Faith & Race small group curriculum now available
News
The Faith and Race Podcast has just released its 8-week small group curriculum to help your church host constructive dialogue about faith, race, and the church. As part of each 90 minute session, your group will listen to an interview, stopping at indicated pause points to discuss the issues raised in the interview and what they might look like in your own community. Prayers, scriptures, covenants, references, and more are also provided to ensure a meaningful, spirit-filled conversation.Testimony from Faith & Race Pilot Small Group
“The personal narratives of those interviewed provided an intimate glimpse into a race experience unlike my own. Guided by the interviewer, I learned how these individuals used their faith to confront and overcome the challenges they encountered with grace and strength. Equally as important, they helped me understand how events in places like Ferguson are connected with their earlier struggle(s) and gave me hope that we, as children of God and equally beloved, can make a meaningful difference.”
Why should you form a Faith and Race Small Group in your church? If you’re a United Methodist from Missouri, the podcast and small group curriculum were designed specifically for you. All interviewees from Season 1 are African American pan-Methodist leaders from Missouri.
In the words of the first interviewee, Rev. Cody Collier, “the discussion of race is essential if we’re truly to be the hands, heart, and face of Jesus Christ in a very sometimes violent and divisive time.”
The podcast and curriculum are firmly grounded in prayer and scripture, and provides a safe, meaningful way for Christians to host what can be a challenging conversation.
Learn through listening, rather than reading. The Faith and Race Podcast provides a unique and accessible way into the topic and allows interviewees to set the tone of the conversation.
Because the episodes are available online, participants can listen at home even on weeks when they’re unable to attend the small group.
It’s free! Digital versions of the curriculum are accessible online while a limited number of hard copies are available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
What if your church or community isn’t diverse? Then it’s even more important for you to participate! Through the interviews, your congregation will be able to hear stories and perspectives which you may not hear on a day-to-day basis.
The Faith and Race Podcast is produced by the Center for Social Empowerment and Justice in Ferguson, and Mission, Service, and Justice Ministries. The audio interviews are available by searching “Faith and Race Podcast” on iTunes, Google, or Facebook. Contact faithandracepodcast@gmail.com for more information and to secure your copy of the small group curriculum!