Fr. Dwight Longenecker: Resentment and the Roots of Rage

If anybody can claim “white privilege” it’s me. I’m a middle aged, well educated white man. I was brought up in a stable home, provided with a secure foundation in life, the means for a good education and a strong work ethic. I’ve ended up being well off, well educated, well connected and well, to be honest, very blessed.

As a consequence I hesitate to write about the violence erupting in America. What do I know about black rage, poverty and the impotent frustration in the face of racism?

I do know a little bit. I’m the pastor of a church in a part of town that is challenged socio economically. The folks who live around our campus do not have the advantages with which I have been blessed. Homes and hearts and lives are broken. Many struggle with low income and high unemployment. There is a sub-culture of crime, low aspirations and high addiction. Prostitution and human trafficking simmer in the run down hotels around our church. The homeless wander in we wonder what we can do about it. …

Read more here:  stream.org/resentment-and-the-roots-of-rage/