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4.71 AVERAGE
4.71 AVERAGE
No words for how much I love this book! It was put in my hands at the perfect time last week. Jesus came with grace AND truth. This book does both as well with “grit and grace.” ❤️
Moore's book is for, of course, all White Peacemakers, but also those who, in the wake of protests last summer following George Floyd's murder, got their hands on a bunch of anti-racist books, read them, engaged, and at a certain point, got a little overwhelmed, and backed off a little, retreated a little, wondering what they could really do in the face of such systemic oppression.
Me. I'm that person. And Moore invited me to keep going. She offers what felt to me like a very sustainable vision for long-term anti-racist peacemaking, filled with compassion and challenges, or as her title puts it, grit and grace. She doesn't let White Peacemakers off the hook, but she also sees them in that messy and yes, perhaps shameful feeling of being overwhelmed, and lays out a vision based in Jesus' teachings for why we should all keep going together. I'm left feeling grateful; I've received a gift I didn't deserve.
Me. I'm that person. And Moore invited me to keep going. She offers what felt to me like a very sustainable vision for long-term anti-racist peacemaking, filled with compassion and challenges, or as her title puts it, grit and grace. She doesn't let White Peacemakers off the hook, but she also sees them in that messy and yes, perhaps shameful feeling of being overwhelmed, and lays out a vision based in Jesus' teachings for why we should all keep going together. I'm left feeling grateful; I've received a gift I didn't deserve.
Osheta Moore is passionate about the Hebrew concept of ‘Shalom,” a multi-directional, relational wholeness between us and the earth, each other, and God. And shalom cannot hope to be achieved until Christians start talking about race. In this epistolary book, Moore writes to the Christian who has watched the events of the last year unfold and found themselves with lots of questions. She writes as a Black American, as a wife and mother, as a pastor and ultimately, as one who deeply yearns for unity. Moore shares her wisdom and stories in an honest and gracious way. She tackles subjects such as peacemaking vs. peacekeeping, White supremacy, Black hair, Black joy, and Black grief. Her underlying theme is God’s great love for us, that we are all Beloved in his sight. And as we begin to recognized that belovedness in each other, we can start to work toward unity and reconciliation. This book is vulnerable, raw, emotional and instructive. I read an early copy of the book and thought that it could have used some editing for clarity, but overall the message of the book came through. I found her thoughtful commentary and wise words inspiring. A must-read for anyone interested in becoming an ally and advocate.
“An anti-racism peacemaker...is a person who actively works toward a holistic restoration of the interpersonal and systemic effects of white supremacy through non-violence and empathy.” {a third way}
Beginning with a story straight from her first book Shalom Sistas, as I started reading, I knew this book was going to take me deeper into Osheta’s shalom and peacemaking journey, now intertwined with her anti-racism lens...and continue holding creative tension between the world that is and the world we long to see. Shalom, she writes, is God’s dream for the world as it should be.
Her opening letter to her readers is exactly as I’d expect: warm, inviting, fortified with humor and talk of good food for nourishment. But it doesn’t stop there. She quickly reminds us of what we are working towards (and working to dismantle to get there). This isn’t a feel good book. It does require grit {and grace} to work through.
Peacemaking isn’t all smoothed over and easy. The non-violent response doesn’t mean our hearts feel warm and fuzzy. Dismantling white supremacy takes perseverance, fierceness, a seat at the table of discomfort, and a whole lot of tension holding. You’ll find all of that here.
If you’re beginning or deeply in the middle of your anti-racism journey, this book is for you. If you’ve been holding tension between the church/faith community you belong to and your anti-racism journey, this book is for you. If peacemaking is a framework you want to learn more about and apply in your life, this book is for you. If non-violence with integrity and accountability is how you want to engage in the world, this book is for you.
Thank you so much to Osheta and her team for this early copy and opportunity to read and review. I’m excited for this unique book to launch into the world.
Beginning with a story straight from her first book Shalom Sistas, as I started reading, I knew this book was going to take me deeper into Osheta’s shalom and peacemaking journey, now intertwined with her anti-racism lens...and continue holding creative tension between the world that is and the world we long to see. Shalom, she writes, is God’s dream for the world as it should be.
Her opening letter to her readers is exactly as I’d expect: warm, inviting, fortified with humor and talk of good food for nourishment. But it doesn’t stop there. She quickly reminds us of what we are working towards (and working to dismantle to get there). This isn’t a feel good book. It does require grit {and grace} to work through.
