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Book Review: How We Love Matters: A Call to Practice Relentless Racial Reconciliation by Albert Tate

by Summer D Clemenson | Jan 26, 2024 | Book & Product Reviews, Opinions

I have this bag of books that my sister, Jamie Holloway, gave me that says Books for Joy on it. Joy is Jamie’s sister. Jamie lives in the Portland area and Joy lives near me. Both of them do not drive so I have been given the opportunity to read these books and pass them onto Joy. I have had them for quite some time and just began diving into them. They are some great books! I just finished How We Love Matters: A Call to Practice Relentless Racial Reconciliation by Albert Tate and I am so glad I read this book. It spoke to my heart on so many levels. Tate is a great teacher and his viewpoint is not lost on me. Although the main topic is on racism and all that implies, he also talks about politics, religion, activism and being an American.

“Privilege is really hard to see. Whiteness is hard to see. But when we step back and we’re honest about the reality of the impact — not the intent, but the impact — of the whiteness, we find ourselves unexpectedly complicit to this standard. Whether it’s by us thinking less of our ourselves as people of color or you thinking that your white skin hasn’t had any impact on your life — we become complicit.

That man that day realized he had advantages he never even recognized before, and he walked away shocked at the truth of his reality. White Privilege can be so hard to see. It’s not obvious or overt as White Supremacy. But we cannot deny it.” How We Love Matters, Chapter 4

Racism is a packed word that includes lots of actions. White Supremacy is obviously evil and easier to see. White Privilege is more subtle because it has been worked into so many systems to make Whiteness normative. Many of us don’t realize that we have required people of color to adhere to our way of life so White people don’t have to be uncomfortable, while we don’t have to make any adjustments for Black people or people of color. This isn’t fair and explains the lack of trust and honest communication between people groups. I have tried to talk about this topic with some White people and they refuse to see what I have learned just while I have been married to my beautiful mulatto wife.

“The blood on the ground has been ignored for too long, especially here in America, and we must hear it. To truly pursue racial reconciliation, we must go back and get what had been forgotten and omitted. If we are to pursue biblical racial reconciliation, we cannot give in to cancel culture and erase our past and what we’ve experienced. Currently, our culture is looking to completely cancel the conversation about race. There is policy and legislation being developed across the nation that would make it not only impossible but illegal to really talk about race in certain ways. Certain events won’t be taught or spoken about in the classroom. Certain areas of study will be omitted from textbooks and conversations completely. This is a massive epidemic in our nation.” Chapter 6

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“I guess what I’m trying to say is that if we’re going to really love each other and be good siblings, we have to be willing to change our menus, our language, our hearts, our biases. We have to be willing to change, period. And not based on our comfort or convenience but based on what our neighbors and siblings need. We have to see and lighten their burdens, rather than stand by our ‘rights’ and not change, because there’s something so much bigger happening here. God made it abundantly clear that how we love one another matters. It’s the two questions tied together: Where are you and where is your brother? How do you love God and how do you love your neighbor? Bottom line: We have to care.” Chapter 6

Often when issues or protests are made we are told, it isn’t that we are protesting, it is how we are protesting — but silence is not an option:

1. Dr Martin Luther King Jr
2. Colin Kaepernick
3. Black Lives Matter
4. Make America Great Again

All of these topics can bring big feelings but we must be able to talk about them and look each other in the eye and not be afraid. In the end our faith in God must be what is more important. Even our politics have become so messy.

“What we need to understand is that the biggest problem with elephants and donkeys is that too many of us are so devoted and committed to something that will never offer up their life for you. They will not usher in the freedom for all that the gospel inevitably does and will do. You cannot give your life to something that won’t die for you, and the elephant won’t, and neither will the donkey. But the lamb? The lamb will die for you, has died for you, and actively does the opposite of what both the elephant and the donkey do, which is divide and degrade. They are not seeking to restore anyone or anything outside of their agenda. They are protecting their lives at all costs, and they are always going to preserve their agenda, their perspective, and their ideology at all costs, even if it requires them to be dishonest about whats actually happening, even if it means they create their own personal truth through their narrow lens and perspective. The elephant and donkey are all about self-preservation and each will hold views that can be antithetical to the gospel. So, while we participate in political parties, our allegiance cannot be to our political party it has to be exclusively and wholly to the lamb of God.” How We Love Matters by Albert Tate, Chapter 7

Jesus didn’t come to change a nation. He came to change our nature. He did not give us the right to weaponize the scripture and disrespect our Father in Heaven. We are to spread light, hope and promise to each other — but a “Christian Nation” relies on power and not Jesus.

God created us all in His image. We are all beautiful, loving, all His, all one and all equal — but whiteness says that’s not true. It creates this internalized racial oppression in Black folks that tells them that if I am not White I am other. Whiteness creates division. The system, all systems have been created by White people, for White people and executed by White people so it has become normalized.

The scriptures walk us through racial divide, political agendas, kingdoms rising against kingdoms, political unrest and corruption. The way we get beyond our own tendencies, preferences and not walk in division is that the church is meant to be a witness and shine God’s light. All marginalized people, whether they are people of color, differently-abled people, people with mental illness and other challenges, queer people — everyone is welcome at God’s table. It is as wide and as long as God’s love is and there is room for everyone.

Agreement is not a requirement. Disagreement means we work harder to love.

I think this book is very important to Christians who want to love each other better. I highly recommend this book to everyone.

I got this book from my sister, Jamie Holloway. You can get your own copy of How We Love Matters: A Call to Practice Relentless Racial Reconciliation by Albert Tate on Amazon.

Read My Review on GoodReads:

How We Love Matters: A Call to Practice Relentless Racial Reconciliation by Albert Tate
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I really got a lot out of this book. Tate touched on so many aspects of life and where we can work on growth in a way that was honest but not offensive. I think this book could help so many people work on reconciliation and understanding how we can love each other better.

View all my reviews

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Feel free to leave your comments below!

My name is Summer. That is how you can call me. I hope that I am a blessing to you. I am not perfect. I will fall again. But I am forgiven. For anyone reading this that isn’t a Christian, unapologetically, I am a Christian, but I believe there is room for lots of beliefs and religions in the world. It is not my intent to offend people with different beliefs than I have and I would be open to open-minded conversations with no goals of changing anyone’s mind, but sharing information. If you are interested in becoming a Christian…Do you know Jesus? Do want the Holy Spirit to fill you and give you understanding and salvation? Ask Him. Want someone to pray with you? Contact me.

If you would like to know Jesus as your friend, but want to make this amazing commitment by yourself please pray something like this: Thank you Jesus that You are the Son of God, the God that created heaven and earth. Thank you Jesus that You came to earth in the form of a man so that You would be able to empathize with my humanity. Thank You that You did this in order to fulfill the promises You made at the foundation of the world. I realize that I am a sinner and do things that hurt myself and keep myself away from you. Thank You that You died for my sins so that You could defeat death and bring me into Your life. Please forgive me. I ask You to be Lord of my life. I ask you to heal my hurts and show me what my new life, empowered by You looks like. Thank You for Your mercy.