Overview

According to recent research, our brains prefer the path of least resistance when it comes to engaging people who are unlike us--in fact, our brains tell us to perceive anyone different than us as a threat. That is a nice way to say that, despite our best intentions, we all have our prejudices and preferences. In biblical terms, we show partiality toward people who resemble us; we play favorites. Much of our identity, community, and power are established by the measurement of our differences from others, justifying our need to categorize people. Even when we attempt to engage other races and cultures, we see it as a one-way bridge, taking our way of life across the river to enlighten those different than us. It assumes we are on the bank of the undistorted view of the world and our understanding of the other side is not important. The proper response is to encourage two-way traffic on the bridge, not only by having dialogue with people over the bridge but more importantly listening to them. Overcoming our prejudices and bridging the cultural divide is the result of living out the gospel and it is the most significant way to communicate the gospel.

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9781666721959

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Reviews

"""Filled with stories--many of them personal--and undergirded by Scripture, Woodworth carefully, biblically, systematically, and pastorally detangles believers from the sin of partiality to fully and unabashedly embrace other persons made in God's image. And leaving nothing to chance, Woodworth provides discussion questions for each chapter to further help with liberating us from this partiality entanglement to freely, warmly, and impartially embrace all neighbors."" --Luke B. Bobo, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Made to Flourish ""Playing Favorites is a helpful reminder of the call to see others not through human eyes of division but as beings made in the image of God reflecting the beauty of diversity. Woodworth recounts for us that prejudice is not what bad people have but is a condition that all people have. . . . May we have the courage, humility, and intentionality to take the lessons in this timely text to heart."" --Todd Allen, Vice President of Diversity, Messiah College ""Woodworth shows us how powerfully the gospel bridges the gaps in our hearts that keep us from loving one another. This book is an invitation to engage our neighbors with grace-fused intention--moving toward the marginalized and disenfranchised with the powerful and transformational love of Christ."" --Jeremy Casella, Nashville Singer/Songwriter and Recording Artist ""This book is a welcome addition to our culture's conversation about racial inequity and personal responsibility. Biblically grounded in timeless wisdom, Woodworth's words are as practical as they are pastoral. A good read for anyone, but especially helpful to those Christians who are looking for something that is not judgmental and offers a solid biblical approach to today's most challenging and important issue."" --Dean Weaver, Stated Clerk, Evangelical Presbyterian Church ""In Playing Favorites, Woodworth offers a theological vision for navigating multicultural contexts with wisdom and grace that avoids the ideological pitfalls common in our cultural moment. It's rooted in decades of ministry experience and informed by a careful reading of the Bible. In a time flooded with polarizing opinions, we need more gospel-centered sages like Rodger to guide us toward God's glorious vision for the church."" --Austin Gohn, author of A Restless Age ""As Americans, we often like to refer to ourselves as color-blind. Woodworth points out that this is far from the truth. Woodworth does an excellent job of . . . weaving together personal experiences and societal research in presenting the problem of discrimination and prejudice. Fortunately, he does not stop with the problem but . . . guides us as we begin the journey of overcoming our prejudices and building bridges. It is with great pleasure that I recommend Playing Favorites."" --Wayne Gordon, Pastor, Lawndale Community Church ""Born of his lifelong reading of the word and the world, Woodworth enters into the perennial problem of prejudice, a challenge for the church in every century and every culture. We stumble over ourselves, more often than not living with wounds of class and race that keep us from a deeper, truer unity. Playing Favorites offers another way to live, both a critique of what is, and a vision for what should be. A book for all who long to see and hear the world as it someday will be."" --Steven Garber, author of Visions of Vocation: Common Grace for the Common Good"

