Empowered to Repair: A Conversation with Dr. Brenda Salter-McNeil
Over a lifetime of work in racial reconciliation, Dr. Brenda Salter-McNeil has come to believe that we must go beyond reconciliation to reparation. In Empowered to Repair, she uses the narrative of Nehemiah to empower readers to take on the difficult work of reparation. In this podcast episode, she talks with Dr. Josh Olds about her work and her book.
The Book | Empowered to Repair
“An inspiring starting point for Christians looking to put their beliefs into action.”–Publishers Weekly
Political and cultural wars are tearing communities apart. Issues such as immigration, racism, and guns are driving wedges between people and hampering Christians’ impact in the world.
In Empowered to Repair, Brenda Salter McNeil looks to the biblical story of Nehemiah for answers. There, she finds an action-based model for repairing and rebuilding our communities and transforming broken systems.
McNeil goes beyond theories, offering practical tools Christians need for organizing, empowering, and activating people to join in God’s work of equality, reparations, and justice. She provides strategies to drive systemic changes that go beyond superficial diversity and teaches the skills needed to engage in this important work long-term, such as organizing people, leveraging resources, and avoiding burnout through rest, prayer, and self-care.
Learning from Nehemiah, readers will be emboldened to go out and help build congregations, organizations, and communities where all people can flourish and reach their full, God-given potential.
The Author | Brenda Salter-McNeil
Rev. Dr. Brenda Salter McNeil is a dynamic speaker, author, professor and reconciliation thought leader. Her mission is to inspire, equip and empower the next generation of Christian leaders to be practitioners of reconciliation.
Dr. Brenda is an Associate Professor of Reconciliation Studies at Seattle Pacific University, directing the Reconciliation Studies program. She is also the Associate Pastor of Preaching and Reconciliation at Quest Church in Seattle.
Dr. Brenda is an international trailblazer, leading individuals, communities, and organizations to biblical reconciliation. She was featured as one of the 50 most influential women to watch by Christianity Today in 2012.
She is the author of Roadmap to Reconciliation 2.0, A Credible Witness: Reflections on Power, Evangelism and Race (2008), and The Heart of Racial Justice: How Soul Change Leads to Social Change (2005), coauthored with Rick Richardson.