I am womanist (Black feminist) who is unashamedly Christian. I am also unapologetically political. Humans are made in God’s image. Correspondingly, this means that I look like God and God looks like me. This claim is not exclusive to myself as I believe that all people are made in God’s image. Nevertheless, rarely do Christians imagine God as a Black woman.
I am political because I am a Christian and God calls me to love myself and my siblings—all of them. I am called to resist any structural violence that thwarts the development and thriving of any person. Jesus was political and I want to be like him, especially during his three years of public ministry where he was a community organizer who sought the interests of people asking, “what do you want me to do for you?” He did not say, “I know what you want. I know what’s best for you.” He asked a question and then listened for the answer.
This message is excerpted from “What do Lutheran woman say about faith and politics” by Linda Thomas in “Called to be political,” a 2020 Women of the ELCA resource. Today is Election Day in the United States.
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