Jesus, Justice + Mercy: Bold faith, radical love and justice for the church
Jesus, Justice + Mercy
Bold faith, radical love, and justice for the church.
Welcome to Jesus, Justice + Mercy, a podcast for those who believe justice matters but aren’t sure how it fits with the faith they’ve always known. If you’re wrestling with the disconnect between Jesus and what you see in the church, you’re not alone.
I'm your host, Kristen, a woman rooted in the church, learning to reimagine faith through the lens of justice and mercy. In this season, we’ll explore the tensions between faith, justice, and identity. We’ll unpack hard questions about race, trauma, civic responsibility, and how we move forward with bold faith and radical love.
Whether you’re deconstructing, rebuilding, or simply asking honest questions, this is a space to listen, learn, and live out a justice-centered faith that’s deeply rooted in the heart of Scripture.
Jesus, Justice + Mercy: Bold faith, radical love and justice for the church
Jesus Isn’t Running for Office: Because God Doesn’t Need Political Power to Bring His Kingdom
How did a young theologian in 1930s Germany see what so many others missed?
In this episode, Kristen revisits Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s question, “Who is Jesus Christ for us today?” and boldly traces the unsettling parallels between Hitler’s “playbook” and the ways Christian nationalism shows up now.
She talks about fear-driven policy, silence disguised as unity, cheap grace versus costly grace, and why Jesus isn’t running for office, because God doesn’t need political power to bring His Kingdom. The Kingdom of God was never meant to be built by ballots or power brokers, but by love that confronts fear and grace that costs something.
What Bonhoeffer saw in 1930s Germany still speaks today, when fear becomes faith’s language and power its goal, it’s time to remember that Jesus isn’t running for office.
Content notes: This episode references state violence, detentions, lynching, and executions.
Did ICE really zip-tie children in a Chicago Apartment raid? Article
Books + Resources Mentioned:
· The Cost of Discipleship: Dietrich Bonhoeffer
· Letters and Papers from Prison: Dietrich Bonhoeffer
· Bonhoeffer’s Black Jesus: Harlem Renaissance Theology and an Ethic of Resistance: Reggie L. Williams
· The Barmen Declaration: Karl Barth et al.
If you find hope and challenge here, help grow this community by liking, sharing, and leaving a review so more people can join us in pursuing justice and Jesus together.
RESOURCES:
Holy Disruption: Reclaiming a Justice-Rooted Faith course info and interest list
Justice Coaching options!