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One Blood: Parting Words to the Church on Race and Love
Dr. Perkins' final manifesto on race, faith, and reconciliation
We are living in historic times. Not since the civil rights movement of the 60s has our country been this vigorously engaged in the reconciliation conversation. There is a great opportunity right now for culture to change, but it cannot be done without the church.
The church is the heart and moral compass of a nation. To turn a country away from God, you must sideline the church. To turn a nation to God, the church must turn first. Racism won't end in America until the church is reconciled first. Then--and only then--can it spiritually and morally lead the way.
In this his crowning work, Dr. Perkins speaks honestly to the church about reconciliation, discipleship, and justice... and what it really takes to live out biblical reconciliation.
We are living in historic times. Not since the civil rights movement of the 60s has our country been this vigorously engaged in the reconciliation conversation. There is a great opportunity right now for culture to change, but it cannot be done without the church.
The church is the heart and moral compass of a nation. To turn a country away from God, you must sideline the church. To turn a nation to God, the church must turn first. Racism won't end in America until the church is reconciled first. Then--and only then--can it spiritually and morally lead the way.
In this his crowning work, Dr. Perkins speaks honestly to the church about reconciliation, discipleship, and justice... and what it really takes to live out biblical reconciliation.
208 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 3, 2018
241 people are currently reading
1841 people want to read
About the author
John M. Perkins
61 books207 followersDr. John M. Perkins is the founder and president emeritus of the John and Vera Mae Perkins Foundation and cofounder of Christian Community Development Association. He has served in advisory roles under five U.S. presidents, is one of the leading evangelical voices to come out of the American civil rights movement, and is an author and international speaker on issues of reconciliation, leadership, and community development. For his tireless work he has received 14 honorary doctorates. One Blood, along with Dr. Perkins other books, provides an enduring legacy for a man who continues to leave his mark on American culture.
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March 25, 2024
Summary: At 87 years old, the message John Perkins will be focusing on the rest of his life is the importance of racial reconciliation within the church.
One Blood is John Perkins' last book. So I read it conscious of several of several others books that I have read that were consciously the last books written. John Stott's last book was about discipleship. Johnny Cash's last album was about death and regret. This book is about racial issues within the church.
I wish that everyone was familiar with John Perkins. (If you are familiar with him, you can skip to the second half where I actually get to the book.) He grew up the son of a sharecropper. His mother died when he was two years old of Pellagra, which is a disease that is most often caused by such a poor diet that the person is essentially starving to death. When he was 16 his older brother, after returning from serving in the military during World War II was killed by a local police officer. Perkins was sent to California because his family feared that he would be killed as well.
When John Perkins was 27, his son Spencer invited him to church and he first became a Christian. Three years later (in 1960) he and his family moved back to Mendenhall, Mississippi to start Voice of Calvary. That ministry expanded to include an early Head Start program, social services and bible training program. In 1965, John Perkins started registering African Americans to vote and helped form a food cooperative to care for people that were blocked out of their jobs as a result of registering to vote. In 1967, his children were the first to desegregate the local high school. In 1969, he lead an economic boycott of White owned businesses, which directly lead to his false arrest and torture at the hands of local police officers. That torture required the removal of part of his stomach and life long health problems.
Later John Perkins and his wife Vera Mae started similar ministries in Jackson, Mississippi and then in Pasadena California. In 1989, he co-founded the Christian Community Development Association which gathered together similar organizations around the country that were mostly evangelical leaning theologically and agreed on the basic principles of the 3 Rs (relocation, reconciliation, and redistribution). Most recently the John and Vera Mae Perkins Foundation was created as a training center for Christian community development and leadership.
Although Perkins only formally completed third grade, One Blood is his 11th book that he wrote or co-wrote. I recommend his Let Justice Roll Down, a 2006 memoir as the best place to start with his books.
John Perkins is an elder statesman of both Christian Community Development and the Civil Rights era. We should listen to what he has to say because he has earned the right to say it through his life's work. This is not an abstract theorizing about racial issues. We do not have many civil rights icons left.
That being said I do have some concerns about One Blood. Because I have read almost everything Perkins has written and I have met and heard him in person multiple times since 1992 and listened to videos or recordings of him, I know his heart on racial issues. I fear that those that have less background, if they do read this book, will read it as individualist response to race.
Perkins emphasizes the need for individual relationship across racial lines. Which is important, but is not the only thing that is important racially. Maybe that is where we should start (and I think that is why Perkins does emphasize it.) He never denies the need for systemic changes to culture, but Perkins is a political and economic conservative. Historically he has emphasized local community and personal responsibility and not government. So there are a couple points here that he I think go a bit too far in resisting the role of government in integration.
Because Perkins is a political conservative I do think he speaks in a way that many White Evangelicals who are also political conservatives might be able to hear. Perkins quotes a lot of people, from Bono to Russ Moore, but unless I missed it, it is nearly half way through One Blood before he quotes an African American. He tells stories about African Americans, but quotes are about authority. By predominately quoting Whites, but telling stories about African Americans, it may make it easier for White readers to read One Blood because they are finding identifiable authorities that they can relate to, it does seem to minimize the authority of African Americans and other minorities, especially around racial issues where they are the authorities.
This leads to another problem: Perkins addresses both White and Black reluctance to racial reconciliation. Again, maybe this is a rhetorical device that is designed to assure White readers that they are not solely responsible for racial issues within the US. But it feels like moral equivalence arguments. And he does not address the largest African American reluctance that I have heard, the inability of Whites actually to stick with racial reconciliation as an issue.
I fully support the theological argument he is having, "Biblical reconciliation is the removal of tension between parties and the restoration of a loving relationship." (p13) But there is a sociological reality that we can have relationships across racial, cultural, economic or class lines but not actually see how we are at the same time perpetuating those lines. John Perkins knows this, and the focus of his ministry has been wholistic. He just doesn't spend much time talking about it here.
It isn't Perkins' biblical exegesis I question. Perkins is one of the best bible teachers I know. His focus on Acts and the discussion of what biblical reconciliation looks like are shown in quotes like,
He cites the 2016 election as a point when we first started looking at poor whites in the country, which just isn't true. Yes, there was additional attention paid to poor whites. But Trumps' support was actually more wealthy than the white supporters of Clinton. And many "˜successful' anti-poverty programs have historically excluded minorities (early social security, FHA loans, etc.)
Perkins calls for a period of national unity like was brought about by the period after the assassination of JFK, Martin Luther King Jr and Bobby Kennedy. And while he was right that there was collective horror over the assassinations, MLK Jr at his death had a lower approval rating than Trump currently has. There was not a national unity, there were riots and protests and division.
