More Deadly Viper wrap-ups
This is not the end; this is just the beginning. May we continue building up the Body of Christ in a way that honors the God we serve and follow as well as our brothers and sisters:
- Eugene Cho: "reconciliation and unity need to be steadfast and intentional pursuits."
- Ed Gilbreath: "This is a wonderful start, but it will not be easy."
- Soong-Chan Rah: "There is one less expression of a stereotype and cultural insensitivity out there that you will have to deal with. There are many others, but at least there is one less."
- Ken Fong: "I believe it is paramount that a book about that topic should not in any way, shape, or form exclude female Christian leaders from the conversation."
- Helen Lee: "we can never really know what another person ’s life experience is or has been. That, however, does not mean that we shouldn’t strive to understand."
- A joint letter to Mike Foster and Jud Wilhite, the authors, and Zondervan: "May this be just the beginning of all our continued efforts to deepen our understanding of and appreciation for the diversity of God’s people."
Links of the Day, November 23
Matt Logue's book, "Empty Los Angeles."
News
- The Senate passes a motion, 60-39, to begin discussing the health care bill.
Sports
- Harvard's Jeremy Lin is pioneering the way for Asian-American basketball players.
Miscellaneous
- Cultural factors limit the recession's impact on Asian-American families.
- Chinese Americans reflect on Barack's visit to China.
- Lost is back February 2, 2010!!
- Stefani Germanotta, aka Lady Gaga, back in the day ...
Cage-dwellers in Hong Kong
Check out this disturbing report on people living in cages in Hong Kong.
The Conclusion of Deadly Viper
The Deadly Viper site is down and Zondervan, the publishers, issued the following letter:
November 19, 2009
Zondervan Statement Regarding Concerns Voiced About "Deadly Viper: Character Assassins"
From Moe Girkins, President and CEO
Hello and thanks for your patience.
On behalf of Zondervan, I apologize for publishing Deadly Viper: Character Assassins. It is our mission to offer products that glorify Jesus Christ. This book's characterizations and visual representations are offensive to many people despite its otherwise solid message.
There is no need for debate on this subject. We are pulling the book and the curriculum in their current forms from stores permanently.
We have taken the criticism and advice we have received to heart. In order to avoid similar episodes in the future, last week I named Stan Gundry as our Editor-in-Chief of all Zondervan products. He will be responsible for making the necessary changes at Zondervan to prevent editorial mistakes like this going forward. We already have begun a dialogue with Christian colleagues in the Asian-American community to deepen our cultural awareness and sensitivity.
Zondervan is committed to publishing Christian content and resources that uplift God and see humanity in its proper perspective in relation to God. We take seriously our call to provide resources that encourage spiritual growth. And, we know there is more to learn by always listening to our critics as well as our advocates.
It would be unfair to take these actions without expressing our love and support for the authors of this book, Mike Foster and Jud Wilhite. Both gentlemen are gifted writers and passionate about their ministry. We do believe their message is valuable and plan to work with the authors to come up with a better presentation of that message. We will jointly ensure we do our due diligence on the appropriateness of the creative side. This will include reaching out to a broad spectrum of cultural experts.
Finally, I want to personally thank Professor Rah, Ken Fong, Eugene Cho and Kathy Khang for their input and prayers during this discussion. We appreciate everyone's concern and effort and look forward to working together for God's kingdom.
Warmly,
Moe
Wow ... thanks to Zondervan and the authors for their humility and graciousness as well as their apology, and also to Soong-Chan Rah, Eugene Cho, Ken Fong and Kathy Khang for their advocacy and eloquence in representation. Way to go, Church! (Although, reading some of the comments on those blogs, I'm struck by how much more work needs to happen within the Church ...)
Check out more coverage--actually, a lot of it's the same--on the aforementioned's blogs, as well as on Angry Asian Man.
Links of the Day, November 20
On his visit to South Korea, President Obama was presented with an honorary taekwondo belt.
News
Politics
- Mike Huckabee shows his civility and class--I like Mike, even if I don't always agree with him.
Sports
- Thierry Henry says that a replay would be fair.