Common Read continues with ‘Been in the Struggle’

Common Read, an initiative of Mennonite Church Canada, Mennonite Church U.S.A. and Herald Press that encourages Mennonites to engage in a shared reading experience, continues January 2022 through March 2022 with Been in the Struggle: Pursuing an Antiracist Spirituality.

The book was written by Regina Shands Stoltzfus and Tobin Miller Shearer, co-founders of the Roots of Justice anti-oppression program (formerly known as the Damascus Road Anti-Racism Program). The book is available from CommonWord and other retailers, and a free study guide is available for download at HeraldPress.com. Common Read participants can join the authors for a live Zoom event on Tuesday, Feb. 22 at 6:00 p.m. CST.

Filled with insight from nearly three decades of partnering across racial lines in this work, Stoltzfus and Shearer embrace Blackness amid an anti-Black culture, and address the importance of spiritual disciplines in the work of antiracism.

“An antiracist spirituality offers key insights into refocusing, reframing and reconceiving how we approach the issue of racism from the start,” Stoltzfus and Shearer explain.

For those working to dismantle racism in their own lives or inside institutions, Been in the Struggle offers inspiration for the road ahead. The book explores personal transformation, historical trauma, spiritual formation and the importance of authentic, restorative celebration.

Regina Shands Stoltzfus teaches at Goshen (Ind.) College in the religion, justice and society department and has worked widely in peace education. She holds a PhD in theology and ethics from Chicago Theological Seminary and is the author of two previous books.

Tobin Miller Shearer is an award-winning professor of history and African American studies at the University of Montana. He is the author or coauthor of five books and more than one hundred articles. He is also the co-founder of Widerstand Consulting, an antiracism training and consulting nonprofit.

After reading Been in the Struggle this winter, the Common Read continues in April 2022 with Not Quite Fine: Mental Health, Faith, and Showing Up for One Another by Carlene Hill Byron.

Started in 2020 with a focus on books written to nurture Christian faith in this cultural moment, Common Read has previously featured the following titles: The Bible Unwrapped: Making Sense of Scripture Today by Meghan Larissa Good; Signs of Life: Resurrecting Hope Out of Ordinary Losses by Stephanie Lobdell; I Am Not Your Enemy: Stories to Transform a Divided World by Michael T. McRay; Raising Disciples: How to Make Faith Matter for Our Kids by Natalie Frisk; and Tongue-Tied: Learning the Lost Art of Talking about Faith by Sara Wenger Shenk.