I do think that Perkins' prescriptions of biblical change through repentance is right. Perkins cites that biblically repentance is not just saying, "I'm sorry" but changing and walking in obedience and making restitution in order to reconcile the relationship. Perkins cites the SBC statements against racism and their repentance of participating in slavery as part of their origin as an example of this biblical repentance. And he cites the election of the first African American President, Fred Luter, in 2012 and then the President of the SBC Pastors' Conference in 2017 (Dr HB Charles Jr) as proof of the earlier statements.
Perkins quotes Russ Moore after the election of Luter saying, "A descendant of slaves elected to lead a denomination forged to protect the evil interests of slaveholders is a sign of the power of the gospel that crucifies injustice and reconciles brothers and sisters." And that is a great quote. But I follow a number of Black SBC leaders, and the amount of racism that they endure on Twitter from other SBC pastors is a sign of how far there is to go. (There was an attempt last year to oust Russ Moore as the head of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission in part because of his focus on racial issues, charging that he was being divisive.)
In the end, I am glad I read One Blood, even though I was frustrated. Because I want to read what Perkins has to say, I will never give up as much for Christ as he has. His words do, and should, carry much more weight than mine. For those who have ears, hearing the quote below will be inspiring. But for those who are resistant to understanding racism as more than just personal animus, I fear that they may come away from this book assuming that African Americans and other minorities that are resistant to coming to their church or that continue to assert the power that racism has in their lives are the ones that are hindering racial reconciliation.
I do think this quote from near the start of the epilogue is worth reading to understand Perkins' heart in racial reconciliation.
The Gospel Coalition has a much more positive review than I do if anyone is interested
My full review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/one-blood/
One Blood is John Perkins' last book. So I read it conscious of several of several others books that I have read that were consciously the last books written. John Stott's last book was about discipleship. Johnny Cash's last album was about death and regret. This book is about racial issues within the church.
I wish that everyone was familiar with John Perkins. (If you are familiar with him, you can skip to the second half where I actually get to the book.) He grew up the son of a sharecropper. His mother died when he was two years old of Pellagra, which is a disease that is most often caused by such a poor diet that the person is essentially starving to death. When he was 16 his older brother, after returning from serving in the military during World War II was killed by a local police officer. Perkins was sent to California because his family feared that he would be killed as well.
When John Perkins was 27, his son Spencer invited him to church and he first became a Christian. Three years later (in 1960) he and his family moved back to Mendenhall, Mississippi to start Voice of Calvary. That ministry expanded to include an early Head Start program, social services and bible training program. In 1965, John Perkins started registering African Americans to vote and helped form a food cooperative to care for people that were blocked out of their jobs as a result of registering to vote. In 1967, his children were the first to desegregate the local high school. In 1969, he lead an economic boycott of White owned businesses, which directly lead to his false arrest and torture at the hands of local police officers. That torture required the removal of part of his stomach and life long health problems.
Later John Perkins and his wife Vera Mae started similar ministries in Jackson, Mississippi and then in Pasadena California. In 1989, he co-founded the Christian Community Development Association which gathered together similar organizations around the country that were mostly evangelical leaning theologically and agreed on the basic principles of the 3 Rs (relocation, reconciliation, and redistribution). Most recently the John and Vera Mae Perkins Foundation was created as a training center for Christian community development and leadership.
Although Perkins only formally completed third grade, One Blood is his 11th book that he wrote or co-wrote. I recommend his Let Justice Roll Down, a 2006 memoir as the best place to start with his books.
John Perkins is an elder statesman of both Christian Community Development and the Civil Rights era. We should listen to what he has to say because he has earned the right to say it through his life's work. This is not an abstract theorizing about racial issues. We do not have many civil rights icons left.
That being said I do have some concerns about One Blood. Because I have read almost everything Perkins has written and I have met and heard him in person multiple times since 1992 and listened to videos or recordings of him, I know his heart on racial issues. I fear that those that have less background, if they do read this book, will read it as individualist response to race.
Perkins emphasizes the need for individual relationship across racial lines. Which is important, but is not the only thing that is important racially. Maybe that is where we should start (and I think that is why Perkins does emphasize it.) He never denies the need for systemic changes to culture, but Perkins is a political and economic conservative. Historically he has emphasized local community and personal responsibility and not government. So there are a couple points here that he I think go a bit too far in resisting the role of government in integration.
Because Perkins is a political conservative I do think he speaks in a way that many White Evangelicals who are also political conservatives might be able to hear. Perkins quotes a lot of people, from Bono to Russ Moore, but unless I missed it, it is nearly half way through One Blood before he quotes an African American. He tells stories about African Americans, but quotes are about authority. By predominately quoting Whites, but telling stories about African Americans, it may make it easier for White readers to read One Blood because they are finding identifiable authorities that they can relate to, it does seem to minimize the authority of African Americans and other minorities, especially around racial issues where they are the authorities.
This leads to another problem: Perkins addresses both White and Black reluctance to racial reconciliation. Again, maybe this is a rhetorical device that is designed to assure White readers that they are not solely responsible for racial issues within the US. But it feels like moral equivalence arguments. And he does not address the largest African American reluctance that I have heard, the inability of Whites actually to stick with racial reconciliation as an issue.
I fully support the theological argument he is having, "Biblical reconciliation is the removal of tension between parties and the restoration of a loving relationship." (p13) But there is a sociological reality that we can have relationships across racial, cultural, economic or class lines but not actually see how we are at the same time perpetuating those lines. John Perkins knows this, and the focus of his ministry has been wholistic. He just doesn't spend much time talking about it here.
It isn't Perkins' biblical exegesis I question. Perkins is one of the best bible teachers I know. His focus on Acts and the discussion of what biblical reconciliation looks like are shown in quotes like,
"There has been the suggestion that we can be reconciled to God without being reconciled to our brothers and sisters in Christ. Scripture doesn't bear that out." (p28)
He cites the 2016 election as a point when we first started looking at poor whites in the country, which just isn't true. Yes, there was additional attention paid to poor whites. But Trumps' support was actually more wealthy than the white supporters of Clinton. And many "˜successful' anti-poverty programs have historically excluded minorities (early social security, FHA loans, etc.)
Perkins calls for a period of national unity like was brought about by the period after the assassination of JFK, Martin Luther King Jr and Bobby Kennedy. And while he was right that there was collective horror over the assassinations, MLK Jr at his death had a lower approval rating than Trump currently has. There was not a national unity, there were riots and protests and division.
