Social Justice

Morehouse Publishing 9781640655188 $19.95 paper | 5.5 x 8.5 | 208 Pages March 22, 2022

Seeing the Unseen

Beyond Prejudices, Paradigms, and Party Lines Mark M. Beckwith Foreword by Shane Claiborne A bishop and gun safety activist offers a way forward from opposing viewpoints. Instead of dismissing those whose views and experiences are different from our own, the author argues that we must look directly at them and see the goodness that is inherent in all things. From the language we use to the imperative to understand and include, we have a duty to work through opposition and build community. Bishop Beckwith describes it this way: “We are trained to think, yet the cultural emphasis on thinking has not been applied to our ability to see . . . We are not as well trained in seeing the world’s fullness—pain and joy, compassion and cruelty. We regularly receive glimpses of pain and joy, but they are often presented in such a way as to reinforce our thinking.” MARK M. BECKWITH is the retired bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Newark, where he served for twelve years. He co-founded Bishops United Against Gun Violence (2012), which has grown to a network of 100 bishops from across the church. Since retirement, he has become part of the leadership team for Braver Angels, a movement that seeks to depolarize America by convening equal numbers of conservative and progressive people in workshops to seek common ground. Bishop Beckwith lives in Jaffrey, New Hampshire.

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