Soong-Chan Rah - Prophetic Lament: A Call for Justice in Troubled Times

InterVarsity Press
P.O. Box 1400,
Downers Grove, IL
60515-1426
ivpress.com

2015 bySoong-Chan Rah

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from InterVarsity Press.

InterVarsity Pressis the book-publishing division of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA, a movement of students and faculty active on campus at hundreds of universities, colleges and schools of nursing in the United States of America, and a member movement of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. For information about local and regional activities, visitintervarsity.org .

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIVCopyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

While any stories in this book are true, some names and identifying information may have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals.

Material taken and adapted from The Necessity of Lament for Ministry in the Urban Context that appeared inEx Auditu vol. 29, 2013, is used by permission from Wipf and Stock Publishers.

Cover design: Cindy Kiple
Images: Couple Reaching Up by Evelyn Williams, Private Collection, Bridgeman Images

ISBN 978-0-8308-9761-2 (digital)
ISBN 978-0-8308-3694-9 (print)

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Rah, Soong-Chan.
Prophetic lament : a call for justice in troubled times / Soong-Chan Rah.
1 online resource. -- (Resonate series) (Resonate Series)
Includes bibliographical references.
Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher; resource not viewed.
ISBN 978-0-8308-9761-2 (eBook) -- ISBN 978-0-8308-3694-9 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Bible. Lamentations--Commentaries. I. Title.
BS1535.53
224.307--dc23
2015023473

FOREWORD

by Brenda Salter McNeil

T he church has lost its ability to lament! This heartfelt cry came from a seminary student as she prayed with other graduate students, faculty and staff who gathered together to seek God for racial justice and reconciliation throughout our nation. As we cried and prayed together we realized that our theology and spiritual formation hadnt given us sufficient permission, language or tools to adequately sit with the despair and sadness of recent racial injustices, senseless acts of gun violence and social unrest taking place in the world around us. We even saw this on social media where people also seemed paralyzed and helpless to know what to do and how to respond. Sincere, well-meaning Christian people asked, What should we do? while people who were fed up with the seeming indifference of those around them expressed their outrage through a hashtag that proclaimed Silence is Violence!