Holding On To Hope

In 1903, the great scholar, W. E. B Dubois published the work, The Souls of Black Folk, in which he offered the seminal declaration that "the problem of the 20th century is the problem of the color line." It is the observation, some 117 years later, among many - including myself - Dr. Dubois's observation holds into another century, and that indeed, the problem of the 21st century remains the problem of the color line. The fact that many people continue to languish in the disparate shackles and bondage of poverty, racism, sexism, lack of adequate and accessible healthcare, over-incarceration, and persistent concerns for their safety. This book is the fourth volume in a series of compiled essays, sermons and prayers written and published since 2006: And Yet the Melody Lingers (2006), My Hope is Built (2011), and Stones of Hope (2018). These volumes speak to the times in which they were written, with the intersections of race, social, economic and political concerns, religious and human existence. The book for me is done within the context of the community in which I live, love, work, minister and teach.