In this episode, the Rev. Rob Schenck discusses the interconnecting network of faith leaders working towards gun violence prevention, the nonviolence of Bonhoeffer, and the importance of depolarization within American society with Mark Beckwith, longtime friend of TDBI and co-chair of Faith Leaders for Ending Gun Violence. Mark has been working in this overlapping space of nonviolence reform throughout his career. He is the retired Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Newark, co-founding the Newark Interfaith Coalition for Hope and Peace, a network of religious leaders committed to reducing gang violence in the city. He also co-founded Bishops United Against Gun Violence in 2012, which has grown to a network of 100 bishops. Now retired, Mark has become part of the leadership team for Braver Angels, a movement that seeks to depolarize America. The organization stands at the intersection of faith and politics, offering a path towards reconciliation and seeing across the divide within our own organizations. In March, he also released the book, “Seeing the Unseen: Beyond Prejudices, Paradigms, and Party Lines” with Morehouse Publishing. How can gun violence prevention advocates and gun rights advocates begin to understand each other? What do we need to do to depolarize our faith communities and reconcile with each other? How does silence offer a holy response and a common language for prayer? Listen in as Rob and Mark grapple with the tensions within our communities and how Bonhoeffer’s experience with the Black church informed his outlook on suffering and nonviolence. --
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