The Deconstructionists Playbook: An Anthology

by Crystal Cheatham (Editor), Theresa Ta (Editor)

This is not your typical devotional.

The Deconstructionists Playbook is composed of selections from devotionals that have been published by Our Bible App in the last few years. In 2017, Crystal Cheatham set out to create a mobile Bible app where users could read devotionals concerning topics outside the norm for traditional Christian publishing. These devotionals are explicitly queer-affirming, anti-racist, pro-feminism, and encouraging of interfaith inclusion. Today, the app has published hundreds of devotionals while bringing together a once fragmented community of spiritual wanderers.

This devotional anthology is meant to guide you through a journey of faith deconstruction, reconstruction, and liberation. Our authors are concerned with naming and dismantling oppressive systems and beliefs—especially when it comes from within the Church.

With the chorus of some 60+ authors, journey through this anthology of devotions. Come celebrate this epic churning of faith through the deconstruction of our religion, the reconstruction of a faith that promotes justice and solidarity, and the application of liberation theology to dismantle white supremacy and patriarchy. By taking part in this uniting of ideas, you will find yourself in a movement of radical inclusion and love, while finding God in beautiful, mysterious places.

Genres: Nonfiction, Theology, Religion

198 pages, Paperback

Published May 1, 2021

Reviews

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always feel a sense of loss when I sell one of my paintings. Each piece takes hours to create and is often a labor of love and pain —a chance to expel what is happening inside me onto canvas. There is one piece in particular that I still struggle with the loss of. She is called "Brown Girl Worshipping," and I sold her to a white woman who had subjected me to several racial microaggressions over the course of an evening.

I was the artist being showcased in a small bookstore, and she was a friend of the owner. Friendly and complimentary, she still misnamed me several times and repeatedly tried to practice her Spanish on me despite me telling her I am no longer fluent. I found her exhausting and was especially grieved to hand her "Brown Girl Worshipping" — a piece about the constant struggle to practice my faith in churches where I am continuously othered. The sad Irony in her loving and buying this painting was not lost on me.

I wanted to say "No, you can't have her. You don't deserve her," but I needed the money and didn't want to make things awkward. So I said goodbye to the painting. I think about her and the woman who purchased her often. I find myself hoping she passes it everyday and is slowly convicted.

How often do those of us on the margins find ourselves in this place? We are alone even in the presence of others. We make allowances that hurt us for the sake of others' comfort. We give up pieces of ourselves that we desperately want to hold onto.

I wish I had told that woman "No." I wish I had said "Yes, but... You need to understand what this painting represents. When you look at it, I need you to know you are complicit. Do you still want her?"
— AnaYelsi Velasco-Sanchez
[177–8]

[Cara (Wilde Book Garden) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like the topics the editors chose to focus on. As with any collection some parts will work more than others, but I really liked a lot of the contributions and I want to return to this at some point to tab my favorite pieces/quotes/examples.

Some of my favorite topics/chapters were the ones on redefining God, liberation theology, race, capitalism, rethinking eschatology, and how queer-affirming the book was overall.

One of the only issues was the section dealing with sex and purity culture - a lot of it was great, and I understand the writers have a lot to address regarding the harm done by the church in that capacity, but the whole chapter ironically came off extraordinarily judgmental - like, if you aren't expressing your sexuality/having sex in the same way or amount of these people, you are oppressed and need to be liberated from yourself. There was also some really acephobic language that was especially surprising in the midst of such a queer-affirming book: calling sex a 'fundamental thing that makes people human' (paraphrasing) is incorrect, offensive, and completely ignores many aspec people in addition to people who choose not to have sex for various other reasons. Maybe the editors didn't want to alter the contributors' words too much, but those sections could have been written so much more thoughtfully. The last piece in that chapter was by an ace person which is great, but doesn't erase the apparent message of the rest of the chapter.

Aside from that, a really excellent collection and one I'd recommend if you're looking for a book on this topic. It's definitely geared specifically towards deconstructing harmful aspects of evangelical Christianity, but I think it can easily apply to other denominations as well.

CW: Acephobia, discussions of/references to: racism, ableism, homophobia

[Jason Koon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Something for everyone. Expansive and inclusive meditations on all kinds of topics from a truly diverse group of writers. If you've ever looked at Christianity and wondered if there was room for you at the table, this book is for you!

[Dorinne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great devotional for people who are deconstructing. Lots of challenging essays.

[EmJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book of devotionals very refreshing. They were more relatable and meaningful than other devotionals I've read. My only issue was that there were so many typos.