New Christian Century Post: Hate Crime

We are endlessly being misdirected in search of the crude “hate crime”. After centuries of racial oppression and violence, our society eventually became uncomfortable with the overtness of the racism of the past. Slavery is taken for granted as a horrific thing, something that couldn’t be assumed a few generations ago. For mainstream America, toContinue reading “New Christian Century Post: Hate Crime”

If You Missed It Live, Here’s the Recording: #MennoNerdsOnRace Panel Video

We had an excellent conversation on Race, Racism, Injustice, Reconciliation, and how following Jesus should make a difference in a racialized society, while specifically considering how Anabaptist communities have been wrestling with these issues in North America. We dialogued about how we were all living and learning into a new way that renounced and resistedContinue reading “If You Missed It Live, Here’s the Recording: #MennoNerdsOnRace Panel Video”

Free Online Conference, Register Now: #MennoNerds on Race, Mutuality & Anabaptist Community

“The myth is that we don’t live in a highly racialized and white-controlled society, and that the Church isn’t complicit. But the truth is that race and racism affect all of us,” says Drew Hart, who blogs at drewgihart.com. What can Christians do and learn about racism? How do we name, explore, and critique violent systems,Continue reading “Free Online Conference, Register Now: #MennoNerds on Race, Mutuality & Anabaptist Community”

Your Image of Dr. Martin Luther King is Likely Wrong

(Here is the first part of a piece I wrote for Biblical Seminary’s Blog. You can click over to read the post in its entirety). Everybody loves Martin Luther King Jr., or at least they love the idea they have of him. There is nothing provocative about naming him as one of your favorite AmericanContinue reading “Your Image of Dr. Martin Luther King is Likely Wrong”

Do You See This Woman?: Renisha McBride and the Imago Dei

In Luke 7:36-50, Jesus is invited over to a pharisee’s house for a dinner party. He has a place and space reserved at the table. His presence is welcomed. However, a woman realizes that Jesus will be at this home and decides to come by unannounced. However, the pharisee hosting the party only saw aContinue reading “Do You See This Woman?: Renisha McBride and the Imago Dei”

In It For the Long Haul: Gracialized Vision & The New Black Panther $10,000 Bounty

Well, whether some like it or not, we have been thrust into a national dialogue on race, violence, and the legal system. I can’t lie, I can often get very frustrated by the same old story being played out over and over again. How many more young black males have to die? Since slavery hasContinue reading “In It For the Long Haul: Gracialized Vision & The New Black Panther $10,000 Bounty”

The Hoodie (Revisted and Expanded): Racialized Gaze and Trayvon Martin

 About 2 years ago my wife and I stopped for pizza way up in the Souderton/Telford area (philly suburb outskirts). We were in the area already and had received a strong recommendation for this particular place. As we walked into the restaurant, we immediately received stares from everyone in the facility, adult and child alike.Continue reading “The Hoodie (Revisted and Expanded): Racialized Gaze and Trayvon Martin”

The Hoodie: Racialized Gaze and My 90’s Hip Hop Subversive Spirit

Given my vocational contexts, most people these days probably associate me with wearing jeans, a button up shirt, and a sports coat when they see me. However, when I was in college, the uniform I wore most often was a hoodie and jeans. I loved and continue to love hoodie’s, there is something familiar and comfortable aboutContinue reading “The Hoodie: Racialized Gaze and My 90’s Hip Hop Subversive Spirit”

Trayvon Martin and the White Christian Leader’s Response

To My White Christian Leader Friends: For those who are not familiar with who Trayvon Martin is, he is another young black male (a teenager in this case) who has fell victim to a racialized lethal attack while unarmed, by a man who has about 10 years and 100 p0unds on the boy, and whoContinue reading “Trayvon Martin and the White Christian Leader’s Response”