Biblical Justice Resources: A Vision
Towards the end of my freshman year of college, I witnessed the aftermath of a student performing in blackface on campus. I sat in the corner of a room with a group of students as they tried to figure out how to respond to the school in the wake of the incident. I don’t remember much of that meeting, but I remember someone asking why the student didn’t understand why what had been done was wrong, and I shrank in my corner, not wanting to admit that I didn’t understand either. After seeing the pain that many of the students in that meeting showed, I started asking questions I’d never considered, and found my way into the introductory class of the Reconciliation Studies program that next fall.
That sophomore year, I encountered an incredible amount of information and discussion I’d never heard before, and I couldn’t help but wonder why I hadn’t learned about any of those things while I was growing up. It seemed as though there were hundreds of topics that had not only been absent in my school, but in my church as well.
I focused the next five years of my study on learning about race, racial reconciliation, and justice. During that time, I completed a Bachelor’s degree in Reconciliation Studies from Bethel University, and a Master’s degree in Justice and Mission from Denver Seminary. I finished school intent on pursuing a job in political advocacy, only to find myself disillusioned by the election of 2016 and a White American Evangelical church that seemed to have no interest in the topics I’d spent my time studying.
It has been six years since I graduated, and that time has not gone how I would have liked. I found myself cynical to the point of inaction, a privilege many others do not have. I never felt as though I did “enough” to engage a group that didn’t seem to want to engage with racial subject matter.
During that entire time, I sat with an idea I couldn’t imagine how to create. On the chance that someone from that White American Evangelical group might want to begin to learn about race, racial reconciliation, or justice, I wondered if they would feel a barrier to entry just in terms of knowing where to find quality resources. But what if there was a place for people to turn, a central location filled with resources that could introduce them to a variety of topics? What might that place look like; how could it be a help to someone; and how could that resource show the fundamental connection between the Bible and the call for justice in the world?
After years of thinking, I have realized the only way to answer these questions is to actually begin building that resource. This is how Biblical Justice Resources has found its way into infancy. Here at the beginning, Biblical Justice Resources has a url, biblicaljusticeresources.com, but exists on my personal website. The resource lists consist of a book list and a movie list, with most of the contents of those lists coming from what I have on my shelves. Initially, I want to continue to expand these lists, and then slowly provide other resources: a list of articles, links to organizations working for change, and maybe even a YouTube playlist of existing material. From there, the dream is to create materials that can help White American Evangelicals begin to understand and engage with the pursuit of biblical justice in our world.
With that said, I want to acknowledge a number of points:
-I understand that I lack an incredible amount of life experience with regards to the experiences of black and brown people in this country. I do not wish to speak for these groups. I wish to help how I can, and hopefully help people who look like me to understand the importance of engaging with this work and these issues.
-I understand that people inside White American Evangelical churches may balk at my description, my use of racial terms, or my belief that justice is a fundamental biblical principle. I expect many of you will disagree with my assertion that there should even be a category defined as “White American Evangelical churches.” I understand that position, because it is one I held at one point in time. This site is meant to serve as a starting point for members of White American Evangelical churches who are interested in engaging with this material. Even if you don’t change your position, I hope the resources on these lists might help you understand why some people feel the way they do.
-I do not pretend to have all, most, or even very many answers. If there is anything I hope to do best here, it is to point to people who can provide answers, who can shed light, and who can teach much better than I can. This website is not meant to co-opt or speak over those voices. Where those voices exist in this space, I will point to them and be led by them.
-I have no expectation of building this into a platform that ”gives voice to the voiceless.” The people who need to be heard are not voiceless: those who need to hear seem unable to hear.
-If you have not engaged with material like this before (heck, even if you have), it will be painful. It will be uncomfortable. It will be exhausting. Please understand that many people cannot escape these feelings. Also, please understand that I need to hear and understand this just as much as anyone else.
Through this all, I expect (and desire) to grow as much as anyone. I know how hollow words can be, and I commit to put work and actions in to match these words. I know my schooling serves as the tip of a ridiculous iceberg, and I know I need to rebuild intellectual muscles that have atrophied. Mistakes will be made, and I will ask for grace, even if I don’t think I should expect it.
May we have eyes to see and ears to hear as we move forward.