The Dallas Examiner
The Zan W. Holmes Jr.’s African Heritage lecture series kicked off with guest speaker Dr. Theodore Walker Jr. presented “Speaking to the Elephant in the Room: the church’s response to the …isms” at the St. Luke “Community” United Methodist Church, on Jan. 31.
The term “the elephant in the room” is a metaphorical idiom that is used when there are evident issues that nobody wants to talk about.
In honor of Black History Month, the three-day lecture series focused on racism, inequity and civil rights in society. Dr. Michael L. Bowie Jr., St. Luke’s senior pastor, believes that in order to eliminate the elephants in the room, the church must stand up by confronting them and speak out with love.
Walker is the associate professor of Ethics and Society at the Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University. Walker is also the guest editor for the Astro-Theology volumes in the Journal of Cosmology. He is the author of Empower the People: Social Ethics for the African-American Church and of Mothership Connections: A Black Atlantic Synthesis of Neoclassical Metaphysics and Black Theology. He also serves on the International Advisory Board for the Journal Process Studies.
During his message, Walker spoke about racism and how Martin Luther King Jr. did not like to be known as a civil rights leader and how he realized racism was a global issue. He also discussed the importance of the Bible.
“The Bible is not just a book, it’s a library,” Walker said.
The Bible is filled with different books that can be applied to different situations in life. Walker believes that studying the Bible is the way to handle racism and other issues in society. By studying the Bible it can help acquire the strength and knowledge to handle any situation you are faced with.
“When the spirit of the lord comes upon us, we are inspired,” Walker explained.
Walker concluded from the book of Luke chapter 4:16-19. It read, “He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written.
“The spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”