182: Celebrating a "Brown Baby Jesus" Part 1 with Dorena Williamson

Dorena Williamson is a pastor’s wife, mom, Ever Eve stylist, and author of several childrens’ books, including the newest one, Brown Baby Jesus. She comes on the show today to help us better understand the historical and cultural context of the Christmas story - and why that context is so important. What We Chat about in Today’s Episode: ~Dorena’s new book, Brown Baby Jesus, what led her to write it, and what readers can expect ~Why understanding the historical background of Scripture is important; the problem with whitewashing it ~The women included in the genealogy of Jesus ~The reality that the rich roots of our faith originated in African and Asian soil ~How the gospel impacts how we view and treat people who are different from us ~Refuting the false representation that Christianity is a “white man’s religion” ~Why it’s so impactful that it was the shepherds who received the message from the angels ~African church fathers and their contribution ~The importance of seeing people the way God does ~Understanding that Jesus and His parents were refugees at one point; why this is important to grasp and it changes how we view people ~The importance of doing a self-assessment to see if there are ways that we are are dehumanizing others ~Understanding that dehumanizing people and failing to see God’s image in them is the first step to mistreating them and excusing it away as ok ~Growing in proximity to those who are different from us; what a powerful way this is to shape our lives and give us opportunities to reflect the love of Christ ~The importance of asking ourselves why it is that we sometimes don’t want to listen to the stories of people who are different from us; the importance of being willing to topple whatever idol we may have in our hearts that is making it hard for us to do this ~And more! For full shownotes, head to www.hargraveshomeandhearth.com/podcast