KTF Weekly Newsletter: That Climate Change Report, False Teachers on False Teachers, #DemolishDisabledPoverty
August 12, 2021
Hi everyone,
Just a quick reminder up top: you can tell anyone that they can get a free month of this subscription by going to www.ktfpress.com/freemonth. Word of mouth recommendations are very important, and we really appreciate anything you can do. Alright, let’s get to this week’s resources for leaving colonized faith for the Kingdom of God.
Suzie’s recommendations:
As the international community grapples with the bleak findings of the UN’s latest report on climate change, it is more urgent than ever that Christian communities turn from anti-science stances to embrace a more holistic theology of collective responsibility for our environment. One of the most beautiful, recent expressions of such a theology can be found in Pope Francis’ second encyclical, Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home. Pope Francis pulls no punches in advocating for collective action, calling out our complicity, and pointing to the disproportionate impact of climate change on poor and developing countries. Take time to reflect and meditate on this rich document. It’s a bit of a longer read, but definitely possible to take in in one sitting and well worth the effort.
While it’s important to interrogate the false dichotomy of science and faith that has developed in the Global North, it is likewise important to acknowledge that much of Western medicine is framed by Eurocentric attitudes of individualism and white supremacy. Perhaps nowhere is this more apparent than in the realm of psychology and mental health. Parts 1 and 2 of our recent Shake the Dust conversation with theologian and soul care provider Kyle J. Howard touch on some of the racial aspects of trauma that manifest within our faith communities. This Rewire article on decolonizing therapy complements those insights; highlighting the ways that we need to challenge our traditional, clinical understandings of mental health to acknowledge dimensions of intergenerational racial trauma and systemic oppression. Interestingly enough, the common objection to such an approach within the medical community- that it is too “political”- echoes common cries of resistance within the white evangelical church to frameworks like critical race theory. However, such a response masks, at best, ignorance borne of a privileged existence, and at worst, a deliberate red herring.
Jonathan’s recommendations:
Paul, in his letter to the church at Rome issues a stern proclamation that those who sinned “exchanged the truth of God for a lie”. This essay by Mount St. Mary’s Professor, Scott Coley presses into that and analyzes when “False Teachers Talk About False Teachers.” Those who resist God’s desire and command for justice are forfeiting a biblical truth for an anti-Christian lie in the name of an idol they call Christ but which wants nothing to do with Jesus of Nazareth. Coley opens, “It’s been suggested that those who promote ‘wokeness’ or ‘woke theology’ should be regarded as false teachers. This claim reflects a kind of theological illiteracy that needs to be exposed.” He couldn’t be more correct.
The Olympics are over but the fight about who can compete in them never are. Chromosome counts, hormone tests, and even strip searches for male genitalia in front of a panel of judges are among the experiences of women athletes who don’t fit neatly into the competition’s gender expectations. This podcast by WNYC captures the story of India’s Dutee Chand and raises the question: how did we get here? Followers of Jesus often have exceptionally strong feelings on subjects about which we know very little. It is beyond time that we enter the conversation about gender with certainty about God’s love, all people as image bearers at the center, and posture ourselves to learn from and serve those on the other side of our social norms.
Sy’s recommendations
#DemolishDisabledPoverty is a rallying cry for many seeking to bring down the labyrinth of laws that systemically keep disabled people in poverty. One of the main culprits is the federal Supplemental Security Income program. The New York Times recently published a good article explaining the issues disability rights advocates have with that legislation. Aside from discouraging people from getting jobs or being paid well, it actively prevents many disabled people from getting married, and it does all these things by effectively threatening many people who rely on it with death. Among many reasons to educate yourself on this issue is that policies which keep disabled people alive only at the cost of their thriving are critical to understand for anyone seeking to define a consistent pro-life political position.
Okay, this is maybe a lighter subject than I normally cover, but let’s let ourselves have a little fun here. Netflix’s comedy series Never Have I Ever from the brain of Mindy Kaling is a half family, half romantic sitcom about an Indian immigrant family living in suburban California. It’s not the type of show I always watch, but it is extremely well-written and is just very, very funny. Also, it’s doing something unique in terms of representation. As three scholars of Asian American life explain in this roundtable blog post from the Anxious Bench, the show depicts several Asian American characters, particularly women, as remarkably (for Hollywood anyway) ordinary, complicated people. Season 2 of the show just dropped, and if you’ve never watched, treat yourself, read the post, and think some good, solid thoughts about how media affects the way we view our neighbors and ourselves.
Shake the Dust preview
Tomorrow’s episode is an interview with Shadia Qubti, a Palestinian peace activist who now studies indigenous theology in Canada. We talk to Shadia about her decision to move across the world and study in such a different tradition from her own, how indigenous theology is changing her thinking and Christian practice, the dualism of Western theology, the inadequacy of Western theology to address intractable social problems, patriarchy in the Palestinian church, and a lot more.
Thanks so much for listening, and we’ll see you next week!
The KTF team