BOOK: Jesus and the Disinherited

When a major cultural event, such as George Floyd's murder, shifts the focus of a country, it is easy to assume that critiques of the American church and racism are a recent phenomenon. Oftentimes we are simply unaware of prophetic voices from the the past such as Howard Thurman and his quintessential Jesus and the Disinherited. Penned in 1949, Thurman critiques the church and its seduction with power while detailing the psyche and motivation of the oppressed. His ultimate conclusion is that belief in Jesus, in conjunction with community, can empower the disinherited.

SHOW: Can the Church Say Black Lives Matter?

Pastor Rasool Berry (The Bridge Church | Brooklyn, NY) provides answers to common critiques about the church being involved in justice and partnering with non-Christian causes. He adeptly points out that some churches have always been involved in justice and the many ways in which we use secular theories, but reject the parts that don't align with our faith. He concludes his 9-minute talk with what we can do about it.

BOOK: Reading While Black

White men have had a monopoly on Biblical interpretation in the West and the United States for hundreds of years, and many voices of women and minorities have not been allowed to bring their valuable insight into Biblical analysis. Dr. Esau McCaulley's Reading While Black is his attempt to add to the canon of black biblical interpretation in the steps of James Cone, Dr. Martin Luther King, W.E.B Duboise, and countless others.

PODCAST: Understanding Critical Race Theory with Bradly Mason

Big Brown Army host DeCruz and critical race theory expert Bradly Mason have an in-depth conversation where DeCruz asks several honest, poignant questions about CRT. Mason has clearly done a lot of research on CRT and we appreciated his nuanced answers. We particularly liked when he pointed out that as Christians we don't have to accept or reject CRT part and parcel as we rarely do that with other issues. We also liked that he recognizes that before starting a conversation terms must be defined because the uses and definitions of certain terms can be very different to another individual.

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PODCAST: Critical Theory & the Christian with David Fitch

Although the podcast starts off a little goofy, Phil Vischer, Skye Jethani and Kaitlyn Schiess discuss the wholesale rejection of critical race theory in a meeting between six southern Baptist presidents. The real meat though is in the interview ( where we recommend you start -- skip to 43:19) with David Fitch who says that critical race theory, and all critical theories for that matter, are good diagnostic tools, but they must not be divorced from a Christian view of justice. The interview provides a succinct, nuanced history of critical theory that does not throw the baby out with the bath water.