Christena Cleveland
Photo by David Rochas
Christena Cleveland is a social psychologist, public theologian, and founder and director of the Center for Justice + Renewal. She is the author of God Is a Black Woman.
“God’s social location is nowhere near women or Black people. I had to start looking for an image of the Divine that can speak to that.”
If we want our biblical interpretation to align with the fullness of who Christ is, we need new lenses.
First, we condemn The Gospel Coalition’s editorial leadership for its moral and pastoral failure in publishing such an anti-black viewpoint. No Christian organization should ever participate in dishonoring the image of God in black people, especially at a time when so many black Americans are in pain. Second, we lament the internalized anti-black racism that Pastor Voddie conveyed in his article and the fact that it has been used to further support White-on-Black violence among Christians. Here, we offer a different perspective, one that we believe honors the image of God in black people.