Charity Lewis is the host of the podcast Charity Speaks, a candid conversation at the intersection of Christianity, Blackness and Womanhood. Charity has the heart of a shepherd, is a student of Torah, and has a passion to “act justly, love mercy, and live humbly.” She is a community advocate with degrees in law and public affairs, but prefers the solace of being a bookworm, bicycler, and year-round birder. She also serves as a wife of a public servant, and an amazing autism, homeschool, and soccer mama.
Charity is an amazing storyteller, and she really took me to church on this episode! She talks about the history of Black faith, slavery, religion, and how the God of the Bible is present in her experience and the experiences of African Americans today. We talk about her newfound love of holy feast days and what is needed for racial reconciliation.
It’s possible this is going to be a difficult episode for white people to listen to. My prayer is that we will all listen with an open mind and heart, especially when I ask her about whether or not racial justice is a calling for all Christians.
Links to things we talked about…
- Ben Cremer: Pastor in Boise, Idaho who brought Charity and me together. Follow him! He shares so much wisdom.
- Youth Empowered Inc.: a nonprofit organization founded by Charity, with programs starting this summer in Indianapolis.
- Charity’s podcast: Charity Speaks
- To learn more about Torah, Charity recommends this article and the blog overall.
- Pastor Rick McKinley at Imago Dei Community just delivered a great message about Practicing the Sabbath.
- Further reading about the Nature Gap
- Cedric Lundy: Pastor, cohost of Token Confessions Podcast. Follow him too! I learn something new at least once a week from this man.
A glossary of terms used in this episode…
- Ghettoized- to treat a particular group in society as if they are different from the other parts of society and as if their activities and interests are not important to other people:
- Exegesis- the critical interpretation of the biblical text to discover its intended meaning
- Hebrew words used:
- Adonai- God
- Yeshua- Jesus
- Shabbat- Sabbath, weekly day of rest
- Moedim- literally “appointed times;” seven holy feast days observed each year to remember and reflect on God’s faithfulness
Connect with Charity!
Listen on Spotify, Apple, Google Podcasts, Breaker, PocketCasts, or RadioPublic.
Connect with us on Instagram and Facebook to keep the conversation going. Thanks for listening!
April Kolman 