Opinion

In the third episode of this new season of The Soul of the Nation, the Rev. Jim Wallis interviews Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

One who properly experiences the Amazon and its give-and-take of inter-species compromise, feels a fundamental shift in the world thereafter — the same world which has forced 51 Peruvian species onto the critically endangered list.

In May 2018, more than a year after taking office, President Donald Trump issued an executive order establishing the position of adviser to his “Faith and Opportunity Initiative.” Last week, more than a year after the issuance of that executive order, and only a year before the next presidential election, the White House confirmed that it has tapped televangelist Paula White to fill this role. In light of these developments, it’s a good time to take a brief look at the history of White House partnerships with faith-based and neighborhood organizations as well as standards that should be used to evaluate such work.

Jesus is King is the most pointed and concise album of Kanye West’s catalogue. He had a clear goal in mind — to praise Jesus for all that he has done for Kanye. Kanye approaches that goal and this album with blinders on, trampling over his hypocrisies of his own life and the way he views the word of God.

That guilt — whether over the privilege into which he was born, or from a sense of inferiority over never meeting parental expectations, or survivor’s guilt for outliving his brother Fred whose alcoholism led to an early death at 42 — is what I believe has motivated Donald Trump for much of his life.

If we want to enact justice in any situation, we must listen to the voices of those directly impacted by the injustice. Those of us who served time on Rikers Island know firsthand why it has to close.  Any movement for justice that is not led by directly impacted people is charity, at best, but it is not biblical justice. Biblical justice empowers, while charity can disempower if it is not coupled with justice.

Jesus’ love in action is clearly documented in the New Testament, providing us with a clear script to follow. Unfortunately, his “love-your-neighbor-as-yourself” way of living is contradictory to the cultural norms of craving power and security above all else. To follow Jesus means making — and staying loyal to — an allegiance to the kingdom of God rather than the kingdoms of men.

I love what Jesus says over and over again, “Be not afraid,” eight times in the New Testament. When I was a little boy, we were told the story of the disciples in the boat. They’re on the boat and the waves are rocking and rolling, and they’re scared. But then they see Jesus coming, walking on the water, and he says to them, “It is I. Be not afraid.” 

Kanye West draws upon the storied history of black communal worship and gospel music.