Red Lip Theology: A Guide for Christian Women on How to Balance Beauty and Faith

Maureen.: Thank you Candice. You ministered to my heart and soul. I will be re-reading this just in case I missed something.

United States on Dec 26, 2023

landos: It's a good read

United States on Nov 14, 2023

Jocelyn Small: What I enjoyed the most was how authentic and honest the author was on different topics. As a millennial Christian woman I related and could appreciate the different perspectives she presented. Definitely would recommend to anyone ready to explore with an open mind something outside of what we were taught growing up in the church.

United States on Oct 19, 2023

EDJ: I really enjoyed Candice Benbow’s red lip theology.

She is a womanist, feminist, queer-affirming, obviously anti-racist theologian and she talks about these as some of the cornerstones of a healthy theology.

Candice shares some of her experiences of racism as a black woman, particularly after being accepted to do a PhD through a so-called “Christian” institution, and subsequently being denied the request to defer her studies while grieving the sudden, unexpected death of her mother. She is brutally honest about her grief and how it fed suicidal ideation.

She shares deeply throughout the book about her relationships with her mother and her father. Her mother taught her an appreciation for womanist theology that Candice took further than her mother was able. Her mother instilled value in her, affirming that she was never a “mistake,” though this concept was pushed by others because her mother was a single “unwed” mother, when she was born and for much of her life.

Candice talks about the human race being fundamentally “good.” Creation is good. “Earth and humanity need each other.” “If all of creation is holy, then Black girls and...

United States on Mar 24, 2023

SDSD: Breathtakingly beautiful, honest, and unapologetic. I loved this book so much. I laughed and cried with Candice Benbow as she recounted her story (and her mother’s story). This book reads like a love letter to women who have experienced harm in seemingly “safe spaces” and who may have taken their frustrations out with God. But, as a friend of mine once said, and Candice reiterates, God can handle our questions and our frustrations. God made us the way we are, and he called us GOOD. So, leave God out of your messiness when you’re lecturing other folks on how to live and get “free.” Mind your business and your parts. MKAY?!

I didn’t expect to see so much of myself in this book. So much of my academic journey and struggles, so much of my issues with patriarchy and internalized sexism from women. I reflected on the ways others’ comments and opinions on my worthiness shaped or mis-shaped so much of my graduate life. I reflected on run-ins I’ve had with church folk as a kid and how my Mama let them folks have it. I’ve been angry at God and church many times, too. So, reading this book made visible my hurt as Candice articulated hers in ways I couldn’t. As...

United States on Mar 20, 2022