In pursuit of being anti-racist, I knew I had to read Dear Church by Lenny Duncan after it was recommended by a longtime friend (and pastor IRL). (Like, we went to elementary school together – that kind of longtime, been through a ton together kind of friend.) I saw the cover and knew I had to get my paws on it. I read the subtitle and knew this would be a knockout. I read the first chapter and knew this would change me forever.
It sure did.
Let’s go!
My Church Is Very White
And I don’t just mean my actual church congregation, but the Lutheran ELCA organization is very white. Duncan is a biracial man with a not-so-straight-and-narrow path to pastor-hood. Which makes me love him even more.
Duncan calls out the facts without shaming the reader. He lays out the conflict between what we say, what we tell people and how our actions are percieved. I need to hear this. You need to hear this.
I am doing my best to learn and grow and set an example for my kiddos, but I’m not perfect. This book was an eye-opener to say the least. I learned terms I’d never heard of. I learned about outages from Duncan’s experience and knew right away my church also fell into that gap.
This is good stuff, folks. Hard to read because it’s another area where we (anti-racists) aren’t doing enough.
There’s no ego on my side. Another opportunity to be better? Okay, add it to the list. The path, the fight, the learning is SO worth it.
Race and My Church
I’m the first to say that my town is pretty white. There’s no denying it. But Black people do live here. They just don’t go to church where I go. Or my friends. Mostly. Duncan explains that’s because we’re not doing the work so that Black people feel included. Do we have Black leadership? Do we have Black leadership in the church organization? Do we have a white Jesus on the crucifix? Do we use symbolism of white meaning holy, innocence, rebirth and black meaning dark, evil? See what he’s saying here?
If we can’t show in big ways that diversity means something to the church, why would Black individuals attend or consider membership?
Duncan says it’s because of tradition. “We’ve always done it this way” isn’t going to fly anymore. And it’s up to anti-racists to rally against resting on ‘how it’s always been.’
Queen and My Church
My church welcomes LGBTQIA individuals. But again. Rinse, repeat. Do we have LGBTQIA individuals in our church leadership? Elsewhere? Are we allies for our LGBTQIA siblings all year, or just in June?
Duncan pushes the message that Jesus is all about inclusion. No matter sexual orientation. No matter anything to be exact. So are we walking the talk? He says we aren’t even close.
Words That Are Beautifully Stuck in My Heart
“This may mean that you are going to be really uncomfortable. But white discomfort is not worse than experiencing racism as a black person. This may mean that you will have to hold this church accountable to its own belief that racism is a sin.”
Powerful, right?
“Dear Church, I’ll say it again: systemic racism, white supremacy, and the whiteness of the ELCA constitute a theological program, not a sociological one.”
“When we exclude our LGBTQIA siblings, we become more and more like the world. Queer inclusion means that we are becoming more Christ-like, not the other way around. LGBTQIA inclusion is exactly what Jesus is doing. Jesus proves over and over again that who we think is the outsider is actually the insider.”
Dear Church will no doubt be in my 2021 favorite books! If you are passionate about learning, about being an anti-racist, about being an ally, this is a must-read!