I do think that Perkins' prescriptions of biblical change through repentance is right. Perkins cites that biblically repentance is not just saying, "I'm sorry" but changing and walking in obedience and making restitution in order to reconcile the relationship. Perkins cites the SBC statements against racism and their repentance of participating in slavery as part of their origin as an example of this biblical repentance. And he cites the election of the first African American President, Fred Luter, in 2012 and then the President of the SBC Pastors' Conference in 2017 (Dr HB Charles Jr) as proof of the earlier statements.
Perkins quotes Russ Moore after the election of Luter saying, "A descendant of slaves elected to lead a denomination forged to protect the evil interests of slaveholders is a sign of the power of the gospel that crucifies injustice and reconciles brothers and sisters." And that is a great quote. But I follow a number of Black SBC leaders, and the amount of racism that they endure on Twitter from other SBC pastors is a sign of how far there is to go. (There was an attempt last year to oust Russ Moore as the head of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission in part because of his focus on racial issues, charging that he was being divisive.)
In the end, I am glad I read One Blood, even though I was frustrated. Because I want to read what Perkins has to say, I will never give up as much for Christ as he has. His words do, and should, carry much more weight than mine. For those who have ears, hearing the quote below will be inspiring. But for those who are resistant to understanding racism as more than just personal animus, I fear that they may come away from this book assuming that African Americans and other minorities that are resistant to coming to their church or that continue to assert the power that racism has in their lives are the ones that are hindering racial reconciliation.
I do think this quote from near the start of the epilogue is worth reading to understand Perkins' heart in racial reconciliation.
"Well, I've had my say. I believe that if we can get it into our hearts that we are one, we will make it. We are one human race. We are one blood, all created from one man, Adam. And we are saved by one blood, the blood of Jesus, the Son of God who gave his life to reconcile us to the Father and to one another. Blood carries the idea of suffering. It's this concept of suffering that I'm most aware of now. Not just suffering for the sake of suffering, but suffering coupled with joy. If we're going to make the kind of progress that we need to make with reconciliation, we have got to be willing to suffer. And we've got to be able to see joy as the end product of our suffering." (epilogue, page 171)
The Gospel Coalition has a much more positive review than I do if anyone is interested
My full review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/one-blood/
August 12, 2020
I don't know if anyone could write this book with more integrity than John Perkins. He has lived his life committed to the church, racial justice, and building up communities. His parting words to the church in the sunset of his ministry focus on lament, unity, courage and love. I think it's a good place to begin the conversation, but it was surprising to me that it felt a little bit "careful." It's not the first book I would give someone who is wrestling through racism, but I couldn't respect John Perkins more.
June 4, 2020
This is a great book for all Christians to read. Dr Perkins gives a very fair and balanced discourse on racism in the American Christian Church. He is fair to all "races" and speaks life and hope for the future of the church. His testimony of his own experiences is gut wrenching and his honesty is pure and refreshing. Let God's love cast out fear and bring unity to his children.
July 23, 2020
Starts off a little slow -- and a little redundant for non-newcomers to the conversation on the gospel and race -- but gets better and better as it goes. Challenging and helpful.
February 18, 2023
It’s easy to see how John M. Perkins has been / is such a significant voice for justice in the evangelical world. In this “last book” (though he wrote another only 3 years later), he calls the Church to be what it was made to be - a force of love and reconciliation. This book has very pastoral flow - meeting the reader “at the beginning” with each chapter taking the next step in reasoning or practice. I especially enjoyed the 4 “Live it Out” stories of real churches living out “racial” (what John would call biblical) reconciliation. John writes to black and white readers (and I think to other ethnicities as well). For someone just considering how the gospel calls us to unity and love across racial lines, and for those who have been walking the journey for a long time, I think this short (180 pages) manifesto is worth the read.
October 24, 2020
A somber, compassionate, hopeful word for Christians about racism. I have so much respect for John Perkins and his honest words. This book is wonderful.
February 7, 2019
This book is important. If you have been compelled by Perkins life and thinking read this book. If you haven’t....read this book. It’s a strong clear consistent call to a reconciliation that is lacking and yet undeniably the “will of God” Perkins is always honest, biblical, and practical. We don’t need more theories we need practitioners. He says “ there is a vision shaped vacuum in the soul of the church that will not be satisfied by man made strategies or philosophies, but only by His vision of the church victoriously fulfilling the divine mandate.” Perkins would call the mandate the high honor of living out the reconciling love of Jesus in our churches and neighborhoods across the lines that divide us.
August 28, 2022
This is a strong exhortation to pursue unity and diversity, but there isn’t much addressing the more modern issues of denying racism, unconscious biases, systemic injustices, etc. I don’t think this book would challenge many readers, unless they are outspoken white supremecists. The most dangerous racism today is more insidious and subtle, and this book does little to address that.
August 9, 2019
Worthwhile read. His chapter on Lament was worth the price of the book for me.
July 24, 2021
I became aware of John Perkins when a team from my church returned from a Christian Community Development Association (CCDA) speaking for their admiration for his words and work in bringing reconciliation between all people.
When I ran across One Blood, what Perkins describes as his final manifesto, I was drawn to hear what exactly the parting words of such a seasoned civil rights saint would be for the church today in the United States as we struggle with the reignition of racial strife.
I was not disappointed. Perkins speaks with a voice that is urgent but calm, challenging but gentle, and hopeful but full of hard earned realism.
He gives the church no space in reminding us that we are one blood, all from Adam, all created in the very image of God. That divine image is what demands we value the other in a way to ensures we forgive, reconcile and love just as Jesus commanded and modeled for us.
Again a book that I wish I had the foresight to have purchased so that I could underline and add note as I read.
Highly recommended to all who are devoted to the ministry of reconciliation, not only in racial contexts, but in every relationship we have.
When I ran across One Blood, what Perkins describes as his final manifesto, I was drawn to hear what exactly the parting words of such a seasoned civil rights saint would be for the church today in the United States as we struggle with the reignition of racial strife.
I was not disappointed. Perkins speaks with a voice that is urgent but calm, challenging but gentle, and hopeful but full of hard earned realism.
He gives the church no space in reminding us that we are one blood, all from Adam, all created in the very image of God. That divine image is what demands we value the other in a way to ensures we forgive, reconcile and love just as Jesus commanded and modeled for us.
Again a book that I wish I had the foresight to have purchased so that I could underline and add note as I read.
Highly recommended to all who are devoted to the ministry of reconciliation, not only in racial contexts, but in every relationship we have.
August 23, 2020
Good introductory book to some tricky conversations. Not really a heavy hitter, but I absolutely agree the church must become intentional about ethnic diversity in each congregation. I think the idea that there is no such thing as more than one human race is the right one, there’s only one human race, we are one blood. I don’t want to diminish the sanctity and beauty of ethnic differences, however. Each persons culture is so special I’m afraid this idea can gloss over that. My only other question is whether or not it’s an issue of semantics or a deep rooted evil to think about the idea of ‘race.’ When I see a medical form or something that asks for race and I check caucasion am I feeding a bad idea in a bad system or is it just simply another term today for ethnicity that people understand and can use to communicate with. I need further study and illumination there.
