challenging thorts

Just say, “It’s not okay.”

i do not know all the answers. Let's start there, shall we. This is not a post from the guy who knows all the answers, trying to make you feel bad because you don't. In fact, at the moment i'm really just working on trying to figure out the right questions. I'm not expecting you to have all the answers, and i'm not claiming that you do and that you're ignoring them or a really [...]

Journey to Robben Island: Part iv: Sound Bytes

During our weekend at Robben Island, there were many moments or phrases that stood out in terms of being quick "Aha!" flashes of inspiration and here are some of the ones i captured: "Man's potential for justice makes democracy possibly Man's inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary." [Njongonkulu Ndungane] # "The Church is so silent these days. The voice of the church is very important. The voice of the youth is very important. God's word of [...]

The Wisdom of Others in talking about Race

i am almost overwhelmed by the amount of posts i have been discovering or people have been linking me to when it comes to race. What has been amazing has been so many of  them have been so incredibly good. i imagine there are a lot of people who see 'Anothe ace post by Brett Fish' and roll their eyes or reach for the unsubscribe. But i am confident that there are enough people following [...]

An open letter to my White friends, in South Africa and Americaland…

This morning i was browsing Facebook and i came upon a status from my friend Nkosivumile Gola [who has written a number of posts for this blog] that read like this: The land question is very personal, the land includes my whole being it is the very me. The land question is very emotional its not an intellectual talk. I don't have a nice way of saying we want the land, I can't smile when [...]

Before you disagree. [On matters of Race and more…]

i read this blog post by Austin Channing on Black on Black violence in which she stated, Racism is White-on-Black violence. In 1619, the first twenty Africans were brought over as labor for the new colonies. Within one generation the white majority had defined black people as permanent slaves and non-human property. This created a social order in which black people were only valuable for their ability to support a white dominated society that was economically [...]

By |2014-12-02T01:19:53+02:00December 2nd, 2014|challenging thorts, change the world, Uncategorized|3 Comments

When violence stares you in the face, and you turn and walk away…

'Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.' [Proverbs 27.6] i preached on this verse on Sunday. i got this email from a good friend in Americaland on Monday. I did not want to call you out in public, but remember when we met her at the subway?  I don't think either one of us handled that very well--I don't remember that argument being violent when we were there but I [...]

The Importance Of Being Earnest (Sex, Religion and the New South Africa)

[a guest post by Sindile Mlingo Vabaza] I will not pretend to have grasped the inherent difficulties in running a country but I think I can confidently assert that if we want not only a free and fair and just South Africa, but one that has clearly engaged it's past and moved into a post-colonial and post apartheid state, we are going to have to be both honest and have intellectual integrity no matter what [...]

Dubula ibhulu: Shoot the Boer/Farmer [and why we need to embrace this song]

  [Possibly as good a time as any to remind readers that while i don't necessarily agree with all the points made in every post that is published on my blog, i do believe that the conversation and engagement with pieces like this is absolutely invaluable and i think it is so helpful to know and understand why people around us are thinking what they are. If you agree or disagree with anything in this [...]

The Koeksuster of Faith [or What Happens when i doubt?] – part II

So yesterday i took a bit of a look at the idea of doubt from the perspective of being someone who is a follower of Jesus. Is it okay to doubt? Is doubt helpful? Should we be overly worried if there is a lot of doubt in our lives? Sadly, i was not able to arrive at a simple tick-the-box solution. This area seems to be a bit of a complex one. Which is okay. [...]

The Koeksuster of Faith [or What Happens when i doubt?] – part I

A while back someone asked me to write a blog post or series about Doubt and i already had this post's heading sitting in my draft box waiting to be written. So today i try to write it... ...and was doing really well... ...at least until i Uncle Googled what the bible had to say about doubt which totally threw my argument on its head. But let me share it anyway - maybe you're smarter than [...]

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