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In February, close to 200 CCIU members joined our guest, Dr. Khyati Y. Joshi, for a conversation about her book, White Christian Privilege: The Illusion of Religious Equality in America, moderated by Hartford Seminary President Dr. Joel Lohr.
Based on the response to that event and many requests to explore the topic further, we are excited to announce our upcoming event: White Christian Privilege: Where Do We Go From Here?
Whether or not you attended the February talk, this follow-up event offers an engaging and thought-provoking conversation about how we move forward toward a more equitable and respectful interfaith community.
Monday, June 14, 2021
6:00 - 7:00 p.m.
via zoom
Dr. Joel N. Lohr
President of Hartford Seminary
Dr. Joel N. Lohr is the President of Hartford Seminary, a leading interfaith graduate school. He is an award-winning author, scholar of religion, and passionate leader in interreligious relations and higher education. Born to Dutch immigrants in Canada, Lohr is a first-generation college graduate, earning a BA in Religious Studies (Trinity Western University, Vancouver, Canada) and an MA and Ph.D. in Religion and Theology (University of Durham, England). He then took up a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Toronto and taught at Wycliffe College, a seminary within the Anglican Church of Canada. He has held teaching appointments at Trinity Western University in Vancouver, Canada and more recently at University of the Pacific in Stockton, CA, where he also served as Dean of Religious Life. Lohr’s teaching and research has focused on the Bible, specifically the Torah/Pentateuch, as well as Jewish-Christian relations and dialogue, Interreligious Dialogue, and Leadership in Higher Education. He has published ten books with publishers that are both academic (Oxford, Brill, Eisenbrauns, Purdue) and popular (Zondervan, Oneworld, Baker Academic, and Abingdon). His work has been noted not only for its academic strength but also interfaith ingenuity.
The Reverend Linda Spiers
Episcopal Priest, The Episcopal Church in Connecticut
The Rev. Linda Spiers is an Episcopal Priest in the Episcopal Church in Connecticut. She currently serves as supply priest at St. John's Episcopal Church, West Hartford, and served as Interim Priest-in-Charge at St. John's Episcopal Church, Essex, from August 2019 through February 14, 2021. Retired as Rector of Trinity Episcopal Church, Collinsville, after serving there for nearly 15 years, she also served at Christ Church Cathedral in Hartford. She holds a BS from Mary Washington College, MBA from University of Richmond, and MDiv from Berkeley Divinity School at Yale. She is actively engaged in the Episcopal Church in Connecticut as President of the Title IV Disciplinary Board; convener of the Holy Landers Ministry Network; Deputy to General Convention; and member of the Racial Healing, Justice and Reconciliation Ministry Network core team. In the town of Collinsville where she resides, she currently serves as Chaplain to the Canton Volunteer Fire Department and as a member of the Juvenile Review Board. With a passion for young people’s Christian formation, she serves on the board of an ecumenical camp in the Greater Hartford area called Heads Up! Hartford—a weeklong mission camp that focuses on leadership, diversity, and community service for urban and suburban high school youth.
The Rev. Dr. Alvan N. Johnson, Jr.
Retired Senior Pastor AME Church, Panelist
The Rev. Dr. Alvan N. Johnson, Jr. is the retired senior pastor of Grant A.M.E. Church in Boston, MA, and was for 29 years the pastor of Bethel A.M.E. Church in Bloomfield. His involvement in leadership positions in our region is extensive, including serving as the President of the Greater Hartford Ministerial Alliance, the Board President of the Capital Region Conference of Churches, CCIU Board member, and a member of the Charter Revision Committee for the City of Hartford. He has served as an adjunct faculty member at Hartford Seminary, at Union Theological Seminary (New York), and at Yale University. He has taught, lectured, and preached in six of Connecticut’s prisons, and he served as First District Director of Social Action Commission of the A.M.E. Church. In his spare time, he has been a narrator for performances by the Hartford Symphony Orchestra. He is married to Betty Jean Wright-Johnson, former Principal at Manchester High School.