February 6, 2021
A great message to the church about biblical reconciliation. Talks a lot about how our lack of racial unity within the church has negatively affected our ability to share the truth of the gospel. Perkins gives some good wisdom on how we become a more unified body of believers. The beauty of the gospel is that once we are reconciled to God we are able to be reconciled to our brothers and sisters in Christ. As a church we should strive for this!
July 30, 2020
"Biblical reconciliation is the removal of tension between parties and the restoration of loving relationship."
"While there was agony on one side of Calvary, on the other side of Calvary there was a redeemed church, the bride of Christ. Lament and confession live on the agonizing side of reconciliation, but on the other side there is the church victorious."
"While there was agony on one side of Calvary, on the other side of Calvary there was a redeemed church, the bride of Christ. Lament and confession live on the agonizing side of reconciliation, but on the other side there is the church victorious."
February 25, 2021
I have an immense amount of respect for John Perkins and his parting words to the church in this book. His legacy is clearly an example of his words and integrity lived out. That being said, I think this could’ve gone deeper, especially when it comes to calling upon white evangelical Christians and congregations to truly engage in biblical reconciliation.
September 18, 2021
A call to action. A call to do your part in ending racism and bring about reconciliation. I had hoped to learn a little more about the life of John M. Perkins but learned very little about him, clearly that was not the focus of this book. Will forever remember the African proverb quoted in this book about a man who seems a monster but is our brother. Powerful.
June 15, 2020
This is a beautiful book written out of a lifetime of experience and a call to the church on how to respond to racism. I would highly recommend it.
August 10, 2020
Challenging, humbling, and a call to action.
September 25, 2020
One of the best explanations of the process of lamenting is in this book.
October 1, 2018
We have much to celebrate in the faith and work movement as individuals and organizations are drawn into and contribute to this conversation. Hearts and minds are being shaped by the truth that all of our work matters. God desires to use each of us to advance His Kingdom in this world.
At the same time, an attitude of continuous improvement is necessary to ensure long-term sustainability and impact. One aspect of this involves evaluating gaps in the literature. Sabbath is one I'm pleased to see authors like John Mark Comer and Tish Harrison Warren address through their writings. Much more should be done here. There are also gaps in considering faith and work for youth, women, blue collar workers, and minorities, among others.
This fall marks the 30th anniversary of the Christian Community Development Association (CCDA). CCDA was founded with the vision of wholistically restored communities with Christians fully engaged in the process of transformation. On foundations of relocation, reconciliation, and redistribution, co-founders Dr. John Perkins and Wayne Gordon sought the restoration of underserved communities along with reconciliation for injustice and inequity:
The Lord Jesus Christ, God’s son, redeems us through His death and resurrection and empowers us by the Holy Spirit. The Bible is God’s Word and through it we are called to live out justice, reconciliation, and redemption. The church nurtures God’s people gathered in a community to carry out God’s Word. -CCDA statement of faith
Dr. Perkins, Noel Castellanos, and the rest of the team at CCDA have proclaimed the foundational principles of Christian Community Development through national conferences, workshops, events, and books. Dr. Perkins' most recent book is One Blood: Parting Words to the Church On Race.
Dr. John M. Perkins is the founder and president emeritus of the John and Vera Mae Perkins Foundation and co-founder of Christian Community Development Association. He has served in advisory roles under five U.S. presidents, is one of the leading evangelical voices to come out of the American civil rights movement, and is an author and international speaker on issues of reconciliation, leadership, and community development. For his tireless work, he has received 14 honorary doctorates. One Blood, along with Dr. Perkins other books, provides an enduring legacy for a man who continues to leave his mark on American culture.
Here's how the publisher describes the book:
We are living in historic times. Not since the civil rights movement of the 60s has our country been this vigorously engaged in the reconciliation conversation. There is a great opportunity right now for culture to change, to be a more perfect union. However, it cannot be done without the church, because the faith of the people is more powerful than any law government can enact.
The church is the heart and moral compass of a nation. To turn a country away from God, you must sideline the church. To turn a nation to God, the church must turn first. Racism won't end in America until the church is reconciled first. Then—and only then—can it spiritually and morally lead the way.
Dr. John M. Perkins is a leading civil rights activist today. He grew up in a Mississippi sharecropping family, was an early pioneer of the civil rights movement, and has dedicated his life to the cause of racial equality. In this, his crowning work, Dr. Perkins speaks honestly to the church about reconciliation, discipleship, and justice... and what it really takes to live out biblical reconciliation.
He offers a call to repentance to both the white church and the black church. He explains how band-aid approaches of the past won't do. And while applauding these starter efforts, he holds that true reconciliation won't happen until we get more intentional and relational. True friendships must happen and on every level. This will take the whole church, not just the pastors and staff.
The racial reconciliation of our churches and nation won't be done with big campaigns or through mass media. It will come one loving, sacrificial relationship at a time. The gospel and all that it encompasses has always traveled best relationally. We have much to learn from each other and each has unique poverties that can only be filled by one another. The way forward is to become "wounded healers" who bandage each other up as we discover what the family of God really looks like. Real relationships, sacrificial love between actual people, is the way forward. Nothing less will do. –book description from Moody Publishers' website
Another subject gap in the faith and work movement is lament. Lament is not a popular topic, and often it is difficult for some to understand its importance. One gift from Dr. Perkins in One Blood is his intentionality on the subject of lament. He provides opportunities for the reader to pray and lament at the conclusion of each chapter. Here are two samples:
Father God, we praise You for the vision of the church – overflowing with Your character, Your purpose, Your love. Please remove the scales from our eyes and help us to see it, to know it, to embrace it, to love it. Then Lord, overshadow the doubts and fears that so easily war against the vision and help us to be Your church, overflowing with Your glorious character in this world. By Your awesome power, oh God, make us one that Your Name may be glorified and praised in all the Earth!
Lord God, open our eyes to see Your truth and to believe Your Word. From one man You created all mankind. You made us from one blood. And then You saved us by one blood. The precious blood of Your Son Jesus. Your Word is truth. Help it to penetrate our hearts and our minds. Help it to break through our walls of resistance and those places we've chosen to believe the Enemy's lies. Break us, Lord. Awaken us, Lord. Make us one.
