PEACE AND JUSTICE SERIES

Grace is committed to biblical understandings of justice and peace and periodically sponsors focused studies to expand our understanding of key issues facing the world today. Even if you missed the group discussions, you may want to read these books on your own.

Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson

Just Mercy is the true story of author and world-renowned civil rights defense attorney Bryan Stevenson as he works to free a wrongly condemned death row prisoner. In addition to exploring the central storyline of a history-making battle for social justice, Stevenson details the histories of others from marginalized groups who are falsely convicted or harshly sentenced and engage with moral and philosophical reflections on the American criminal justice and prison systems. This book also touches on gun violence, political corruption, a long history of suffering, and the potential for mercy to redeem us.

The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church's Complicity in Racism by Jemar Tisby

(from the Amazon description) The Color of Compromise takes listeners on a historical journey: from America's early colonial days through slavery and the Civil War, covering the tragedy of Jim Crow laws and the victories of the Civil Rights era, to today's Black Lives Matter movement. Author Jemar Tisby reveals the obvious - and the far more subtle - ways the American church has compromised what the Bible teaches about human dignity and equality.

So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Olua

Over the past decade, the past few years, the past month--many of us have become aware that as Christians, we are called to face the reality of our nation's legacy around race. But (especially for white people), how do we talk about things that make us uncomfortable? How do we help heal the hurts? What do we need to better understand in order to become a part of the solution? This study used the book So You Want to Talk about Race to explore these topics. The author, Ijeoma Oluo, guides readers through definitions and history and black experience in an attempt to make possible honest conversations about race and racism and how they infect almost every aspect of American life.

City of a Thousand Gates by Rebecca Sacks

City of a Thousand Gates is a deeply empathic first novel by American writer Rebecca Sacks. Without taking sides, the book illuminates the competing perspectives and desires of people throughout Israel and Palestine. And it reveals the humanity of people caught in the atmosphere of hostility that pervades even the most intimate aspects of personal life. Central to the novel is the question of the abuse of power, and how oppression harms both the oppressed and the oppressors. Through the pages of this book, we explored the many facets of the antagonism between Israelis and Palestinians and pondered the larger question of the impact of the abuse of power.

Whom Shall I Fear?: Urgent Questions for Christians in an Age of Violence by Rosalind C. Hughes

(adapted from the Amazon description) In the book Whom Shall I Fear: Urgent Questions for Christians in an Age of Violence, Rosalind C. Hughes explores the questions being raised by churches as they grapple with the fear of violence. The book provides thought-provoking reflections on topics such as locked doors, living faithfully in an unfaithful world, the question of armed security in a church setting, and the duty of Christians to extend hospitality to their neighbor. It includes stories from survivors of gun violence and wisdom on how churches can work to transform an anxious and fear-driven world. Whom Shall I Fear? helps the church thoughtfully wrestle with what it means to be a church of grace, welcome, and love when confronted with acts of cruelty, division, and hate.