Tuesday Conversations, S1E16 (VIDEO) - Kelly Brown Douglas and Resurrection Hope: A Future Where Black Lives Matter

A deeply moving conversation about an important new book we need now

Happy Tuesday, everyone. For those of you who are celebrating Advent, if you’re like me, beginning the season with a candle representing “hope” felt challenging this year, given the state of American politics and the continued pandemic and the emerging news about the new omicron variant. But a resource that has buoyed my ability to hope has been the the new book by The Very Rev. Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas, Resurrection Hope: A Future Where Black Lives Matter. I was honored to write an endorsement and to be part of a book launch conversation last week, which I’m sharing below.

ICYMI last Friday, I also wanted to flag my own Advent reflections about the importance—especially for white Christians—of having our nativity scenes reflect an expansive understanding of the Incarnation. That piece—Advent, Race, and the Intimacy of the Incarnation—includes some beautiful icons by artist Kelly Latimore. If you missed it last week, I hope you’ll check it out.

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Book Launch for Kelly Brown Douglas, Resurrection Hope: A Future Where Black Lives Matter

Last Thursday, I had the privilege of participating in a lively panel discussion of the important new book by my friend and colleague, The Very Rev. Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas. In addition to the panel discussion, the event includes a moving and intimate 10-minute conversation between Douglas and her adult son, whose challenging discussions with her over the years helped shape and inform her writing.

If you’re struggling to find hope in these troubling times, this honest but uplifting book ought to be on your nightstand. Here’s what I had to say about Resurrection Hope:

Kelly Brown Douglas is a national treasure. In Resurrection Hope, she brings her insights as a scholar, clergy leader, institution builder, and public intellectual to the question that has haunted the church and the nation since before its inception: Will we finally imagine, build, and inhabit a world where Black lives are valued? Amid the troubled waters of our time, Douglas gives us a momentous gift: a vibrant religious vocabulary that not only illuminates how white supremacy has held our moral imaginations captive but also orients us toward an unrealized vision of a just future.

You can watch the video of the event by clicking on the image below. (*Note: This link takes you to the Facebook page of the Church of the Heavenly Rest, which sponsored the event.)

And I invite you to buy the book either for yourself or for someone as a gift this holiday season. Click below to buy (it’s unfortunately backordered at Bookshop so this is an Amazon link).