The faith and work movement can learn about lament from Dr. Perkins. He cites a pattern of lament in Scripture that includes a desperate cry, a petition or request for help, and a concluding praise. What would our individual and corporate discipleship, our probing of the meaning of our faith for our work, look like if it regularly included lament?
Lament comes from deep down in the soul. We need to give voice to our souls. The god of this world has blinded the eyes of Christians and the eyes of the Church, so we can't see the condition of our souls.
The soul is the ultimate truth teller. It knows truth. And from the very soul of the Church – we need to grieve our refusal to obey His command to love one another. Each person, each individual offers a unique representation of God's image. We need to know each other, love each other, and worship with each other to truly know the fullness of who God is. When I remember the vision of Revelation and remember the experience of Pentecost, there's an ache in my soul. We are so far, far away.
But the laments of Scripture do more than just voice painful emotions and serve as an outlet that gives vent to our pain. These psalms of lament stand alone as theology. They teach us about our God and how to worship Him. They transform us.
Oh God! What do we do when the foundations are shaken!
There's hate, distrust, and selfish greed in Your church
We're doing the wrong things with wrong motives...
We're not one and we are satisfied.
Lord, open our eyes to see Your Truth
Awaken in us a zeal for Your power and Your presence among us
Break down the walls that have separated us
Help us to love with Your love
From the earliest of our existence You, O Lord, have kept us
Your Word has been a lamp and a light for our path
For all of our appointed days, we will serve You
From everlasting to everlasting – You are our God.
–Dr. Perkins' lament
Another gift in One Blood is the 'Living It Out' section at the end of each unit. The purpose of these is to "call attention to many examples of multiethnic congregations and ministries around our nation that are going against the grain to bring diverse people together." In each feature, a church pastor shares the process by which their church became multicultural. It is one thing to read theory and philosophy. There is a place for this. But it is another thing altogether to read the story of someone on the front lines describe how they have brought the principles of Christian Community Development alive in their context including all the struggles and false starts.
One Blood has received many endorsements.
This is a powerful, prophetic appeal to people of faith to address our nation’s tragic history of racial injustice. Like Daniel, Amos, and Micah, John Perkins has profound insight on the health of our nation and the sin of racial bigotry that has burdened us for too long. One Blood is an altar call for justice to which we should all respond.
Bryan Stevenson
Founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, clinical professor at New York University School of Law, and author of Just Mercy
John Perkins has been giving me a transfusion of reconciling love for forty years. We may be one, but John has always had the better blood, more of Christ’s healing and renewing love. So over and over, both for me and for so many, John has infused us with fresh vision and bold passion for God’s reconciling love and justice. This wise book testifies that that same blood is still vital and pumping hard!
Mark Labberton
President, Fuller Theological Seminary
Thank you, Dr. Perkins, for a rich legacy of a life well lived. You have been and remain a trailblazer in the area of community development, justice, and reconciliation. God has placed passions in your heart and provided countless opportunities to see those desires come to fruition through your efforts and those of the army of CCD laborers. I look forward to the National Conference this November, to interact with brothers and sisters the Lord is using every day to usher in foretastes of justice and reconciliation as they integrate their faith with the work they do. Praise the Lord for the good work He has done!
I urge you to read this book; it will provide you an opportunity to hear the heart of a man whom God has used since 1960 to challenge the body of Christ toward its role in ministering reconciliation. Please pray the prayers at the end of each chapter to help you integrate the practice of lament and think about the questions in the study guide. Allow the Spirit to shape your heart and mind as you contemplate what Dr. Perkins says through the pages of this book.
At the same time, an attitude of continuous improvement is necessary to ensure long-term sustainability and impact. One aspect of this involves evaluating gaps in the literature. Sabbath is one I'm pleased to see authors like John Mark Comer and Tish Harrison Warren address through their writings. Much more should be done here. There are also gaps in considering faith and work for youth, women, blue collar workers, and minorities, among others.
This fall marks the 30th anniversary of the Christian Community Development Association (CCDA). CCDA was founded with the vision of wholistically restored communities with Christians fully engaged in the process of transformation. On foundations of relocation, reconciliation, and redistribution, co-founders Dr. John Perkins and Wayne Gordon sought the restoration of underserved communities along with reconciliation for injustice and inequity:
The Lord Jesus Christ, God’s son, redeems us through His death and resurrection and empowers us by the Holy Spirit. The Bible is God’s Word and through it we are called to live out justice, reconciliation, and redemption. The church nurtures God’s people gathered in a community to carry out God’s Word. -CCDA statement of faith
Dr. Perkins, Noel Castellanos, and the rest of the team at CCDA have proclaimed the foundational principles of Christian Community Development through national conferences, workshops, events, and books. Dr. Perkins' most recent book is One Blood: Parting Words to the Church On Race.
Dr. John M. Perkins is the founder and president emeritus of the John and Vera Mae Perkins Foundation and co-founder of Christian Community Development Association. He has served in advisory roles under five U.S. presidents, is one of the leading evangelical voices to come out of the American civil rights movement, and is an author and international speaker on issues of reconciliation, leadership, and community development. For his tireless work, he has received 14 honorary doctorates. One Blood, along with Dr. Perkins other books, provides an enduring legacy for a man who continues to leave his mark on American culture.
Here's how the publisher describes the book:
We are living in historic times. Not since the civil rights movement of the 60s has our country been this vigorously engaged in the reconciliation conversation. There is a great opportunity right now for culture to change, to be a more perfect union. However, it cannot be done without the church, because the faith of the people is more powerful than any law government can enact.
The church is the heart and moral compass of a nation. To turn a country away from God, you must sideline the church. To turn a nation to God, the church must turn first. Racism won't end in America until the church is reconciled first. Then—and only then—can it spiritually and morally lead the way.
Dr. John M. Perkins is a leading civil rights activist today. He grew up in a Mississippi sharecropping family, was an early pioneer of the civil rights movement, and has dedicated his life to the cause of racial equality. In this, his crowning work, Dr. Perkins speaks honestly to the church about reconciliation, discipleship, and justice... and what it really takes to live out biblical reconciliation.
He offers a call to repentance to both the white church and the black church. He explains how band-aid approaches of the past won't do. And while applauding these starter efforts, he holds that true reconciliation won't happen until we get more intentional and relational. True friendships must happen and on every level. This will take the whole church, not just the pastors and staff.
