Antioch Worship Leadership Podcast

Our team on the Antioch Podcast was feeling reflective today as we gathered around the mics. It’s a new year, and I don’t know about you, but during this time of the year, I love gathering with friends to reflect on the year that was, and look forward to the year ahead. Our multiethnic team … Continue reading Episode 310: Year in Review – “Intentions and Reflections.”

Advent is a four-week season in the Church calendar dedicated to anticipating the arrival, or “advent,” of Jesus of Nazareth, the long-awaited savior and King. Christians from many backgrounds celebrate this time with reflections on hope, peace, love, and joy. And while their practices may look different, all focus on the hope-filled arrival of Jesus. … Continue reading Episode 309: An Antioch Holiday Special – “Advent and Justice.”

At work the other day, we were having a conversation about American Thanksgiving Day. One of my African-American friends was telling me that Thanksgiving Day at their house is the “Food Olympics.” Family members are requested to bring certain dishes that they expertly cook to their annual family banquet of well-seasoned, colorful food. This is … Continue reading Episode 308 – An Antioch Holiday Special – “Thanksgiving Memories.”

Well … we are back. We took a couple weeks off but we are back this week to talk about our series on the pledge of allegiance. Today we talk about “Liberty and Justice for All.” So, in our first post-election episode, we have some thoughts – new thoughts and old thoughts – about what … Continue reading Episode 307: The Pledge – What Does It Mean? – “With Liberty and Justice for All.”

Sometimes, the Antioch Podcast team takes our show on the road. Recently, we were invited to be a part of Unlearn Week at Calvin University. This program is an opportunity for students to unlearn stereotypes, biases and talk about racism by engaging in healthy dialogue and diving deeper into these topics as Christians. We had … Continue reading Episode 306: Whitework – “The Antiracism Journeys of White Allies.”

What does it mean to have a united front? I once talked with someone who was routinely told that she needed to “put up a united front” in implementing a policy at the hospital where she worked. However, she didn’t agree with the policy, and this caused her to feel like she might need to … Continue reading Episode 305: The Pledge – What Does It Mean – “Indivisible.”

The first amendment to the US Constitution says that the country cannot have an official religion, yet most state constitutions reference either God or the divine. The words “In God We Trust” is printed on currency in the United States, but many Americans only pray when they are in a crisis. The pledge of allegiance … Continue reading Episode 304: The Pledge – What Does It Mean? – “Under God.”

Michigan is one of the states that will decide the election in 2024, and the western side of the state is one region within Michigan where the divisions are the strongest. Driving through my neighborhood, yard signs for Harris and Trump punctuate the lawns of many of my neighbors. Last week I needed to drive … Continue reading Episode 303: The Pledge – What Does it Mean? – “One Nation.”

And to the republic, for which it stands. We say these words all the time, but what is a republic anyway? According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, a republic is a form of government in which a state is ruled by representatives of the citizen body. Modern republics are founded on the idea that sovereignty rests … Continue reading Episode 302: The Pledge – What Does It Mean – “The Republic.”

The pledge of allegiance was originally written in 1892 by a then-37-year-old minister named Francis Bellamy.  It was first recited that same year on October 12th to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the voyage of Christopher Columbus.  Since then, it has grown in popularity, becoming a ubiquitous feature of American education and civic life.  But … Continue reading Episode 301: The Pledge – What Does It Mean? – “I Pledge Allegiance to the Flag.”

It has been our tradition on the Antioch Podcast to pause when we hit a milestone to reflect on the experience of being a part of this podcast. The Antioch Podcast began in August of 2016 when President Obama was in office to provide multiethnic church leaders with tools to understand what it meant to … Continue reading Episode 300: The 300th Episode!!! – “Looking In, Looking Back, Looking Ahead.”

Pennylyn Dykstra-Pruim, host of the podcast Diversity and Inclusion for All, was an occasional guest on the Antioch Podcast. As a professor, author and antiracism educator, she shared her gifts with the Christian and interfaith communities in Grand Rapids Michigan and wherever she was invited to speak. But to many of us here on the … Continue reading Episode 299: Remembering Pennylyn Dykstra-Pruim – “A Tribute.”

Fantasy and science-fiction movies are places where we can imagine worlds and people that we wish existed. When we lose ourselves in these kinds of stories, we suspend judgement for a moment and feel the emotions of what living in this imagined possibility would be like. Probably no better example exists than the 2018 movie … Continue reading Episode 297: Antiracism in the Movies – “Black Panther.”

King Richard is the story of Richard Williams, father of tennis phenoms Venus and Serina Williams and his journey to help his daughters achieve tennis stardom. Set in the 1980s and 1990s, this movie is a clear-eyed view of the corrosive forces of American racism set against the protective factors of dignity and family. Haven’t … Continue reading Episode 296: Antiracism in the Movies – “King Richard.”

The movie-turned musical “Hairspray” tells the story of Tracy Turnblad, a full-figured teenager who dreams of dancing on the “The Corny Collins Show” – a locally-produced television show in Baltimore in 1962. Tracy experiences discrimination for her weight, until she learns dance moves from African-American dancers who perform on the shows limited “Negro Day” episodes. … Continue reading Episode 295: Antiracism in the Movies – “Hairspray.”

Antiracism is nothing without stories, and some of the most powerful stories are told through movies. In the short span of 90 minutes or more, movies can take us on a journey through our imaginations to think about ideas and feel things that we don’t experience in our everyday lives. In this series, our team … Continue reading Episode 294: Antiracism in the Movies – “Origin.”

It is a common occurrence to have seasons of closeness to God and times when we have doubt and struggle.  Struggles and feeling separated from God are common, so common that Christian mystics refer to these seasons as the “dark night of the soul.”  These seasons have not always led people away from God, but … Continue reading Episode 293: Focusing on Wellness – “Spiritual Wellness.”

It is a fact: many communities with the highest concentrations of people of color in the United States are also the most polluted. The impact of unsafe houses, unclean soil and water, and food that makes us sick is the very definition of a systemic problem – a problem that will not be solved by … Continue reading Episode 292: Focusing on Wellness – “Environmental Wellness.”

Sometimes you experience something that makes you think. I recently had an experience like this when my family and I had a two-week tour of South Africa, a land where the legacy of colonialism and modern-day racism is more recent, and is both similar and different than the ongoing legacy of these issues in the … Continue reading Episode 291: White Work – “Reflections on South Africa.”

Managing stress may be one of the most challenging things we have to do professionally. The stress we must manage doing antiracism work can be draining, grueling, or overwhelming. And yet, doing this kind of work can also be deeply fulfilling. For that reason, it is important to prioritize mental wellness. Today, our team of … Continue reading Episode 290: Focusing on Wellness – “Mental Wellness.”