The Rev. Dr. Michael J. Dolan
President, Northwest Catholic High School
Director, Interreligious Affairs - Archdiocese of Hartford
Father Michael J. Dolan was named President of Northwest Catholic High School in January 2021 after serving several months as interim president. Fr. Dolan has enjoyed a long and successful career in ministry and education. He served as pastor in several Connecticut parishes, most recently at Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Hamden. He has also served as director of seminarians for the Archdiocese of Hartford and as campus minister at Trinity College and the University of Hartford. His extensive experience in community building and interreligious understanding includes his current role as Interreligious Affairs Director for the Archdiocese of Hartford, and his membership on the board of CCIU. He is a graduate of Francis T. Maloney High School in Meriden, Assumption College, now University, in Worcester, MA, and St. John’s Seminary in Brighton, MA, and while serving in area parishes, Fr. Dolan continued his studies at the Aquinas Institute in St. Louis, Hartford Seminary, and New York University. He earned his Doctor of Ministry degree at Hartford Seminar.
Publisher’s Weekly Review of White Christian Privilege
“Her argument is simple: Christianity (particularly the European Protestant strain) has been established as the unacknowledged common culture, not simply religion, of the United States, leading to a situation where anything not white, Western, and Christian is seen as abnormal…This brisk overview is a must-read for those interested in America’s Christian foundation.”
Read the full review by Publisher's Weekly.
America: The Jesuit Review
“‘Khyati Y. Joshi’s timely new book raises important questions before one reads even a single page: How will Joshi define “white”? Or “Christian”? Or even “privilege”? Joshi offers up historical context, as well as contemporary interviews and anecdotes, to shine “a light on Christian privilege and its entwinement with White privilege” as well as to “equip readers with tools and ideas regarding how they can recognize it operating in our society and foster a more equitable environment for all.”
Read the full review by America: The Jesuit Review.
New York Journal of Books
“‘In order to form a more perfect Union,’ books such as White Christian Privilege add enormous value to highlighting the gap between illusion and reality.”
Read the full review by New York Journal of Books.
Library Journal
Joshi explores the structures of white Christian privilege embedded in American institutions, laws, and culture. The first half of the book outlines the historical trajectory of white, Christian privilege through the emergence of national identity within the United States, ideals of white supremacy that are embedded within American culture, and the right (or denial) of citizenship. While the narrative is chronological, its intent is to outline salient past events that led to the present state. The next two chapters are arguably the most insightful, as they outline examples of those who have the privilege but are blind to it, and some of the inequities suffered by uneven privilege. The last chapter summarizes the major milestones needed to achieve to become a more inclusive society, and provides a glimpse of Joshi’s vision of an inclusive nation.
Verdict This academic work views privilege almost exclusively through the lens of social justice. Recommended for readers interested in historical roots of religious freedom.—Muhammed Hassanali, Shaker Heights, OH
David R. Blumenthal, Jay and Leslie Cohen Professor of Judaic Studies, Emory University, retired
"Joshi views subliminal privilege in the common metaphors and underlying assumptions of our society. This privilege is sometimes Christian, sometimes white, and sometimes both. White Christian Privilege sets forth the history and the evidence for this privilege, and then proposes how to change that privilege."
Zayn Kassam, John Knox McLean Professor of Religious Studies, Pomona College
”Insightful and provocative. Taking a social justice approach, this timely book explores how Christianity has been leveraged to maintain and reproduce structures of domination and subordination, a discussion that is much needed and most welcome as debates about borders, migrants, and citizenship inflect public policy and civic engagement.”
Paul Spickard, Distinguished Professor of History, University of California, Santa Barbara
"Illuminates the myriad ways that social structures, individual actions, and cultural assumptions have brought White Christians outsized power and freedom from responsibility. Thoughtful people of all races and faiths need to read and heed her words."
Philip Goff, Director, Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis
"Smart and timely, energetic and approachable, this book is destined to be one of those touchstone texts that finds its way to a varied audience eager both to learn and to make meaningful change in American culture."
In February, close to 200 CCIU members joined our guest, Dr. Khyati Y. Joshi, for a conversation about her book, White Christian Privilege: The Illusion of Religious Equality in America, moderated by Hartford Seminary President Dr. Joel Lohr.
Based on the response to that event and many requests to explore the topic further, we are excited to announce our upcoming panel discussion.
Whether or not you attended the February talk, this follow-up event will offer an engaging and thought-provoking conversation about how we move forward toward a more equitable and respectful interfaith community.
Monday, June 14, 2021
5:00 p.m.
via Zoom
Space is limited and registration is required
Council for Interreligious Understanding (CCIU), 77 Sherman Street, Hartford, CT 06105
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