A future with hope: Toward a color-blind church and society
'A Conversation on Race': Segregation continues to abound, but Barack Obama's election may offer hope that someday our church and society might become color blind.
Can Barack Obama change the importance of race for us?
'A Conversation on Race': Barack Obama’s election as the first black U.S. president and the example of true leadership he will offer can help us all diminish the importance we place on race and prove to the world that a people too often viewed and treated as less than are equal to any challenge.
A Time and Place for Prayer
After a long, hard-fought campaign, the U.S. has elected its next President, Barak Obama. As we look forward to new leadership that promises to unite the country, this is a time and place to pray for change and for a hopeful future.
A Bethlehem story: Encountering the ‘other’
A United Methodist writer wants his fellow Filipino Americans to learn from their history of colonial oppression and their rejection as outsiders in the U.S. by rejecting propaganda-fueled fears and biases against African Americans, including Presidential candidate Barak Obama.
A historic opportunity for openness
The dynamics of this historic election challenge us to use what is emerging in our society at this time as an opportunity to address even more forcefully the issues of race in our church and in American culture.
Racial progress not yet certain
We're encouraged by indications that some people are willing to move beyond race in this election. We will still have to be vigilant, monitoring to determine whether the signs we see are true or not.
Confronting the sin of racism
The United Methodist Church is called again to its prophetic, Christian witness to confront the sinfulness and evil of racism. We need to be faithful to our historic positions against racism and injustice. But to do so requires serious reflection on how racism is alive within our own church.
Planning must focus on reconciliation
The clear question before our church, however, is do annual conferences and local churches see themselves as primary stakeholders in the ongoing need to address racism and reconciliation. ... The power of conversion is not only personal; it is also a matter of institutional integrity.
Images of exclusion
A person of color who sees only images of white presidents or a white Jesus must question if our nation and our faith are truly inclusive.
Light that shines in the darkness
I feel compelled to work for change as part of my faith journey, in the hope that justice for the marginalized and for all of us in this country can be brought back into focus....(Yet) in my discussions during campaign calls with voters ... I have discovered that "I'd rather not say" is often the code phrase for "I can't vote for a black man."
Cultivating a vision of wellbeing
From a faith perspective, the intersection of race and politics needs to be evaluated as it relates to our wellbeing, based on our spiritual vision for this society.
Dream the All-American Dream
The All-American Dream becomes a reality when everyone has real opportunities to affirm and achieve their own dreams without the barriers of racial and gender discrimination and diminishing stereotypes. Maybe then this country will be ready for a President who is African American, Hispanic/Latina, Native American or a woman or man of any race.
‘Change we can believe in’?
Many people of faith have prayed and confessed words of repentance about their racial attitudes and actions. But the jury is still out on whether we have been "born again" in this respect. Humans have the capacity to change without really changing.
Copy of ‘Change we can believe in’?
Many people of faith have prayed and confessed words of repentance about their racial attitudes and actions. But the jury is still out on whether we have been "born again" in this respect. Humans have the capacity to change without really changing.
An ongoing journey, a never-ending challenge
Race and racism continue to be pressing issues in the life of the church and the nation. However, both must be viewed in a 21st century context, recognizing that the last 40 years have seen dramatic progress.
Church must bridge chasms of fear
We have not crossed over that ever-widening chasm that separates people based on differences in their color and culture. There is great fear that keeps us living in the status quo without enough meaningful attempts to connect, understand and accept each other in our different-ness.
Still not talking enough about the poor
"If our church is serious about taking on the ills of poverty by working in partnership with the poor as a mission focus over the coming four years, we must challenge the nation and its new Presidential administration to do the same."
Honoring God’s gift of diversity
Diversity is a creation and gift of God’s divine intention. Our wholeness comes from embracing that gift of love. Conversely, racism is an idolatrous resistance to God’s intentional gift.
A Conversation on Race Series Overview
Welcome to “A Conversation on Race,” a pre-Election Day series of commentaries by church leaders produced by the General Commission on Religion and Race.
Commentary: A future with hope: Can we emerge from our wilderness struggle with race?
In his 1963 March on Washington speech, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. offered us his dream...that one day his children and all generations to come would be “judged not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”
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