Race & Faith
Christ followers are called to love our neighbors – and to seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly before our God. In light of all that is going on in our nation and community, we are providing learning groups and recommending resources to help us learn more about racial reconciliation and justice – to become better listeners and learners. They do not all represent Blackhawk Church perspectives. We hope that these groups and resources contribute to a lifetime of learning how each of us can become better informed, more understanding, and actively engaged in ending racism.
- June 7 // Race & Faith: Part 1, Chris Dolson
- June 14 // Race & Faith: Part 2, Chris Dolson (Including interviews with Christy Clark-Pujara, Percy Brown Jr., & Ruben L. Anthony Jr.)
Race & Faith Learning Groups
As followers of Jesus, we are called to love our neighbors as ourselves. One of the many ways we can do this is by learning and caring about the ways in which racism and injustice impact our community. If you’re interested in growing in this area, we encourage you to gather a few people and start your own race and faith learning group. These short-term groups are centered around books, podcasts, and movies that allow for candid discussion and open conversations to grow together. Check out the leader toolkit below for more information and feel free to reach out to the adult ministries team at gstolte@blackhawkchurch.org if you have any questions.
Leader ToolKit
Resources for Racial Reconciliation
Our hope is that the following resources challenge and enrich our understanding, so that as Christ followers we can become better informed, more empathic, and more actively engaged in ending racism.
For People Who Are New To The Conversation
Books for Adults
- Being White: Finding Our Place in a Multiethnic World | Paula Harris, Doug Schaupp (2004)
- White Awake: An Honest Look at What It Means to Be White | Daniel Hill (2017)
- The Heart of Racial Justice: How Soul Change Leads to Social Change | Brenda Salter McNeil (2009)
- Be the Bridge | Latasha Morrison (2019)
- Many Colors: Cultural Intelligence from a Changing Church | Soong-Chang Rah (2010)
- Beyond Colorblind | Sarah Shin (2017)
Books for Children
- Creative God, Colorful Us | Trillia Newbell (2021)
- God’s Very Good Idea | Trillia Newbell (2017)
Podcasts
- Next Steps Podcast: Digging Deeper into Politics & Faith | With the Blackhawk Church Teaching Team (October 28, 2020)
- That Sounds Fun | Podcast Episodes with Pastor Mike Kelsey
Part 1 | Why History Matters + Jemar Tisby (June 23, 2020)
Part 2 | Q&A + Mike & Friends (June 24, 2020)
Part 3 | What Do We Do Now + Jordan Rice & Lauren Allgood (June 26, 2020)
Events
- Ethnicity & Faith | Event at Blackhawk Church (2016)
Ethnic Identity & Discipleship | Dr. Peter Cha, Ph.D.
Multiethnic Vision for the Kingdom of God | Dr. Peter Cha, Ph.D.
Going Deeper
Understanding God’s multicultural vision for His kingdom
Messages
- Race & Faith | 2-week teaching series from Blackhawk Church (2020)
Race & Faith: Part 1 | Chris Dolson
Race & Faith: Part 2 | Chris Dolson (Including interviews with Christy Clark-Pujara, Percy Brown Jr., & Ruben L. Anthony Jr.) - #Race | Charles Yu, #trending (February 3, 2019)
- A New Humanity United By the Cross | Charles Yu, Ephesians: Beyond Measure (March 4, 2018)
- Race | 3-week teaching series from Blackhawk Church (2015)
Stairway to Heaven | Charles Yu
A Different Kind of Unity | Charles Yu
A Conversation | Chris Dolson with Colièr & Myra McNair
Understanding how human nature intersects with the problem of racism
Books
- Disunity in Christ: Uncovering the Hidden Forces that Keep Us Apart | Christena Cleveland (2013)
- Biased: Uncovering the Hidden Prejudice That Shapes What We See, Think, and Do | Jennifer L. Eberhardt (2020)
Understanding how Christian faith intersects with the problem of racism
Books
- United by Faith: The Multiracial Congregation As an Answer to the Problem of Race | Curtiss Paul DeYoung, George Yancey, Karen Chair Kim (2004)
- Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America | Michael O. Emerson, Christian Smith (2001)
- Uncommon Ground: Living Faithfully in a World of Difference | Timothy Keller, John Inazu (2020)
- The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church’s Complicity in Racism | Jemar Tisby (2020)
- How to Fight Racism | Jemar Tisby (2021)
Movies
- The Color of Compromise | Available on Amazon Prime
Podcasts
- Pass the Mic | The Witness (2020)
Understanding where we are and how we got here
Books
- The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness | Michelle Alexander (2020)
- Unsettling Truths: The Ongoing, Dehumanizing Legacy of the Doctrine of Discovery | Mark Charles, Soong-Chan Rah (2019)
- Stamped from the Beginning | Ibram Kendi (2017)
- The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America | Richard Rothstein (2018)
Movies
- 13th | Available on Netflix
- Reconstruction: America after the Civil War | Available on PBS
- Slavery and the Making of America | Available on PBS
- Slavery by Another Name | Available on PBS
Statements From Our Denomination and Other Evangelical Institutions
- Prayer and a Plea for Our Nation | Dallas Theological Seminary
- Statement from EFCA President Kevin Kompelien | Evangelical Free Church of America (EFCA)
- Once Again Racism Necessitates Response | Evangelical Free Church of America (EFCA)
- NAE Addresses Racial Turmoil, Calls for Action | National Association of Evangelicals (NAE)
- TIU Stands United with Victims of Racial Injustice | Trinity International University, EFCA Denominational Seminary
