Tonetta Landis-Aina: The Annoyingly Lavish Mercy of God

I. Introduction

A. Reference to a confrontational moment in the book "The Color Purple"

B. Celie's curse to her abuser Albert

C. Importance of addressing the perspective of people of color in discussions of intercultural church and beloved community

 

II. Temptation to focus only on the impact on white people in conversations about intercultural church

A. Lack of space to discuss the experiences of people of color

B. Personal experience of attending a panel discussion on conversion therapy and the need for separate conversations

C. Feeling excluded from conversations on race and justice

 

III. Concern for the discipleship needs of people of color in an intercultural church

A. Danger of allowing their formation to require more work than others

B. Preaching team's commitment to reflect the congregation's diverse needs in preaching series and scripture choices

 

IV. Exploring challenges of beloved community from the perspective of cultural margins

A. Introduction to the book of Jonah as an extended metaphor

B. Summary of Jonah's disobedience and attempt to escape God's call

C. Jonah's deeper loyalty to his own people and the tension between loyalty and the vision of God

 

V. Personal reflection on the tension between loyalty to cultural identity and loyalty to the vision of God

A. Experience at the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference

B. Conflicted feelings about the primary identity, Christian or cultural

C. Comparison to Jonah's dilemma and the fear of being labeled a sellout

VI. Conclusion