By Kristan Pitts Advent is a season of paradox. It’s a season where we hold in tension the celebration of the birth of Christ and the anticipation of Christ’s second coming. 2020 has been an exercise of what it means to exist in tension. We have experienced a pandemic, increased visibility of structural injustice, polarizing political … Continue reading
By Andy Hale As if it wasn’t obvious, we are not exactly in the most unified time in America’s existence. And when you zoom out, the entire globe isn’t exactly at peace with one another. We have factioned ourselves into divisive categories over political allegiance and cultural perspectives. There are very clear and alienated worldviews … Continue reading
By Andy Hale While this has been one of the most challenging years on record, it has generated a lot of healthy conversation about overdue change in our communities. No more critical discussion has been amplified thus than systemic racism and disparity. And yet, that phrase alone draws a line in the sand as to … Continue reading
By Andy Hale “If you were recruiting for a white supremacist cause on a Sunday morning, you’d likely have more success handing out in the parking lot of an average white Christian church than approaching whites sitting out of service at the local coffee shop,” said Robert P. Jones, the CEO and Founder of the … Continue reading
By Chris Hughes Elkin, North Carolina, is a town not known for its civil rights activism. The tiny textile town tucked into the Piedmont foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains is more famous for the many vineyards that dot the gentle slopes between Winston-Salem and Boone. With a population of around 4,000 people, it is … Continue reading
By Andy Hale I’m not sure if the magnitude of this moment in America’s history has registered for many people. For many, they just don’t get it. Far too many white Americans do not believe there is a racism issue in America. The evidence of this comes in subtle ways, such as the response to … Continue reading
What is going on right now? Where do we go from here? The United States is in a moment of chaos. Communities are divided along racial lines, and there is disagreement and division everywhere. Protests against racially targeted arrests and killings, police brutality, and racist public policy are rapidly increasing across the nation. Many are … Continue reading
By Elket Rodríguez The voice speaking through my phone carried me to the side of a brother in the faith. He is Cuban, black and seeking U.S. citizenship. He called to ask a sad question that reflects our times: “How can I protect myself from police intervention?” His question provoked tears as I reflected on … Continue reading
By Carrie Jarrell Tuning First, in the event that this article may one day be read by anyone who has lost loved ones at the hands of police brutality and or racist bullies of “thugocracy,” I would like to offer my sincere condolences for your loss. My heart is grieving at the struggle for justice … Continue reading
By Missy Ward Angalla My husband is black. Not African American, but Ugandan. We met volunteering together nine years ago. We connected over our passion for God, helping refugees, our passion for ministry, among other things. We fell in love, eventually got married and have been ministering together with and among refugee and Ugandan communities … Continue reading