Filled with stories--many of them personal--and undergirded by Scripture, Woodworth carefully, biblically, systematically, and pastorally detangles believers from the sin of partiality to fully and unabashedly embrace other persons made in God's image. And leaving nothing to chance, Woodworth provides discussion questions for each chapter to further help with liberating us from this partiality entanglement to freely, warmly, and impartially embrace all neighbors. --Luke B. Bobo, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Made to Flourish Playing Favorites is a helpful reminder of the call to see others not through human eyes of division but as beings made in the image of God reflecting the beauty of diversity. Woodworth recounts for us that prejudice is not what bad people have but is a condition that all people have. . . . May we have the courage, humility, and intentionality to take the lessons in this timely text to heart. --Todd Allen, Vice President of Diversity, Messiah College Woodworth shows us how powerfully the gospel bridges the gaps in our hearts that keep us from loving one another. This book is an invitation to engage our neighbors with grace-fused intention--moving toward the marginalized and disenfranchised with the powerful and transformational love of Christ. --Jeremy Casella, Nashville Singer/Songwriter and Recording Artist This book is a welcome addition to our culture's conversation about racial inequity and personal responsibility. Biblically grounded in timeless wisdom, Woodworth's words are as practical as they are pastoral. A good read for anyone, but especially helpful to those Christians who are looking for something that is not judgmental and offers a solid biblical approach to today's most challenging and important issue. --Dean Weaver, Stated Clerk, Evangelical Presbyterian Church In Playing Favorites, Woodworth offers a theological vision for navigating multicultural contexts with wisdom and grace that avoids the ideological pitfalls common in our cultural moment. It's rooted in decades of ministry experience and informed by a careful reading of the Bible. In a time flooded with polarizing opinions, we need more gospel-centered sages like Rodger to guide us toward God's glorious vision for the church. --Austin Gohn, author of A Restless Age As Americans, we often like to refer to ourselves as color-blind. Woodworth points out that this is far from the truth. Woodworth does an excellent job of . . . weaving together personal experiences and societal research in presenting the problem of discrimination and prejudice. Fortunately, he does not stop with the problem but . . . guides us as we begin the journey of overcoming our prejudices and building bridges. It is with great pleasure that I recommend Playing Favorites. --Wayne Gordon, Pastor, Lawndale Community Church Born of his lifelong reading of the word and the world, Woodworth enters into the perennial problem of prejudice, a challenge for the church in every century and every culture. We stumble over ourselves, more often than not living with wounds of class and race that keep us from a deeper, truer unity. Playing Favorites offers another way to live, both a critique of what is, and a vision for what should be. A book for all who long to see and hear the world as it someday will be. --Steven Garber, author of Visions of Vocation: Common Grace for the Common Good

Filled with stories--many of them personal--and undergirded by Scripture, Woodworth carefully, biblically, systematically, and pastorally detangles believers from the sin of partiality to fully and unabashedly embrace other persons made in God's image. And leaving nothing to chance, Woodworth provides discussion questions for each chapter to further help with liberating us from this partiality entanglement to freely, warmly, and impartially embrace all neighbors. --Luke B. Bobo, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Made to Flourish Playing Favorites is a helpful reminder of the call to see others not through human eyes of division but as beings made in the image of God reflecting the beauty of diversity. Woodworth recounts for us that prejudice is not what bad people have but is a condition that all people have. . . . May we have the courage, humility, and intentionality to take the lessons in this timely text to heart. --Todd Allen, Vice President of Diversity, Messiah College Woodworth shows us how powerfully the gospel bridges the gaps in our hearts that keep us from loving one another. This book is an invitation to engage our neighbors with grace-fused intention--moving toward the marginalized and disenfranchised with the powerful and transformational love of Christ. --Jeremy Casella, Nashville Singer/Songwriter and Recording Artist This book is a welcome addition to our culture's conversation about racial inequity and personal responsibility. Biblically grounded in timeless wisdom, Woodworth's words are as practical as they are pastoral. A good read for anyone, but especially helpful to those Christians who are looking for something that is not judgmental and offers a solid biblical approach to today's most challenging and important issue. --Dean Weaver, Stated Clerk, Evangelical Presbyterian Church In Playing Favorites, Woodworth offers a theological vision for navigating multicultural contexts with wisdom and grace that avoids the ideological pitfalls common in our cultural moment. It's rooted in decades of ministry experience and informed by a careful reading of the Bible. In a time flooded with polarizing opinions, we need more gospel-centered sages like Rodger to guide us toward God's glorious vision for the church. --Austin Gohn, author of A Restless Age As Americans, we often like to refer to ourselves as color-blind. Woodworth points out that this is far from the truth. Woodworth does an excellent job of . . . weaving together personal experiences and societal research in presenting the problem of discrimination and prejudice. Fortunately, he does not stop with the problem but . . . guides us as we begin the journey of overcoming our prejudices and building bridges. It is with great pleasure that I recommend Playing Favorites. --Wayne Gordon, Pastor, Lawndale Community Church Born of his lifelong reading of the word and the world, Woodworth enters into the perennial problem of prejudice, a challenge for the church in every century and every culture. We stumble over ourselves, more often than not living with wounds of class and race that keep us from a deeper, truer unity. Playing Favorites offers another way to live, both a critique of what is, and a vision for what should be. A book for all who long to see and hear the world as it someday will be. --Steven Garber, author of Visions of Vocation: Common Grace for the Common Good

Author Information

Rodger Woodworth was the founding pastor of two interracial churches, an adjunct seminary professor and the Director of Cross Cultural Ministries for the Coalition for Christian Outreach. Rodger has a DMin in complex urban settings and is the author of Kingdom Holiness: Holy Living in a Challenging Culture.

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