White Religion

Historic turnarounds are now in play. Yet, at the same time, powerful forces seek to destroy the Judeo-Christian foundations which have secured America’s greatness. Awakening must prevail. Prayer must prevail. Life must prevail. The turnaround must be completed. You are called to be a change agent for this unprecedented prophetic moment.

The United States is recognized as the most religiously diverse country in the world, and yet its laws and customs, which many have come to see as normal features of American life, actually keep the constitutional ideal of “religious freedom for all” from becoming a reality. Christian beliefs, norms, and practices infuse our society; they are embedded in our institutions, creating the structures and expectations that define the idea of “Americanness.”

Pastor Bryan Loritts dives deep into what it's like to be a person of color in predominantly white evangelical spaces today and where we can go from here.

The notion that some might have it better than others, for no good reason, offends our sensibilities. Yet, until we talk about privilege, we’ll never fully understand it or find our way forward. Amy Julia Becker welcomes us into her life, from the charm of her privileged southern childhood to her adult experience in the Northeast, and the denials she has faced as the mother of a child with special needs. She tells us how a life behind a white picket fence can restrict even as it protects and how it can prevent us from loving our neighbors well.

As the cultural conversation around race, gender, and sexuality has evolved, straight white men are becoming increasingly aware of their privilege. But many may be left thinking, "OK, what am I supposed to do about it?" "We need a way forward beyond feelings of guilt, overwhelmingness, anger, and denial." Straight white male pastor Chris Furr offers a guide to deconstructing that privilege in Straight White Male. With an emphasis on confession and redemption, Furr invites other privileged men to reconsider the ways they live, work, believe, and interact with others.

Money unquestionably has power. That power is able to corrupt both you and others around you. However, as Andrew Murray points out, money can also be one means for you to spread God’s love and grace. As a retired financial advisor, R. Lynn White knows that people budget for what they love. You may love Jesus, or your family or a new car every year. But, generally, you will spend the most money on what you love the most. The impact that your money will have depends what or who you love. This, in turn, influences how you choose to make, invest and spend your money.

With the troubling and painful events of the last several years - from the shooting of numerous unarmed black men at the hands of police to the rallying of white supremacists in Charlottesville - it is clearer than ever that the reconciliation paradigm, long favored by white Christians, has failed to heal the deep racial wounds in the church and American society. In this provocative audiobook, originally published in 2014, Jennifer Harvey argues for a radical shift away from the well-meaning but feeble longing for reconciliation toward a robustly biblical call for reparations.

Award winning journalist, poet and columnist William Wright has taken his weekly columns and turned them into one of the most insightful, humorous, life-changing literary works in ages. This is at last an inspiring piece of work with solid scriptural and practical advice from some of the greatest minds of the past and present.

How have Christian theologies of religious superiority underwritten ideologies of white supremacy in the United States? According to author Hill Fletcher, the tendency of Christians to view themselves as the "chosen ones" has often been translated into racial categories as well. In other words, Christian supremacy has historically lent itself to white supremacy, with disastrous consequences. Fletcher proposes strategies that will help foster racial healing in America.

He may be the only Republican who can deny John McCain the nomination. And he may be the only Republican who can stop Hillary. He's an incredibly successful businessman and a fiscal and social conservative who managed to win the governorship in one of the staunchest Democratic states in America. But Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney is also a devout Mormon. So what does that mean for the election of 2008?

In this audiobook, all three subjects are covered: Wicca, witchcraft, and Pagan. They all overlap, but they are not all the same thing. Most people, when they hear witchcraft, will believe it has to do with Wicca. That’s understandable because Wicca has made witchcraft popular in this day and age, but it’s important to understand that Wicca is not the only religion that uses witchcraft. There are many misunderstandings around these topics, and this book is here to help clear things up and pave a person’s way for a Pagan path.

What does it mean when God is presented as male? What does it mean when - from our internal assumptions to our shared cultural imaginings - God is presented as white? These are the urgent questions Chine McDonald asks in a searing look at her experience of being a Black woman in the white-majority space that is the UK church - a church that is being abandoned by Black women no longer able to grin and bear its casual racism, colonialist narratives and lack of urgency on issues of racial justice.

Many of us want to see Jesus, to hear his voice. We want a tangible experience of God. As a Christian doctor and follower of Jesus, Ernest Crocker has been a witness to many interventions of God during his life. In The Man in White, he brings together an inspiring selection of testimonies from around the world of people who have seen God do extraordinary things in and through their lives. They include professionals, academics, a train robber, a surgeon facing decapitation for his faith, and those who have escaped the ravages of war.

In Good White Racist, Kerry Connelly exposes the ways white people participate in, benefit from, and unknowingly perpetuate racism - despite their best "good person" intentions. Good White Racist unpacks the systems that maintain the status quo, keep white people comfortable and complicit, and perpetuate racism in the United States. Combining scholarly research with her trademark New Jersey snark, Connelly shows us that even though it may not be our fault or choice to participate in a racist system, we all do, and it's our responsibility to do something about it.

God in the White House explores the paradox of Americans' expectation that presidents should simultaneously trumpet their religious views and relationship to God while supporting the separation of church and state. Balmer tells the story of the politicization of religion in the last half of the 20th century, as well as the "religionization" of our politics. He reflects on the implications of this shift, which have reverberated in both our religious and political worlds, and offers a new lens through which to see not only these extraordinary individuals, but also our current political situation.

Most of us don't need to make speeches. We need to make friends. This is the core message of Black and White: racism can be disrupted by relationships. If you will risk forging friendships with those who do not look like you, it will change the way you see the world, and that could change the world. The coauthors, Teesha Hadra, a young African American woman, and John Hambrick, a sixty-year-old white man, bring a confident and redemptive tone to this hope because that is exactly what they've experienced.

Racism is omnipresent in American life, both public and private. We are immersed in what prominent Black church leader Willie Dwayne Francois III calls white noise—the racist speech, ideas, and policies that lull us into inaction on racial justice. White noise masks racial realities and prevents constructive responses to microaggressions, structural inequality, and overt interpersonal racism. In this book, Francois calls people of all racial backgrounds to take up practices that overcome silence and inaction on race and that advance racial repair.

Many Whites in America are puzzled by the phrase “Black Lives Matter”. Some are offended and think Black people suddenly think they are better than Whites. Nothing could be further from the truth. This book is an attempt to provide a glimpse into the reason that phrase came into being.

I am the spirit of the flower; I am sustained upon the waters of truth, and my life is formed of the breath of the heavens, which is love.

As America begins to come to terms with the costs of White privilege to Black lives, this book urges a soul-searching examination of the role American Christianity has played in sustaining everyday white supremacy by assuring White people of their innocence. In Mormonism and White Supremacy, Joanna Brooks offers an unflinching look at her own people's history and culture and finds in them lessons that will hit home for every scholar of American religion and person of faith.