Six New Things – Week of September 22, 2025
Dehumanizing governance; hate-filled, scarcity-based ideologies; planet-threatening systems; the onslaught of AI: our humanity is in peril. Connection to land, communal collaboration, and grounding in spiritual roots of abundance restores our souls.
ONE
Divisiveness drives these perils – and manifests in ‘othering’. The Incredibly Human Henson Blayze (Penguin Random), ‘combines a modern-day allegory with classic-style tall tales to weave a compelling story of America’s obsession with relegating Black people to labor or entertainment‘, revealing ‘how much has changed over centuries… and, at the same time, how little’.
Find more in our Anti-Racism: Perspectives & Stories and Tweens & Teens: Justice – Anti-Racism & BIPOC
TWO
For a study in contrasts, follow Blayze with Malfoy: The Fall and the Fate of the Wizarding World’s Most Treacherous Family (Media Lab), which answers ‘two central questions about Draco… Is he redeemable? And was he redeemed?’
The two together offer contexts for discussions about racialized and/or healthy boyhood and manhood, toxic masculinity, bullying, and isolation. Our boys and young men are desperate for places of identity-finding and belonging. Might this conversation create a space for both?
Find more in our FF: Relationships & Identity – Antibullying & Friendship, Tweens & Teens: Identity/Coming of Age, and Social Justice Engagement: Gender Justice – Toxic Masculinity lib guides.
THREE
Media platforms and algorithms reinforce our divisions with startling acumen, making it increasingly difficult ‘to remain truly human’. ‘Writing in the tradition of Wendell Berry, Jacques Ellul and Simone Weil‘, Against the Machine: On the Unmaking of Humanity (Thesis), ‘reminds us what humanity requires: a healthy suspicion of entrenched power; connection to land, nature and heritage; and a deep attention to matters of the spirit’.
In the face of AI’s rapid rise, Brené Brown‘s Strong Ground: The Lessons of Daring Leadership, the Tenacity of Paradox, and the Wisdom of the Human Spirit (Penguin Random) is wary of ‘platitudes like, ‘What makes us human will ensure our relevance.’ when ‘we’re not especially good at what makes us human’, right now. Therefore, she writes, ‘organizational transformation today must foster deep connection, deep thinking and deep collaboration… [along with] the courage to lead people in a way that honors and protects the wisdom of the human spirit.’
Find more in our Social Justice Engagement AI/Social Media/Tech, Contemplative Activism, and Adaptive Leadership lib guides.
FOUR
We have been losing our humanity incrementally over generations, as dominant narratives of work, productivity, and perfectionism overshadow well-being, purpose, and belonging. In Defense of Dabbling: The Brilliance of Being a Total Amateur (Broadleaf), ‘reminds us that it’s in the living that we create a life, so failure isn’t a concern; in fact, it’s kind of the point… Transcendence awaits: What joy might we find if we simply started doing the things we love?’
Find more in our Spiritual Practices: Contemplative Arts and Meaning & True Self lib guides.
FIVE
The powerful scarcity narrative is a key driver of divisive systems. We Have Plenty: A Womanist Theology of Communal Abundance for the Black Church (Fortress), ‘offers a womanist theology that hearkens back to Fannie Lou Hamer’s Freedom Farm Collective and illumines contemporary initiatives that cultivate pathways toward Black communal abundance‘ as it offers tools of ‘moral imagination’, ‘to promote more equitable human relations and communal asset-building and sharing’.
Partner womanist abundance theology with Food Theology: Nourishing Faith in Local Communities (Fortress), which ‘invites eaters to a consideration of food itself as a primary communicator of God’s love, grace, and sustenance for all creation‘ with ‘easy-to-follow recipes and guides’ that illustrate the ‘exciting possibilities that come with increased attention to local food ministries and eating in community’.
Find more in our Faith Formation: Emerging Theologies, Stewardship & Giving: New Generosity, and Spiritual Practices: Food/Cooking lib guides.
SIX
Preaching remains an essential congregation-building tool, with prophetic witness bringing us back to our best selves as individuals and community. Illuminating Sermons: Curating Illustrations That Inspire (Fortress), ‘innovative approach toward sermon preparation and development’, invites ‘preachers to develop and sustain a practice to curate their own sermon illuminations’.
Find more in our Worship: Lectionary & Preaching lib guide.
