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On Black History Month

On Martin Luther King Jr. Day this year I did not post a quote or picture to social media. It was an intentional move because I had become aware, through listening to others in person, online, and in print that it was pointless to tip the cap to Dr. King if I had no intention of actually picking up on the work he had given his life for. Throughout Black History Month I continued to listen to what my African-American brothers and sisters in Christ had to say. What I learned was that I needed to educate myself on the history of African-Americans in the United States, outside of what the school history books taught. Not only do I need to re-learn history in general, but I especially need to learn the role of the evangelical church in the history of slavery in the United States. So I spent the past month finishing up gathering resources and creating a reading list to help me become more educated and better equipped to lead as a pastor in the years ahead. I want to be able to speak winsomely, truthfully, and hopefully about the issue of race in our country and especially in the church. I'm especially indebted to Devinion Valentine, Billy Rose, Corey Sanders, and Winston Miller who, through Leaders Collective, shared their life with me and provided space and opportunity for me to listen, ask questions, and hear firsthand about the painful experiences they've had as black men both in society at large and the church in particular.

Over the next year, or more, I plan to be on social media very infrequently as I begin the re-education process for myself. I'm going to be reading and talking with trusted friends about what I'm learning. My hope is to process this growth on the blog as time and space allow. Below is a list of the books I hope to read. If you have any additional resources that would be beneficial for me, please drop them in the comments.
I'm Still Here by Austin Channing Brown

Liberating Black Theology by Anthony B. Bradley

United by Trillia J. Newbell

I Have A Dream by Martin Luther King Jr.

The Sun Does Shine by Anthony Ray Hamilton

The Fire This Time by Jesmyn Ward

Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

Let The People See by Elliott J. Gorn

Denmark Vesey's Garden by Ethan J. Kytle and Blain Roberts

Black Boy by Richard Wright

The War Before The War by Andrew Delbanco

The Problem of Slavery in Christian America by Joel McDurmon

The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby

At The Dark End of the Street by Danielle L. McGuire

Doctrine and Race by Mary Beth Swetnam Mathews

Christian Slavery by Katharine Gerbner

How Africa Shaped the Christian Mind by Thomas C. Oden

All the Colors We Will See by Patrice Gopo

Frederick Douglass by David W. Blight

Reviving the Black Church by Thabiti Anyabwile

Burden by Courtney Hargrave

Technicolor by Mark Hearn

Oneness Embraced by Tony Evans

Right Color Wrong Culture by Bryan Loritts

A Cross Shaped Gospel by Bryan Loritts

Aliens In The Promised Land by Anthony B. Bradley

Woke Church by Eric Mason

The Next Evangelicalism by Soong-Chan Rah

Is Justice Possible? by J. Paul Nyquist

Kennedy and King by Steven Levingston

The Autobiography of Martin Luther King Jr. edited by Clayborne Carson

The Seminarian by Patrick Parr

Redemption by Joseph Rosenbloom

Hellhound On His Trail by Hampton Sides

The HD Leader by Derwin Gray

We Were Eight Years in Power by Ta-Nehisi Coates

The Blood of Emmett Till by Timothy B. Tyson

Truevine by Beth Macy

The Road to Dawn by Jared A. Brock

The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein

Reckoning with Race by Gene Dattel

Beneath A Ruthless Sun by Gilbert King

The Lynching by Laurence Leamer

The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson

Stamped From The Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi

So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo

The End of White Christian America by Robert P. Jones

The White Man's Burden by Winthrop D. Jordan

White Rage by Carol Anderson

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave by Frederick Douglass

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

Under Our Skin by Benjamin Watson

Dream With Me by John Perkins

One Blood by John Perkins

Removing the Stain of Racism from the SBC by Kevin Jones and Jarvis J. Williams

The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander

White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo and Michael Eric Dyson

The Myth of Equality by Ken Wytsma

I Am Not Your Negro by James Baldwin and Raoul Peck

White Awake by Daniel Hill

Being White by Paula Harris and Doug Schaupp

Divided by Faith by Michael O. Emerson and Christian Smith

Negroland by Margo Jefferson

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