Justice and the Atonement: a Public Theology to Confront Police Brutality in America

Abstract

This article proposes a public theology of justice in light of police brutality and broad injustice in American policing. That public theology is created through rediscovering the socially and politically transformative nature of the atonement to build a foundation for understanding justice as a proactive, communal, and transformative force. By diagnosing the sickness via historical context and engaging with a plurality of voices, the result is an holistic approach within a framework that catalyzes the conversation forward toward transformative justice.