The racial reconciliation of our churches and nation won't be done with big campaigns or through mass media. It will come one loving, sacrificial relationship at a time. The gospel and all that it encompasses has always traveled best relationally. We have much to learn from each other and each has unique poverties that can only be filled by one another. The way forward is to become "wounded healers" who bandage each other up as we discover what the family of God really looks like. Real relationships, sacrificial love between actual people, is the way forward. Nothing less will do. –book description from Moody Publishers' website
Another subject gap in the faith and work movement is lament. Lament is not a popular topic, and often it is difficult for some to understand its importance. One gift from Dr. Perkins in One Blood is his intentionality on the subject of lament. He provides opportunities for the reader to pray and lament at the conclusion of each chapter. Here are two samples:
Father God, we praise You for the vision of the church – overflowing with Your character, Your purpose, Your love. Please remove the scales from our eyes and help us to see it, to know it, to embrace it, to love it. Then Lord, overshadow the doubts and fears that so easily war against the vision and help us to be Your church, overflowing with Your glorious character in this world. By Your awesome power, oh God, make us one that Your Name may be glorified and praised in all the Earth!
Lord God, open our eyes to see Your truth and to believe Your Word. From one man You created all mankind. You made us from one blood. And then You saved us by one blood. The precious blood of Your Son Jesus. Your Word is truth. Help it to penetrate our hearts and our minds. Help it to break through our walls of resistance and those places we've chosen to believe the Enemy's lies. Break us, Lord. Awaken us, Lord. Make us one.
The faith and work movement can learn about lament from Dr. Perkins. He cites a pattern of lament in Scripture that includes a desperate cry, a petition or request for help, and a concluding praise. What would our individual and corporate discipleship, our probing of the meaning of our faith for our work, look like if it regularly included lament?
Lament comes from deep down in the soul. We need to give voice to our souls. The god of this world has blinded the eyes of Christians and the eyes of the Church, so we can't see the condition of our souls.
The soul is the ultimate truth teller. It knows truth. And from the very soul of the Church – we need to grieve our refusal to obey His command to love one another. Each person, each individual offers a unique representation of God's image. We need to know each other, love each other, and worship with each other to truly know the fullness of who God is. When I remember the vision of Revelation and remember the experience of Pentecost, there's an ache in my soul. We are so far, far away.
But the laments of Scripture do more than just voice painful emotions and serve as an outlet that gives vent to our pain. These psalms of lament stand alone as theology. They teach us about our God and how to worship Him. They transform us.
Oh God! What do we do when the foundations are shaken!
There's hate, distrust, and selfish greed in Your church
We're doing the wrong things with wrong motives...
We're not one and we are satisfied.
Lord, open our eyes to see Your Truth
Awaken in us a zeal for Your power and Your presence among us
Break down the walls that have separated us
Help us to love with Your love
From the earliest of our existence You, O Lord, have kept us
Your Word has been a lamp and a light for our path
For all of our appointed days, we will serve You
From everlasting to everlasting – You are our God.
–Dr. Perkins' lament
Another gift in One Blood is the 'Living It Out' section at the end of each unit. The purpose of these is to "call attention to many examples of multiethnic congregations and ministries around our nation that are going against the grain to bring diverse people together." In each feature, a church pastor shares the process by which their church became multicultural. It is one thing to read theory and philosophy. There is a place for this. But it is another thing altogether to read the story of someone on the front lines describe how they have brought the principles of Christian Community Development alive in their context including all the struggles and false starts.
One Blood has received many endorsements.
This is a powerful, prophetic appeal to people of faith to address our nation’s tragic history of racial injustice. Like Daniel, Amos, and Micah, John Perkins has profound insight on the health of our nation and the sin of racial bigotry that has burdened us for too long. One Blood is an altar call for justice to which we should all respond.
Bryan Stevenson
Founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, clinical professor at New York University School of Law, and author of Just Mercy
John Perkins has been giving me a transfusion of reconciling love for forty years. We may be one, but John has always had the better blood, more of Christ’s healing and renewing love. So over and over, both for me and for so many, John has infused us with fresh vision and bold passion for God’s reconciling love and justice. This wise book testifies that that same blood is still vital and pumping hard!
Mark Labberton
President, Fuller Theological Seminary
Thank you, Dr. Perkins, for a rich legacy of a life well lived. You have been and remain a trailblazer in the area of community development, justice, and reconciliation. God has placed passions in your heart and provided countless opportunities to see those desires come to fruition through your efforts and those of the army of CCD laborers. I look forward to the National Conference this November, to interact with brothers and sisters the Lord is using every day to usher in foretastes of justice and reconciliation as they integrate their faith with the work they do. Praise the Lord for the good work He has done!
I urge you to read this book; it will provide you an opportunity to hear the heart of a man whom God has used since 1960 to challenge the body of Christ toward its role in ministering reconciliation. Please pray the prayers at the end of each chapter to help you integrate the practice of lament and think about the questions in the study guide. Allow the Spirit to shape your heart and mind as you contemplate what Dr. Perkins says through the pages of this book.
July 1, 2020
I love this book. I love its wisdom and the loving voice of its author, which I heard loud and clear and full of kindness and reflection throughout. This is a call to action with a gospel center that is well worth reading, especially in our current climate.
October 11, 2022
Reading this book feels like sitting next to John Perkins and having a conversation. And that conversation would be absorbing his wisdom gathered over a lifetime. For anyone wanting racial reconciliation, this book is for you.
June 27, 2018
John Perkins speaks as a church elder to us young'uns. The tone of the book feels much like 1, 2, and 3 John because of that.
'One Blood' is Perkins final attempt to give the church a clear call and direction towards racial unity and reconciliation in America. I appreciated his focus on the steps churches can take within their walls--as this translated more helpfully to my context than many other American books on the topic of racial division.
I also appreciated his deeply biblical grounding of his counsel. It is practical, clear, and hopeful. Perkins is old and wise enough to recognize that most big change doesn't come all at once, but slowly, over time from small faithfulnesses.
I'm deeply thankful for his example and exhortation.
'One Blood' is Perkins final attempt to give the church a clear call and direction towards racial unity and reconciliation in America. I appreciated his focus on the steps churches can take within their walls--as this translated more helpfully to my context than many other American books on the topic of racial division.
I also appreciated his deeply biblical grounding of his counsel. It is practical, clear, and hopeful. Perkins is old and wise enough to recognize that most big change doesn't come all at once, but slowly, over time from small faithfulnesses.
I'm deeply thankful for his example and exhortation.
July 6, 2020
3.5 stars. I read this book after just finishing LaTasha Morrison's book "Be the Bridge." In many ways, the two books are similar with many of the same themes broached in both books: Lament, Confession, and Forgiveness. Perkins' book is awash with Scripture, truly a highlight and strength of the book, and he deftly connects his arguments with the narrative of Scripture. The wealth of knowledge from a life well-lived is another invaluable part of this book.
My critique of the book would be that it fails to provide tangible and specific applications to the church today. The general applications are helpful: prayer, purpose, love - but more specific applications are needed. This is the biggest contrast with Morrison's book which does provide much in the way of specific applications.
