The Marked, Crucified (Body of) Christ, and Cruciform Discipleship

THE MARKED, CRUCIFIED (BODY OF) CHRIST AND CRUCIFORM DISCIPLESHIP
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The Marked, Crucified (body of) Christ and Cruciform Discipleship
M. Shawn Copeland's book, Knowing Christ Crucified, is an outstanding piece of writing that has enhanced my understanding of Jesus on the cross and the relationship between His suffering and the experience of African Americans in the hands of abusive White supremacists. Copeland makes vivid the centuries of torture, lynching, and abuse that the bodies of African Americans went through and helps one interpret the experiences through the lens of Jesus on the cross. One key phrase that Copeland shares with the reader is “the book of the cross.” In this paper, I will explore how one 'reads' "the book of the cross" based on insights from Copeland's book. In addition, I will seek to understand what it means to take up the cross and follow Jesus daily with all the crucified peoples of the world.
In the book's introductory section, Copeland describes how it has been reported that Francis of Assisi said the cross is a book. Copeland contends that if we open the book, we can come across traces of the crucified Jewish Jesus in the way human beings suffer in our world. In essence, if the cross is a book, it implies that we can read it. This raises the question: how do we read the book of the cross? As I have gathered from Copeland’s book, to read the book of the cross means to interrogate our suffering experiences, both current and past, and see the crucifixion of Jesus through them. One major point that Copeland passes across is that if the cross is a book, it must be read and studied by practical-political theology. This means that as we explore the suffering and experiences in history and the present, we should not remain silent but rather fight for the rights of the oppressed.[BIBLIOGRAPHY \l 1033 Copeland, M. Shawn. 2018. Knowing Christ Crucified: The Witness of African American Religious Experience.