KTF Weekly Newsletter: Guantánamo Bay, Whitewashed History, Gangster Capitalism
June 10, 2021
Good afternoon everybody,
Thanks so much to all of you who have subscribed recently. We’re so happy to have you on board as we try to be more faithful together. Feel free to look through the archives at newsletters, articles, and bonus podcast episodes that you might have missed.
Alright, this week’s resources to help us leave colonized faith for the Kingdom of God:
Suzie’s recommendations:
Guantánamo Bay will forever stand in historical memory as a dark monument to the violence of Islamophobia. Yet it has largely fallen out of headlines over the past decade or so, allowing many Americans to forget that it still exists and operates today. Obama promised to close the facility, but failed to do so, and Trump only ratcheted up the kind of rhetoric that led to its establishment in the first place. This brief first-hand account of a former Gitmo imam recently published in The Guardian is a sharp reminder of the unlawful imprisonment and torture that the United States government tried to justify and sweep under the rug. That stain on our nation’s conscience is, for the 40 prisoners who remain, an ongoing reality. Christians in America talk a lot about our own religious persecution, but are we willing to take a stand for the freedom of our Muslim brothers and sisters?
The Institute of Middle East Studies housed at the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary (ABTS) in Beirut has an excellent weekly blog that offers insightful and challenging theological reflections relevant to the context of the Middle East and beyond. While this week’s episode of Shake the Dust delves specifically into the topic of Christian Zionism, ABTS Professor Caleb Hutcherson makes the powerful argument in his recent post that the answer to what is holding most American evangelicals back from acknowledging the plight of the Palestinian people may be much simpler than a flawed religious narrative. This is one that should bring Christians in America to our knees.
Jonathan’s recommendations:
I find that I often try to paint my life in the best light possible; and that usually means I am not entirely honest. That tendency is highly problematic when institutions operate the same way and our collective memory becomes dishonest testimony. In Calvin University historian Kristin Kobes Du Mez’ essay for The New York Times, she invites Christians to stop bearing false witness and continuing to propagate a white-washed look at the past. Along those lines, lawyer and conservative commentator David French recently invited his readers to look unflinchingly at the Tulsa Massacre as well as the failure of the Southern Baptist Convention to repent of racism, sexual abuse, and the denial and cover-ups of both of these entrenched patterns of sin.
It should not be controversial to confess and repent for followers of Jesus; but when the sin is systemic and necessitates repentance and reparation, many feel it is untenable. Fortunately, Jesus gives us the strength, courage and wisdom that we need. The following two pieces, I believe, give voice to what is required after the confession. Many in Tulsa argue that the families of those murdered along with the last 3 survivors of the Massacre are owed reparations; and followers of Jesus should advocate for that to become a reality. Moreover, Jemar Tisby and The Witness collectively calling believers to “Leave Loud” is the proper and necessary response to institutions unwilling and unable to center themselves on Christ; His calling for those who claim His name; and the Kingdom for which He came, died, and rose.
Sy’s recommendations:
I first became aware of the work of Dr. Anthea Butler, University of Pennsylvania professor of religious studies and Africana studies, when I read her excellent, short article last year on the way that many white Christian commentators condemn Christian nationalism to avoid self-examination. And now she has a book, White Evangelical Racism, on the history explaining why exactly so many of us need to stop remarking on the speck in other people’s eyes when it comes to wielding racist power. You can listen to her interview this week on Pass the Mic if you want to hear about why she wrote the book and what the process was like.
The podcast Gangster Capitalism is spending an entire season examining Jerry Falwell Jr. and Liberty University. The show is known for exposing the darker side of organizations that become bent on making money and gaining power at the expense of other values. So far, the season has focused on looking back at the infamous “pool boy” scandal, Liberty’s awful record of downplaying sexual assault reports, and the exploitative cash cow that is Liberty University Online. Encouragingly, many Christians are taking part in this project. The show features interviews of former students, professors, and other Christian commentators, including one of the contributors to our anthology, Dartmouth professor Randall Balmer. Many of the people formerly involved with Liberty are taking significant personal and professional risks, and the abuse survivors in particular are being incredibly vulnerable. It’s worth the time to listen, hear their stories, and understand the widespread fallout of powerful Christians worshiping their power.
Shake the Dust preview
Tomorrow’s episode of Shake the Dust is our interview with Rev. Dr. Munther Isaac, a Palestinian pastor and academic dean of Bethlehem Bible College. We talk to him about the recent violence in Palestine, the growing support for Palestinian human rights, Christian Zionism, the Christ at the Checkpoint conference, anti-Semitism, and a whole lot more. We also asked him to recommend some Palestinian theologians people should read, and he gave us a veritable syllabus. So links to all those books will be in the show notes.
Thanks so much for reading, and we’ll see you next week!
The KTF Team