Peacemaking isn’t all smoothed over and easy. The non-violent response doesn’t mean our hearts feel warm and fuzzy. Dismantling white supremacy takes perseverance, fierceness, a seat at the table of discomfort, and a whole lot of tension holding. You’ll find all of that here.
If you’re beginning or deeply in the middle of your anti-racism journey, this book is for you. If you’ve been holding tension between the church/faith community you belong to and your anti-racism journey, this book is for you. If peacemaking is a framework you want to learn more about and apply in your life, this book is for you. If non-violence with integrity and accountability is how you want to engage in the world, this book is for you.
Thank you so much to Osheta and her team for this early copy and opportunity to read and review. I’m excited for this unique book to launch into the world.
Dear Osheta,
Thank you for writing this compassionate, loving and important book. Your love for the white community is evident in the way you write, yet you don’t hold back. Your authenticity and hopefulness are woven together to tell stories that are hard to read, but oh so important for the reader to hear. Thank you for offering hope in the necessary anti-racism conversations and keeping it Christ-centered with the Sermon on the Mount as our guide. You inspire me to listen more carefully and love others more fully.
Thank you for writing this compassionate, loving and important book. Your love for the white community is evident in the way you write, yet you don’t hold back. Your authenticity and hopefulness are woven together to tell stories that are hard to read, but oh so important for the reader to hear. Thank you for offering hope in the necessary anti-racism conversations and keeping it Christ-centered with the Sermon on the Mount as our guide. You inspire me to listen more carefully and love others more fully.
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
Osheta’s voice in this amazing book is generous and oriented towards peace making, which feels unique in the Christian anti-racist landscape. I have been so encouraged by the way that Osheta’s stories, experiences and meditations have fostered and expanded conversations about race and identity that continue to be of central importance in America.
Osheta pulls together many components in this book, addressing White Peacemakers (her central audience) with letters at the start of each chapter, and following these empathic addresses with further exploration of our shared American national history surrounding race, and the impact this history has on our current lives, regardless of our racial backgrounds. She promises early in the book that, “we’re also going to be honest, breathtakingly honest, about the ways the knee of white supremacy has been on both our necks for centuries.” Many of Osheta’s stories of race in America are familiar for those who have been reading recent texts about race and identity, but I believe that this book is accessible to readers who might not be reading those other books, and either way the stories need to be told again and again, lest we forget.
Dear White Peacemakers stands out because of Osheta’s commitment to pursuing shalom, as well as the ways that she weaves that idea of the Beloved Community throughout her story. In the beginning she tells the reader, “White is not the standard. Human is the standard. Beloved is the standard. Made in the image of God is the standard.” She joins the voices of Jesus in the Bible, Martin Luther King Jr, Henri Nouwen and others, to center a discussion of Belovedness in the context of this current moment, allowing us a glimpse of what is possible: “Belovedness is like a flowing river of renewal and justice. It allows us to challenge systems and have difficult conversations. It moves us from individualism into community.” While she graciously allows for White Peacemakers to grow through mistakes and imperfections, calling us to grieve and listen, she sets the bar high for all of us, writing, “If we believe God’s shalom is wholeheartedness in a broken world, then we must be wholeheartedly for justice.” I am thankful for this book, for the space it allowed me to reflect and learn, and I look forward to returning to it in the years to come.
Osheta pulls together many components in this book, addressing White Peacemakers (her central audience) with letters at the start of each chapter, and following these empathic addresses with further exploration of our shared American national history surrounding race, and the impact this history has on our current lives, regardless of our racial backgrounds. She promises early in the book that, “we’re also going to be honest, breathtakingly honest, about the ways the knee of white supremacy has been on both our necks for centuries.” Many of Osheta’s stories of race in America are familiar for those who have been reading recent texts about race and identity, but I believe that this book is accessible to readers who might not be reading those other books, and either way the stories need to be told again and again, lest we forget.
