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INTERVIEW

Artist tobyMac Studies Faith and Patriotism in Latest Book

By Scott Ross with Barbara Cornick
The 700 Club

CBN.com – Millions of fans know tobyMac as part of the hugely successful Christian rap/rock group DC Talk. Since going solo in 2001, Toby has had two top-selling records, Momentum and Grammy-nominated Welcome to Diverse City. Now Toby shares with 700 Club Producer Scott Ross about his latest effort, a book called Under God.

tobyMac: I have a platform. I take the stage and the spotlight comes down, and I can either talk about myself all night, or I can talk about things that matter. For once, I can step out of the spotlight and put the spotlight on some people that made a difference, people that have given us the freedoms we have today.

SCOTT ROSS (reporting): These people that made a difference are in Toby’s latest project, a book he co-wrote with former DC Talk member Michael Tait called Under God. Toby’s passions for a deeper relationship with God and racial reconciliation, especially among Christians, drive the stories in this book – stories that talk about Christians of all colors who made this country great.

(to Toby): When you read about some of these men and women who laid down their lives, what did it do to you?

tobyMac: It moved me to a new appreciation level for our country. It moved me to say, I’m an American. I’m proud of America. We’ve made mistakes, but we are one nation under God.

SCOTT ROSS: Are you saying it’s a Christian nation?

tobyMac: I’m saying it’s a Christian nation.

SCOTT ROSS: Look at some of the history. What about the Native American Indians. What about Black people? Is that Christian the way they were treated?

tobyMac: Of course not.

SCOTT ROSS: What do we do with that?

tobyMac: Well, we have to deal with it.

SCOTT ROSS: How do we deal with it?

tobyMac: We can’t just sweep it under the carpet. We have to, first of all, put it out in the forefront and make it up for conversation. That’s what we want this book to do. We want dialogue to come out of this book. We don’t want just warm fuzzies to come out of this book.

SCOTT ROSS: Where does repentance fit into this?

tobyMac: I think it’s what the book is all about. I think for us to begin to move forward, there has to be repentance for offenses that were made. The very end of the book, it’s like, actually my letter and Michael’s letter is as white Americans I believe we need to recognize the past. We need to seek forgiveness for it. And Michael’s like, 'As a Black American, I believe we need to forgive.' That’s repentance. But truly at the end of the day, some of these stories were meant to just strictly inspire, inspire people to say I’m proud of my nation.

SCOTT ROSS: This is more than a rhetorical question; this is biblical. All right?

tobyMac: I’m ready.

SCOTT ROSS: If the foundations are destroyed, what will the righteous do?

tobyMac: The righteous will hold fast to everything they believe in. And if it gets demolished, destroyed, whatever you say, I don’t think you can demolish or destroy it. I think if people could demolish or destroy the values in God’s Word, it would have been destroyed a long time ago. Many leaders have tried to destroy God’s Word, but believers find a way to meet. They find a way to believe. They find a way to place their faith in God, whatever the country is. They continue to believe.

SCOTT ROSS: Maybe that’s why you wrote this?

tobyMac: Maybe that’s why we wrote that.

 

Scott Ross welcomes your feedback.

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