In the aftermath of George Floyd’s death the Spiritual Think Tanks developed as a part of the Carl Spain Center’s overall national strategy in equipping Christians to address the sin of racism in the church and in the broader society. Spiritual Think Tanks are designed to study together recommended books, articles, and videos. They are to reflect upon these sources with the intent of gaining greater clarity of a unified racial vision and from that vision determine the best spiritual action that should be taken.
Join this captivating discussion on Critical Race Theory and learn how to navigate this topic as a Christian who is seeking Spiritual Action. Led by Pastor Lawrence Rodgers and Dr. Timothy Westbrook.
Lawrence W. Rodgers pastors the the Pastor of the Historic Second Baptist Church of Detroit. Lawrence is a graduate of Harding University where he studied Bible and ministry. Lawrence is a 2017 graduate of Howard University School of Divinity where he earned the master’s degree in Divinity. He has served as an adjunct instructor for Abilene Christian University. He also is a researcher and lecturer with teaching experience and a record of publication in The Christian Century, Patheos, KineticsLive blog, Christian Chronicle, and Race, Rhetoric, and Religion (R3) blog. Rodgers’ work has also been featured in The Afro newspaper and the Baltimore Sun. Rodgers is an activist prominent in several social justice efforts.
Timothy Paul Westbrook, Ph.D. (Trinity Evangelical Divinity School), is an associate professor of Bible and Ministry at Harding University and directs the Center for Distance Education in Bible and Ministry. He is one of the faculty sponsors of the Black Student Association at Harding and also serves on the Diversity Committee. Westbrook’s doctoral dissertation was published by Routledge with the title Spirituality, Community, and Race Consciousness in Adult Higher Education. He is engaged with the scholarship and applications of Critical Race Theory as it pertains to higher education and pastoral ministry.