Creative Centre Auditorium and online, drinks reception, 5 – 7pm
In person and online free tickets can be reserved via Eventbrite.
God Is Not a White Man: Race, faith and belief in a post-riot world
The riots that swept the UK in the summer of 2024 brought to the forefront of public consciousness the rise of the Far Right, anti-immigrant sentiment, and Christian nationalism. In this lecture, Chine McDonald will reflect on what happens when we face hard and painful truths about race, identity and the theological understanding that every human is made in the image of God. It will confront the reality of the intertwining of Christianity with white superiority, and chart a way forward for a future of faith and belief that represents the vibrant diversity of the UK.
Chine McDonald is Director of Theos, the religion and society think tank. She was previously Head of Public Engagement at Christian Aid. She has two decades of experience in journalism, media and communications across faith, media and international development organisations. She also speaks and writes regularly on issues of race, faith and gender, and is the author of God is not a White Man: and other Revelations (Hodder & Stoughton, May 2021) which was runner-up for the Michael Ramsey Prize for theological writing.
Chine is a regular writer, broadcaster, panel host and media commentator and has written for the Financial Times, the Guardian, The Independent, The Big Issue, Prospect, The Mirror and contributes to TV and radio programmes such as regularly presenting the BBC’s Thought for the Day on Radio 4’s Today programme and appearing on BBC Sunday Morning Live. She regularly speaks in and hosts panels including previously at Cheltenham Festivals and How the Light Gets In. She is vice–chair of Greenbelt Festival and a trustee of Christian Aid.
Chine studied Theology and Religious Studies at Cambridge University, and is a Canon Theologian at Chester Cathedral. Her upcoming book Unmaking Mary: Shattering the Myth of Perfect Motherhood will be published by Hodder & Stoughton in early 2025.
The Ebor Lectures in Theology and Public Life were established in 2006 in York, UK to promote conversation across a diversity of religious beliefs and issues of public concern. The Ebor Lectures are offered free of charge to the general public providing a space where experts and practitioners from a range of communities, such as educational institutions, public interest groups, religious movements, charitable and political organisations, can share knowledge and provoke reflection contributing to creative personal and collective decision-making for the benefit of society. Speakers have included archbishops, cabinet ministers, social activists, journalists, astronomers, peace-workers, authors and many others. The Ebor Lectures are an ecumenical project jointly sponsored and organised by York Minster, York St John University, Methodist Church (Yorkshire North and East District), The C & JB Morrell Trust and York Area Society of Friends (Quakers).