Ten Years Since Trayvon Martin’s Murder – A Conversation with Mark Labberton
Mar 2, 2022
Dear Micah Group Participants,
Ten years ago we were in the midst of the first round of Micah Groups. I had been called to the privilege of starting the Ogilvie Institute of Preaching, and after a year of reflection, research, and writing, Micah Groups began with the passion to bring diverse people from diverse contexts and ministry settings around the convergence of worship, preaching, and justice. More than 10 years later, Micah Groups continue to grow and have impact—so much through the partnership and leadership of Director Jennifer Ackerman, and Micah Mobilizers Joy Johnson and Jin Cho. Who would have guessed all that would occur in the U.S. scene since that time? Stunning, depressing, transformational, hopeful.
When the news of Trayvon Martin’s killing was announced in February 2012, I sent a letter to all the leaders and participants in Micah Groups at that time asking: are we in? What will we say about Trayvon Martin on the Sunday following his murder? Do we grasp that this tragic injustice makes a moral claim on our lives, our pulpits, our congregations?
Ten years later, Jemar Tisby, author of The Color of Compromise, posted this article about the significance of Trayvon’s death, the beginning of the Black Lives Matter movement, and the enduring claim on us who call Jesus Christ Lord. It made me look back on the last 10 years and wonder what other Micah Group leaders have experienced as we have continued to wrestle with our commitments to the convergence of worship, preaching, and justice.
I hope you will join me in an open Zoom conversation next week — Thursday, March 10, 11am-12noon Pacific Time — where we will share with one another the joys and challenges, the steps forward and backward, the hopes and fears we carry as we continue to seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God.
Peace,
