January 18, 2021
In this persuasive debut, Kwon, lead pastor of Grace Meridian Hill in Washington, D.C., and Thompson, research fellow at Lincoln University, argue that white supremacy’s “enduring effect” in America is the theft of Black wealth and power, and that Christians must respond by participating in reparations. Christians, in their estimate, have a unique capacity to contribute to the project of reparations because the ideas at its core—the ethics of restitution and restoration—are a part of Christian beliefs and practices, specifically the stories of Zaccheus and the Good Samaritan. The authors present these scriptural models alongside theological treatises on theft that have informed Christian practice for centuries and firmly assert that “restitution for the thefts of White supremacy” is a goal “older than America itself,” often explicitly rooted in Christian beliefs, as with the abolitionist movement. At the end, Kwon and Thompson provide “practices of repair” directed toward churches, including acknowledging and memorializing history; bolstering “vocational, relational, and financial power to our Black neighbors”; working with economic institutions to remove barriers to wealth; and transfers of wealth to “Black households, institutions, and communities.” Kwon and Thompson’s eloquent reasoning will help Christians broaden their understanding of the contemporary conversation over reparations.
April 1, 2021
In the wake of unending racist injustices in the U.S., how should predominately white churches respond? Two evangelicals, Kwon (pastor, Grace Meridian Hill) and Thompson (executive dir., Voices Underground), urge churches to take seriously the imperative for reparations. Their conclusion is based on the conviction that white supremacy has been ingrained in the U.S. from its founding to the present day, and that slavery is theft that has gone unaddressed. Kwon and Thompson explain how white supremacy is maintained and reinforced by structures and institutions; they particularly emphasize that white churches have benefited from white supremacy. The book also explains that Christianity has a history of making reparations as a means of reconciling wrongs. Regardless of the nation's response to racism, Kwon and Thompson say, white-led churches are obligated to repent of all three aspects of racist theft, which is explicated in terms of labor, heritage, and power. Neither Kwon nor Thompson are Black, but their ministries have worked for this kind of reconciliation. Black people also tell their own stories throughout this book and make recommendations. VERDICT A thoughtful approach to a vital topic. It will especially appeal to fans of Jemar Tisby's The Color of Compromise.--James Wetherbee, Wingate Univ. Libs., NC
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