Commentary
Rosy Image of US Equality Glosses Over Systemic Racism
Dr. Tsedale Melaku talks about race relations in America today, the Black Lives Matter movement and the stereotypes that still engulf the question of race.
How a courtroom ritual of forgiveness absolves white America
The show of grace and forgiveness toward Guyger, like those before it, requires that we ask some hard questions. What if “grace” and “forgiveness” and their compulsory racialized performance are part of what makes this anti-black world keep on ticking?
Halloween and the Holy Ghost
Is it a foolish glorification of all things wicked and evil, or just a fun holiday that celebrates the adrenaline rush of being scared and collecting tons of candy? Is there a right choice for Christians?
What the Story of Cyntoia Brown Should Teach Us
In his book “Restored at the Root,” Bishop Joseph W. Walker III of Mt. Zion Baptist Church wrote about what Americans — and the church — can learn from stories like Brown’s.
What did church teach the students posing in front of Emmett Till’s marker?
The young men may not go to church. They may not even be Christians. But in an area known as the “Bible Belt” the cultural influence of Christianity is strong. How the church influences the racial understanding of white Christians deserves probing.
The Marathon
COMMENTARY: It can be an eerie feeling to see everyone around you accomplish the same goals that you have for yourself. But I’ve come to accept that everyone’s race is different, and people don’t achieve things at the same time.
Donor-funded journalism is on the rise in Africa: why it needs closer scrutiny
Western aid has resulted in an Anglo-American culture of journalism education, which has proven impractical to implement in African countries with nonliberal political regimes.
Seeing Jesus in the Migrants at the Border
COMMENTARY: Jesus sees all of the crowds of migrants, harassed and helpless and fleeing from a home where they are no longer safe to journey to a place they have never been. He wants us to see them, too.
Why Christians must support religious freedom for everyone
The fundamental human right of religious freedom is under attack around the globe today like never before. While this disturbing trend should concern everyone, it should be particularly alarming for Christians, because a Christian worldview requires us to care about religious freedom — including the religious freedom of others.
A Father’s Day Reflection: Nobody Throws a Parade for the Bad Guy
Nobody will admit it, but everybody needs someone to tell him or her the truth to their faces without blinking. No matter how hard or harsh that truth may be it must be told. So be Dad. In the midst of those that would kill the messenger, be Dad.
Hip-hop’s mourning for Nipsey Hussle shows beauty can be found in brokenness
“Central to hip-hop culture and community is the violent context and the resilient life that survives within it. The pairing of difficulty and survival is the history of hip-hop.” — Jonathan Brooks, pastor of Canaan Community Church in Chicago
God’s Gift of Being Your Mother
COMMENTARY: I am not a biological mother, but I have mothered so many children throughout my life. My life has not played out the way I planned it, but it has worked out exactly as God has planned it.
Time to straighten out our Jericho Road
When Jesus wanted to teach a lawyer the universal truth about what it means to be a neighbor, He told a story about a man from one ethnic group who helped a man from another ethnic group who had been beaten and left for dead along the Jericho Road.
Modesty in the Church
Just how far Is too far this summer?
At The Cross
A deeply personal commentary on working through life’s challenges, deciding what to leave at the foot of the cross, and focusing on God’s plan for your life.
REFLECTION: Liturgy in the public square
Moving outside the confines of a church building allows us to remember profoundly the experience of Jesus and his followers on the streets of Jerusalem, in the upper room, before the councils of church and state, and on the road to Calvary. And we come to understand more fully Christ’s gift of vulnerability to us all.
From black megachurch to big screen: Another team of brothers directs new movie
The movie, which focuses on the need for forgiveness and on welcoming people frowning church elders considered undesirable, was presented last year at several film festivals, including the Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles.
Trump signed Bibles. Heresy? Many religious leaders say no
President Donald Trump was just doing what he could to raise spirits when he signed Bibles at an Alabama church for survivors of a tornado outbreak, many religious leaders say, though some are offended and others say he could have handled it differently.
Rev. Yearwood and the Hip Hop Caucus Not Missing a Beat
With the 2020 presidential campaign season kicking in, Urban Faith reached out to Rev. Yearwood to chat about social justice, Christianity, and his spiritual journey to fighting for underserved communities.
‘Black Panther’ and its science role models inspire more than just movie awards
The film wowed critics and fans. But its hidden power may be black lead characters who are accomplished scientists – just the thing to help inspire future generations to follow in their footsteps.
There are no real evangelicals. Only imagined ones.
Is evangelicalism a theological category? A consumer culture? A white religious brand? A diverse, global movement? What if the answer is “all of the above”?
Return looted artifacts made by brilliant African cultures
European museums are under mounting pressure to return the irreplaceable African artifacts plundered during colonial times. Restitution is long overdue.
We need more biblical literacy in America
President Trump has embraced proposals in six states to offer classes in biblical literacy. Let me state, at the outset, that this is a bad idea — in practical terms, and for political reasons. Having said that, let me also say that America needs more biblical literacy.
How to have productive disagreements about politics and religion
In the current polarized climate, it’s easy to find yourself in the midst of a political disagreement that morphs into a religious argument. People’s religious affiliation predicts their stances on abortion, immigration and other controversial topics, and disagreements about these issues can seem intractable.
