What can wash away this sin? We speak about shed blood. Reconciliation. A theological concept but politically flawed when the relationship is abusive. A living color got Fox fat. Stolen music proving you ain’t nothing but a hound dog. I’m living single cause you stole my friends. Stolen fruit is sweetest, right? John Lewis bled so Obama led. I used to think we caught the most hell but you hate them a lot. Not olympics but a quilt of oppression Where you can draw the thread from the hell I’m catching To the hell I’m watching. It’s bugged out even, How our destruction looks like opportunity. The fortune in the finesse I’ve checked your portfolio, good sir, And while diversified, salvation was nowhere to be found. Emmett and George’s blood catalyzed movements. Gotta let it bleed to get the stone rolling. But why bleed without atonement? Why bleed if coagulation is a mere interruption? The exception and not the rule! The tragedies’ turning is temporary. A moment of pause before they play in our faces. So I turn to the Maker, Certain that Jah see and know, I ask Why are we still bleeding? Why do we have to bleed?
Chris Burton is a minister, teacher, writer, and professional speaker who works with various groups to bring together people who may be surprised by what they have in common. Chris was named “an innovator in ministry you should know” by the Presbyterian Outlook. His preaching was featured on A Sermon For Every Sunday. His speaking was featured in Tedx, and his writing has been featured in The Presbyterian Outlook, Boomshots, The Hill, Unbound, Freedom Road, and The Christian Century. Chris writes about Jamaican culture, music, sports, living with Lupus and his journey with God. You can find Chris' work at baddestchaplain.substack.com and bring Chris to speak to your community through www.chrisburtonspeaks.com.
The Narrative Gap, as coined by Lisa Sharon Harper, is the distance between the stories that we tell ourselves about ourselves, including how we got here and what it will take to make things right. In our world today, competing narratives vie for our loyalty, dividing society and the church, therefore making justice impossible. Our mission is help communities shrink the narrative gap, by identifying core issues and building community capacity so they might work toward common solutions for a just world. Here on the Freedom Road Substack, we can converse together on ways to shrink that narrative gap and help ensure everyones’ stories are told.
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