school when reading the roster. But what better way to show a new student that you care than by learning their name?

If it's a new name to you, just ask politely and respectfully how it should be pronounced, and then listen carefully. Don't assume that it's abnormal, or that it is rare. Don't joke, sneer, pun, or otherwise emphasis it as an oddity. Instead, be glad for our freedom to carefully and lovely choose beautiful names for our children. We are each unique--it is wonderful to have a name that reflects one's individuality. 

Remember that a name is someone's identity. Erasure of a name is an erasure of identity. When we exoticize someone's name we reveal how deeply steeped we are in our own culture, and how blind we are to the values of others'.

"give your daughters difficult names. 

give your daughters names that command the full use of tongue. 

my name makes you want to tell me the truth. 

my name doesn’t allow me to trust anyone that cannot pronounce it right." 

warsan shire

Friday Fruit (03/01/13)

Actress Lupe Ontiveros

On Fridays, BTSF offers links to other discussions about race & Christianity. It's an opportunity for you to read about racial justice & Christianity from other perspectives, and for me to give props to the shoulders on which I stand...


Weekly Round Up:

• 3 Latino Lessons on Racial Reconciliation

• Can I Be Navajo and Christian?

• Language myth #13: Black children are verbally deprived

• Kids aren’t colorblind. Your conversations with them shouldn’t be either

• Oscars Racial Round Up:

• Denzel and Quvenzhané Are The Only Actors of Color Nominated for Oscars

• Apparently, People Have Beef With Quvenzhané Wallis

• Oscars ‘In Memoriam’ Snubs Lupe Ontiveros, Twice

These are some of BTSF's links of interest this week. What are yours?

Feel free to contribute your own links in the comments section, or submit items you feel should be included during the week. Self-promotion is encouraged.