Grace Matters: A Memoir of Faith, Friendship, and Hope in the Heart of the South

by Chris Rice

In Grace Matters, we follow the remarkable journey of Chris Rice, a naive white college student from Vermont, who was transformed into an insightful man of faith who helped form a thriving interracial community in Jackson, Mississippi. Chris Rice's compelling story uncovers the wounds that divide the races and reveals what it takes to bring blacks and whites together, honestly, compassionately, and transcendently. As a young man in 1981, Chris Rice thought he would take a few months off from his college to join the Voice of Calvary ministry. There he met Spencer Perkins - the eldest son of John Perkins, legendary African American evangelist and civil rights movement activist-and was forever changed. Together, Chris and Spencer and an extraordinary group of ordinary people entered into a bold experiment, creating an interracial faith community called Antioch, after the Mediterranean city where the followers of Jesus first became known as Christians. Pooling their resources, this dedicated group of black and white Christians joined forces to realize the vision of the Sermon on the Mount. In so doing they not only enriched their own lives but also those of their inner-city neighbors.

Genres: Race, Christianity, Christian, Biography Memoir, Christian Non Fiction, Nonfiction, Memoir

336 pages, Paperback

First published August 23, 2002

About the author

Chris Rice (DMin, Duke University) lives in New York City and directs the United Nations Office of Mennonite Central Committee, an international relief, development, and peace agency. He served as cofounding director of the Duke Divinity School Center for Reconciliation, and has worked through the academy, churches, and faith-based organizations to heal social conflicts in east Africa, Northeast Asia, and the American South. Earlier he spent 17 years in Mississippi with Voice of Calvary, an interracial, church-based community development organization.

Chris' new book is From Pandemic to Renewal: Practices for a World Shaken by Crisis. He is coauthor of Reconciling All Things and More Than Equals, and author of Grace Matters, all of which won Christianity Today Book Awards. His His writing has appeared in Christianity Today, Christian Century, and Sojourners.

Chris and his wife Donna, a nurse, have three adult children. He is passionate about soccer, the outdoors, poetry, and spy novels.

Reviews

[Sarah Pascual · Rating 5 out of 5]

A moving story that was well written and taught me so much about community, commitment, belovedness, and the work for racial healing. One of my favorite reads this year.

“The truth is, we can’t stand the idea of not fixing each other. But insofar as we can fix people at all, we can do it only by forgiving them, and giving them grace, and leaving them to our loving Father. Grace assumes sin. When we ask you to accept each other, we aren’t asking you to ignore hurts between you. People of grace speak the truth. But in an atmosphere of grace, truth seems less offensive and more important. It’s no big deal to tell each other how you’re sinning. If you talk about people’s failures as matter-of-factly as you talk about the weather, they’ll hear your love and not your judgment.”

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is important not just for what it teaches about the hard work of racial reconciliation, but also the place of grace in the hard work of it and now important grace is to so much of our life in Christ. I will want to return to the lessons of this book often. So grateful I found this book.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

What was supposed to be a trip that lasted a few months during college turned into a 17 year life altering journey. I was emotional invested in this book and found myself sobbing at the conclusion of it. It left me sad and hopeful at the same time. I'm incredibly thankful that I read it.
My two favorite quotes were, "Reconciliation is about how we as the church will be healed by dealing with race." (Page 270)
And on page 55 where the author quotes his friend, Spencer, who says, "You can focus so much on how people voice their criticism that you lose sight of why they're upset."

[Maureen · Rating 5 out of 5]

People in the U.S. are loath to admit that racism still flourishes here. Through telling the story of
his years in Jackson, Mississippi, beginning with a student internship in 1981, and continuing
through 1998, he chronicles his relationship with Voice of Calvary ministries, the formation of
an intentional community called Antioch, and his deep friendship with “yolkfellow” Spencer
Perkins. This is a sometimes painful story of two men, one white and one black, and their work
together toward racial reconciliation in America. It is one of the most accurate portrayals of
racial issues on both sides that I have ever read.

[Randy Alcorn]

Straightforward, pulling no punches, Grace Matters is an absorbing account of whites and blacks living, learning, fighting and healing together. Chris Rice’s story reveals the costs and payoffs of true racial reconciliation—the kind that requires more than words.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book the first time I read it ten years ago. Loved it even more this time. Transparency and vulnerability give this story gut wrenching power to make you give up hope and then dare to hope again.

[Wes Hunter · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is a good story of a great idea that worked, as a book, its a little tedious, but worth a read, especially if you're interested in racial reconciliation.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book. This was something I needed to read. It really helped me understand an issue I struggle with at times. Tedious at times with all the details, but a beautiful true story.

[Jack Kooyman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A truthful story about the very hard, yet extremely important, work of racial reconciliation between two friends, leaders, and co-workers in the effort.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

full of everyday life, rich full relationships based on trust in Christ. raised and answered some 'race' questions. makes me want more

[Frank Ogden · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful story of one man's experience living in the South within the black community. Highly Recommended !!

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read it!