These days, my writing and speaking are drawn to interdependence—the beauty of life together, of reciprocal relationships of love and care. Often, these relationships of mutuality (or, as Rosemarie Garland-Thomson called them, complementarity1) don’t just happen. They depend upon intentional invitations and commitments.
Part of this intentionality is listening and learning together. That isn’t always as easy as it sounds, so I was grateful to talk on the podcast this week with Rev. Dr. Esau McCaulley about how we attend to diverse voices in the church without silencing or patronizing one another. While our conversation is specific to his latest book for faith communities, his wisdom also connects in multiple ways to our broader culture.
“I hadn’t begun to listen…”
“You’re a hypocrite because you know nothing about the Asian American experience in the United States… You know almost nothing about what’s happening with Latino culture.”
He goes on to say, “I realized that I spent so much time trying to get people to listen to me, I hadn’t begun to listen to other people… What would happen if we had a conversation amongst each other?”
This realization was the genesis for The New Testament in Color: A Multiethnic Bible Commentary, a collaborative project that Dr. McCaulley describes in this way:
“When we say multiculturalism, it’s actually a code for everybody except for white people. But to be truly multicultural in the United States actually means to include everybody. So what if we did something super subversive, like have a multiethnic commentary that included Black, white, Asian, Latino and First Nations people in the United States… Sometimes de-centering yourself can give you a broader appreciation of what God is up to in the world. But that also doesn’t mean that you have to be quiet. We’re not saying, ‘If you are from the majority culture, you have nothing to offer.’ We’re saying, ‘Let’s have this conversation together about what it means to follow Jesus.’”
Conversations That Foster Interdependence
“Let’s have this conversation together.”
What a beautiful way to grow in interdependent relationships. I wrote last year in an essay for Comment Magazine that “people with disabilities need opportunities for friendships to develop in schools, workplaces, and faith communities” in order for relationships of interdependence to flourish.2
Creating opportunities for friendships, where we can listen and learn together, gives us one way to participate in love. Where have you found opportunities to have conversations together in community? I’d love to hear from you! Reply to this email or leave a comment.
Complicated History (and more)
Esau and I also talk about how to interact with flawed voices from our past. How is it that “complicated cultures can say things that are true and beautiful and good?” And we end our conversation with a beautiful challenge from Esau about the role of integrity and character in inviting the younger generation into communities of belonging. I hope you’ll listen or watch! Then tell me what you think. (At one point, Esau took over the podcast and gave my work a very kind and rather embarrassing shout out! You can watch that here.)
Listen on Apple🎙️ | Listen on Spotify🎙️ | Watch on YouTube🎬
And Fun Fact! On the day this episode was released, Christianity Today announced that The New Testament in Color won book of the year in the category of Biblical studies. Congrats to Esau and the rest of the editorial team!3
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