My critique of the book would be that it fails to provide tangible and specific applications to the church today. The general applications are helpful: prayer, purpose, love - but more specific applications are needed. This is the biggest contrast with Morrison's book which does provide much in the way of specific applications.
May 31, 2018
[Note: This book was provided free of charge by Moody Publishers. All thoughts and opinions are my own.]
When reading a book like this, I feel somewhat torn between wanting to be clear about what I find problematic about this book and a desire to express my general agreement with the author's desire that believers should look beyond ethnicity and treat all believers as one blood in the way that the Bible commands. Race and politics are thorny issues in the contemporary world and quite frequently this Appalachian-born, Southern-raised white man is put in the position of reviewing books that deal in complicated and not entirely satisfactory ways with the issue of race [1]. This book is satisfying if uncomfortable for me to read when the author is talking about his own experience and giving generally sound biblical exegesis about the issue of ethnicity within the Bible, but the book uses some dubious sources (like the Washington Post) and has an unacceptable moment when the author praises a white victim of South African black terrorism for apologizing to the terrorist because of fictive white guilt, something which is entirely unacceptable behavior. If I have more positive than negative views of this book, the negative aspect is not entirely absent either.
This short book of a bit under 200 pages is divided into nine chapters along with various other materials, including four examples of churches that live out the ideal of racial reconciliation promoted by the author--Mosaic Church of Little Rock, Fellowship Church of Monrovia, California, Water of Life Community Church of Fontana, California, and Epiphany Fellowship of Philadelphia. The author begins by stating that the church should look like the idealistic image of the early church with its clear focus on interethnic harmony (1) along with a statement that humanity is one race composed of one blood and redeemed by one savior (2). The author offers a heartfelt lament for our broken past (3) and encourages Americans (especially white Americans) to seek the healing balm of confession for past wrongs (4). Then the author looks at the issue of forgiveness (5) for past wrongs as well as the need to tear down the wall of segregation that makes religion the most segregated part of American life (6). The author then moves towards his conclusion with a discussion of the need for courage in addressing the issue of race (7), the need to use prayer as weapons instead of violence (8), and the need for love to overcome fear and hatred (9). The book has an afterword by the lead singer of Switchfoot to appeal to the thoughtful mainstream Christian audience this book is aimed at.
It is my belief that the author considerably overstates the importance of matters of ethnicity in terms of the Gospel of the Kingdom. That said, this is frequently an understated issue, and since the book as a whole targets the author's thoughts on race/ethnicity and its tortured history in the United States and other places within Christendom, that overemphasis is to be expected. Ultimately, I think that the Church as a whole would be a lot better if we were able to acknowledge our fraught past and seek to do better in the future in terms of seeing other people not as members of various identity groups but as human beings created in the image and likeness of God and in need of repentance and reconciliation with God and others over their sins. If we disagree on what are the best sources and best ways to find that reconciliation, I suppose it is more important to agree on the same desired end of a just Church and a just society than to agree on the right route to that, which will likely be very different depending on one's starting point. If too much of this book feels like blacksplaining, hopefully it encourages a less violent attitude among that side of the contemporary problem.
[1] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2018...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2018...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...
When reading a book like this, I feel somewhat torn between wanting to be clear about what I find problematic about this book and a desire to express my general agreement with the author's desire that believers should look beyond ethnicity and treat all believers as one blood in the way that the Bible commands. Race and politics are thorny issues in the contemporary world and quite frequently this Appalachian-born, Southern-raised white man is put in the position of reviewing books that deal in complicated and not entirely satisfactory ways with the issue of race [1]. This book is satisfying if uncomfortable for me to read when the author is talking about his own experience and giving generally sound biblical exegesis about the issue of ethnicity within the Bible, but the book uses some dubious sources (like the Washington Post) and has an unacceptable moment when the author praises a white victim of South African black terrorism for apologizing to the terrorist because of fictive white guilt, something which is entirely unacceptable behavior. If I have more positive than negative views of this book, the negative aspect is not entirely absent either.
This short book of a bit under 200 pages is divided into nine chapters along with various other materials, including four examples of churches that live out the ideal of racial reconciliation promoted by the author--Mosaic Church of Little Rock, Fellowship Church of Monrovia, California, Water of Life Community Church of Fontana, California, and Epiphany Fellowship of Philadelphia. The author begins by stating that the church should look like the idealistic image of the early church with its clear focus on interethnic harmony (1) along with a statement that humanity is one race composed of one blood and redeemed by one savior (2). The author offers a heartfelt lament for our broken past (3) and encourages Americans (especially white Americans) to seek the healing balm of confession for past wrongs (4). Then the author looks at the issue of forgiveness (5) for past wrongs as well as the need to tear down the wall of segregation that makes religion the most segregated part of American life (6). The author then moves towards his conclusion with a discussion of the need for courage in addressing the issue of race (7), the need to use prayer as weapons instead of violence (8), and the need for love to overcome fear and hatred (9). The book has an afterword by the lead singer of Switchfoot to appeal to the thoughtful mainstream Christian audience this book is aimed at.
It is my belief that the author considerably overstates the importance of matters of ethnicity in terms of the Gospel of the Kingdom. That said, this is frequently an understated issue, and since the book as a whole targets the author's thoughts on race/ethnicity and its tortured history in the United States and other places within Christendom, that overemphasis is to be expected. Ultimately, I think that the Church as a whole would be a lot better if we were able to acknowledge our fraught past and seek to do better in the future in terms of seeing other people not as members of various identity groups but as human beings created in the image and likeness of God and in need of repentance and reconciliation with God and others over their sins. If we disagree on what are the best sources and best ways to find that reconciliation, I suppose it is more important to agree on the same desired end of a just Church and a just society than to agree on the right route to that, which will likely be very different depending on one's starting point. If too much of this book feels like blacksplaining, hopefully it encourages a less violent attitude among that side of the contemporary problem.
[1] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2018...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2018...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...
February 21, 2021
These are John M. Perkins "Parting Words..." but instead of feeling like a summation, it reads like an urgent response to the racial and justice issues that are so current these days. But then that has indeed been the theme of his life: the church's response to race and justice.
How could it be otherwise? He was born in the 1930s in Mississippi to a family of share-croppers. His mother died of starvation while he was 7 months old. In 1969, Perkins became the leader in an economic boycott of white-owned stores in MS which led to him being arrested and tortured by white police officers. Somehow, he was able to use this experience to inform his ministry of racial reconciliation and justice. He has started so many initiatives and has been a real leader these past 50 years in the evangelical church in the US.