Evangelical Christians need an exit ramp from Trumpism
I have opposed evangelical Trumpism from the beginning. Some of those supporters are members of my own family. As long as there is a chance for decency and honor to prevail, I will make the case to them. I will not give up on my family, just as I will not give up on my country.
Laquan McDonald: Forgive, Don’t Forget, and Then Fight
I'm in Chicago and we're reeling over a judge who acquitted three Chicago police officers of trying to cover up the 2014 shooting of Laquan McDonald. It's hard not to feel some kind of way (insert eye roll here), even though officer Jason Van Dyke was convicted last...
Ethics Under Attack: The Truth Will Set Us Free
Ethics begin and end when there is a conscientious shift that keeps us in tune with truth that transforms us to intentionally think more in-depth about our ethical life choices or outcomes.
R. Kelly and the Generational Curse of Suffering in Silence
The instinct to protect our own is so ingrained in Black culture that it’s become a haven of toxicity instead of comfort.
Reframing or Gaslighting: Perceptions of Christian Faith in Today’s Chaotic World
Some non-believers often become disappointed and frustrated when they ask Christians to help them understand their faith better or help with their doubts and are simply told “Oh, I’m so sorry, I’ll be praying for you” or “God is good.”
Trump and R. Kelly: Are Christian Values for Sale?
Maya Angelou famously said, “People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you made them feel.” That’s why some Christians stand by Trump and others love R. Kelly.
Let the Word Speak
Spoken word is a compelling alternative to hip-hop in the articulation of a Christian point of view.
How Maya Angelou made me feel
“I want to acknowledge how Maya Angelou made me feel as a young black American woman, and how those feelings have defined how I experience myself as a complete human being.”
Is this Kwanzaa’s Moment?
Could it be that the principles of Kwanzaa are more relevant now than ever as we struggle against renewed assaults on our very value, freedom, and right to exist?
How parenthood has changed the way I look at Joseph, Mary and Jesus
As Christmas approaches, many Christians will reflect on the Nativity, or birth of Jesus. But there are precious few details about the rest of his childhood in the New Testament. Some Christians today may wonder, what happened next?
Does Alice Walker have a Jewish problem?
You have to call out the anti-semitism of those who would otherwise be your allies. If you don’t, then you have allowed your politics to outweigh your morals.
The Brats of Christmas
What “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” teaches us about being true Christians — even when the Herdmans come to our church.
At least one person defends the Christmas Rush
One writer says activities in preparation for Christmas may not be as worldly or secondary as we might think.
BLM, Social Movements, and the changing role of chaplains
Chaplains are increasingly present in social movements including Occupy, Black Lives Matter, and Standing Rock. They provide a steady presence to protesters grappling with existential questions amid deep tensions that characterize such situations.
Why We Must Wait: An Advent Reflection
With Advent upon us, it is time for us to reclaim, now more than ever, the discipline of waiting and delayed gratification.
Generosity: Going beyond the tithe
It isn’t by force or threat that we should approach generosity. It is with full conviction of who we are in Christ that we live generous lives. It goes far beyond one moment one day a week. It should bleed into our everyday lives.
50 years in, Chisholm’s historic victory offers inspiration
For inspiration and example, the list of winners that includes Ayanna Pressley, Lucy McBath, Jahana Hayes, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar and others might want to learn from the lessons of Shirley Chisholm, who made history as the first African-American woman elected to Congress.
7 ways to teach civil discourse to students
A former middle school teacher offers a series of tips on how educators can teach young people to engage in more civil discourse.
Why are we STILL explaining that blackface is racist?
Once again, another racist incident about blackface has made headlines. This time it surrounds NBC host Megyn Kelly, who apologized both on air and in a memo to colleagues after her on-air comments defending racist Halloween costumes.
On The Pursuit of Kiki … and the Church
Leaning into the last quarter of the year, we won’t soon forget #summer18 as the time Drake and Kiki had us in our feelings. The Drake and Kiki dynamic is cute, but pales in stark comparison to the dynamic of Christ and his pursuit of the Church.
What does the Bible mean to Black millennials?
In our shifting religious landscape — one that largely does not formally hear and heed the voices of Black millennials — I’ve wondered how they value and engage Scripture as they flip the pages of the Bible or scroll the sacred text on smartphones.
White boys will be boys: Kavanaugh, #MeToo and race
Thursday’s drama on Capitol Hill and evangelical Christians’ responses to it reveals much about the racial problem at the heart of white conservative Christian America. In short, black boys can never simply be “boys.”
30 Years of Christians in Hip-Hop
A notable, special, and interesting collection of 30 rap songs by Christian artists, including a bunch of “honorable mention” titles.
Are today’s white kids less racist than their grandparents?
Over the course of two years, a sociologist studied a group of affluent, white kids to see how they made sense of sensitive racial issues like privilege, unequal opportunity and police violence.
Why black women’s experiences of #MeToo are unique
Any movement against sexual assault must take into account historical, state-sanctioned violence against black women in the US that goes back centuries.
Battle lines form over social justice: Is it gospel or heresy?
Christians, both as people of faith and citizens of this country, have pondered what to do in this current social climate.