Dear White Peacemakers stands out because of Osheta’s commitment to pursuing shalom, as well as the ways that she weaves that idea of the Beloved Community throughout her story. In the beginning she tells the reader, “White is not the standard. Human is the standard. Beloved is the standard. Made in the image of God is the standard.” She joins the voices of Jesus in the Bible, Martin Luther King Jr, Henri Nouwen and others, to center a discussion of Belovedness in the context of this current moment, allowing us a glimpse of what is possible: “Belovedness is like a flowing river of renewal and justice. It allows us to challenge systems and have difficult conversations. It moves us from individualism into community.” While she graciously allows for White Peacemakers to grow through mistakes and imperfections, calling us to grieve and listen, she sets the bar high for all of us, writing, “If we believe God’s shalom is wholeheartedness in a broken world, then we must be wholeheartedly for justice.” I am thankful for this book, for the space it allowed me to reflect and learn, and I look forward to returning to it in the years to come.
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
osheta moore is a gift to this world. I cried multiple times reading this book. she puts the practice and concepts of antiracism in a way that everyone can understand and in a way that truly makes you believe a better world is possible. this book is rooted in christianity, but its concepts are universal. I would recommend this to everyone, especially if you want a book that takes an approach to antiracism rooted in peace and genuine love of other human beings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime, Racism
Moderate: Slavery
Minor: Racial slurs
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
I have a lot of words I want to say and write today but truthfully, I am not sure where to start.
I joined the launch team for @oshetamoore's new book #DearWhitePeacemakers this week. I don't do this often but I read Shalom Sistas last summer & I've been following her for a few years in social & I knew it was something I wanted and needed to read.
This book is so good. Moore is generous and empathetic and kind. She also holds a firm line as she calls in white peacemakers like me and leads us through the Sermon on the Mount through a liberation theology lens (someone into theology tell me if I got this right). White Christians, especially White Christian women, this book is a generous gift for us, an invitation to be partners in building an upside down kingdom, to empathy, to be shalom-makers in our world.
And as the news continues telling us of every space of our world that is broken -- we need to heed the call to shalom.
I joined the launch team for @oshetamoore's new book #DearWhitePeacemakers this week. I don't do this often but I read Shalom Sistas last summer & I've been following her for a few years in social & I knew it was something I wanted and needed to read.
This book is so good. Moore is generous and empathetic and kind. She also holds a firm line as she calls in white peacemakers like me and leads us through the Sermon on the Mount through a liberation theology lens (someone into theology tell me if I got this right). White Christians, especially White Christian women, this book is a generous gift for us, an invitation to be partners in building an upside down kingdom, to empathy, to be shalom-makers in our world.
And as the news continues telling us of every space of our world that is broken -- we need to heed the call to shalom.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime, Racism, Violence, Religious bigotry
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Osheta Moore is a pastor and activist based in the Twin Cities. Her antiracism work is rooted in the idea that we are participants in bringing to fruition the Beloved Community in which people are uniquely valued and collectively embodies shalom. It is from this posture that she offers this deeply grace-filled book, addressed specifically to White* peacemakers who are navigating the waters of racial reconciliation.
I am truly awed by Osheta’s commitment to her kingdom ethic. She embodies the idea of loving correction. Every chapter of this book is full of nuance, vulnerability, education, and guidance. Ultimately, she names to her Gospel inspiration: that Jesus regularly points to a “third way” when presented with a binary choice. She acknowledges the humanity in each and every person she interacts with, dogged and uncompromising in her conviction of everyone’s Belovedness. However, she doesn’t soften or “make more palatable” the call for acknowledging the wrong, renouncing racism, and reparation for harm. I’m incredibly grateful for this book, and with continue to reference it in my own antiracism journey.
*I capitalized White to reflect Moore’s stylistic choice in the book. She has shared that she does so as a why to combat the idea of whiteness as a default (compared to the capitalized “others”). I realize this is an ongoing discussion and wanted to recognize her thoughtful viewpoint.
I am truly awed by Osheta’s commitment to her kingdom ethic. She embodies the idea of loving correction. Every chapter of this book is full of nuance, vulnerability, education, and guidance. Ultimately, she names to her Gospel inspiration: that Jesus regularly points to a “third way” when presented with a binary choice. She acknowledges the humanity in each and every person she interacts with, dogged and uncompromising in her conviction of everyone’s Belovedness. However, she doesn’t soften or “make more palatable” the call for acknowledging the wrong, renouncing racism, and reparation for harm. I’m incredibly grateful for this book, and with continue to reference it in my own antiracism journey.
*I capitalized White to reflect Moore’s stylistic choice in the book. She has shared that she does so as a why to combat the idea of whiteness as a default (compared to the capitalized “others”). I realize this is an ongoing discussion and wanted to recognize her thoughtful viewpoint.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Racism, Police brutality
Minor: Grief