So of course with the events of this last summer, the response to George Floyd's murder, I wanted to read this book which he wrote in 2018. His goal is a multi-racial church. He sees the church as a leader in racial reconciliation. That is, he wants the church to have this role, but is disappointed that it is not leading the effort. So he alternatively chides and tries to inspire leadership from the church. This is a tall order. Our country is very divided and segregated. As I try to reach across racial and ethnic divides myself (not in the context of church since I hardly ever go to church anymore), I don't see very many opportunities for this to happen. It is one thing to protest together and put up BLM signs, but can real bonds be formed? Can a multi-racial society be built?
I liked all the name-dropping in this book. It is deliberately structured to introduce us to Christian thought leaders in America now, those on the front lines of racial reconciliation.
There was one odd chapter where Perkins felt the need to demonstrate that the Bible does not encourage racism, by going back to the stories of Seth and Ham, and what not. That was kind of anachronistic. Does anyone use the Bible to justify racism these days?
If you've never read anything by Perkins, I recommend his bio: Let Justice Roll Down.
How could it be otherwise? He was born in the 1930s in Mississippi to a family of share-croppers. His mother died of starvation while he was 7 months old. In 1969, Perkins became the leader in an economic boycott of white-owned stores in MS which led to him being arrested and tortured by white police officers. Somehow, he was able to use this experience to inform his ministry of racial reconciliation and justice. He has started so many initiatives and has been a real leader these past 50 years in the evangelical church in the US.
So of course with the events of this last summer, the response to George Floyd's murder, I wanted to read this book which he wrote in 2018. His goal is a multi-racial church. He sees the church as a leader in racial reconciliation. That is, he wants the church to have this role, but is disappointed that it is not leading the effort. So he alternatively chides and tries to inspire leadership from the church. This is a tall order. Our country is very divided and segregated. As I try to reach across racial and ethnic divides myself (not in the context of church since I hardly ever go to church anymore), I don't see very many opportunities for this to happen. It is one thing to protest together and put up BLM signs, but can real bonds be formed? Can a multi-racial society be built?
I liked all the name-dropping in this book. It is deliberately structured to introduce us to Christian thought leaders in America now, those on the front lines of racial reconciliation.
There was one odd chapter where Perkins felt the need to demonstrate that the Bible does not encourage racism, by going back to the stories of Seth and Ham, and what not. That was kind of anachronistic. Does anyone use the Bible to justify racism these days?
If you've never read anything by Perkins, I recommend his bio: Let Justice Roll Down.
January 31, 2024
I gave it five stars to honor him and his body of work not to mention the body of his books which like his life has been pivotal to many in church and/or community development work. Here he keeps calling us all to the commitment of being change agents for wholeness. Mostly I hope people will study and learn from him and start not here but in his earlier books.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 18, 2018
An exhortation for churches to reflect the diversity imagined in the New Testament.
The author writes based on his own experiences of bitter pain, anger, and the willingness to move beyond the anger and the pain toward reconciliation. He reflects upon how the church ought to reflect the diversity inherent in its place. He then works through the process by which it could be what God expects for it to be: lament over the past, confess historic and continuing wrongs, asking for and extending forgiveness, to stand up for truth and reconciliation, the power of prayer, and the critical need for love. Throughout he intersperses stories of reconciliation and healing in various churches.
The work is quite heartfelt and powerful in its telling. It would be good for Christians to consider what he has to say.
**--galley received as part of early review program
The author writes based on his own experiences of bitter pain, anger, and the willingness to move beyond the anger and the pain toward reconciliation. He reflects upon how the church ought to reflect the diversity inherent in its place. He then works through the process by which it could be what God expects for it to be: lament over the past, confess historic and continuing wrongs, asking for and extending forgiveness, to stand up for truth and reconciliation, the power of prayer, and the critical need for love. Throughout he intersperses stories of reconciliation and healing in various churches.
The work is quite heartfelt and powerful in its telling. It would be good for Christians to consider what he has to say.
**--galley received as part of early review program
June 2, 2023
2nd reading
Just as compelling the 2nd time around and my initial review still stands. Much goodness in this book, but a bit frustrating too because of his light touch on some issues. I read it with my community group at church and most of the chapters were rich with plenty to discuss.
1st reading
Whew, rating and reviewing this book is a challenge indeed. John Perkins is the real deal! This man is committed to living a life that shows the world the love of Jesus. He's truly inspirational, and I admire and respect him greatly. And when he shares God's vision and heart for a multicultural church, he does so with passion and intensity. Yet when he actually tackles the issue of racism, he takes a step back from that intensity, and I can only speculate as to why. I wonder if because he's calling this his manifesto, he feels the need to soften his truth-telling towards white people...? Perhaps he knows from experience that too few white people have eyes to see and ears to hear, and he knows from experience that white people prefer their truth-telling with a little milk to help it go down more smoothly, and he knows from experience that too much truth-telling will result in many white people dismissing his whole message. I don't know why...but I'm still grateful for his message and believe that there is much to gain from spending time under his teaching.
Just as compelling the 2nd time around and my initial review still stands. Much goodness in this book, but a bit frustrating too because of his light touch on some issues. I read it with my community group at church and most of the chapters were rich with plenty to discuss.
1st reading
Whew, rating and reviewing this book is a challenge indeed. John Perkins is the real deal! This man is committed to living a life that shows the world the love of Jesus. He's truly inspirational, and I admire and respect him greatly. And when he shares God's vision and heart for a multicultural church, he does so with passion and intensity. Yet when he actually tackles the issue of racism, he takes a step back from that intensity, and I can only speculate as to why. I wonder if because he's calling this his manifesto, he feels the need to soften his truth-telling towards white people...? Perhaps he knows from experience that too few white people have eyes to see and ears to hear, and he knows from experience that white people prefer their truth-telling with a little milk to help it go down more smoothly, and he knows from experience that too much truth-telling will result in many white people dismissing his whole message. I don't know why...but I'm still grateful for his message and believe that there is much to gain from spending time under his teaching.
October 19, 2018
A concentrated look at what the Church should look like and be. It has a solemnness to it that is reverting to the soul of those that love the Lord and His church. It is the final call, cry, lament and plea to the people of God about race.
September 11, 2018
If you haven’t read any good books about racial reconciliation from authors of color, you really shouldn’t be talking about it.
You’ll AMEN! 5x more than you’ll be convicted in this book. It’s gold, yet still super challenging.
This is a book JMac/Johnson/White and co should’ve read before publishing that stupid statement.
You’ll AMEN! 5x more than you’ll be convicted in this book. It’s gold, yet still super challenging.
This is a book JMac/Johnson/White and co should’ve read before publishing that stupid statement.
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