Can I Get a Witness?

I have contributed a chapter to the book Can I Get a Witness?: Thirteen Peacemakers, Community-Builders, and Agitators for Faith and Justice, just published by Eerdman’s. . . and there are lots of pictures!

The book--as the blurb will tell you--presents “the compelling stories of pioneers for social justice who engaged in peaceful protest and gave voice to the marginalized, working courageously out of their religious convictions to transform American culture,”

I had the wonderful experience of working with twelve other writers brought together by the Project on Lived Theology. We are trying to present a range of very human Christian heroes from the last century -- some familiar and some you’ll have never heard of -- that will prompt us to be witnesses today. I think we have succeeded: the book is by turn challenging and inspiring.

My chapter is on the fascinating but little-known American prophet Howard Kester. It focuses on the period in the 1930s when Kester, a white man and a southerner, risked his life going undercover to investigate lynchings and peonage. Kester had a huge influence on a generation of Christian students through his writing and speaking, which helped lay the groundwork for the civil rights movement.

Historians credit his courageous work with making a decisive contribution to the ending of spectacle lynching in the United States.  I found him intriguing because he really struggled to bring together the power of a personal faith and a bold witness to social justice

I had the wonderful experience of working with twelve other writers brought together by the Project on Lived Theology. We are trying to present a range of very human Christian heroes from the last century--some familiar and some you’ll never have heard of. I am very proud of the end result which is, in large measure, due to the herculean editing efforts of Shea Tuttle.

Podcasts
There is a set of podcasts--interviews with each of the author's--to accompany the release of the book. You can find all the other episodes on Stitcher or you can search for "Can I Get a Witness?" in the usual podcast places (iTunes, Podcast Addict, etc.).

Lenten Reading Guide and Conversation
And as if that isn't enough to get you to engage with these stories, there is a Lenten reading guide and discussion online starting on Ash Wednesday -- join the discussion group on Facebook.

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Here is a list of the contributors and the characters:

Daniel P. Rhodes on Cesar Chavez
Donyelle McCray on Howard Thurman
Grace Y. Kao on Yuri Kochiyama
Peter Slade on Howard Kester
Nichole M. Flores on Ella Baker
Carlene Bauer on Dorothy Day
Heather A. Warren on John A. Ryan
Becca Stevens on Frank William Stringfellow
W. Ralph Eubanks on Mahalia Jackson
Susan M. Glisson and Charles H. Tucker on Lucy Randolph Mason
Soong-Chan Rah on Richard Twiss
David Dark on Daniel Berrigan
M. Therese Lysaught on Mary Stella Simpson