Pre-Event Reception for Playing the Game: Embodied Brilliance beyond the Moral Limits of Race in Sport

United’s Board of Trustees invites you to a reception prior to the public event for Dr. Gary Green’s new book, Playing the Game: Embodied Brilliance beyond the Moral Limits of Race in Sport. Green is United’s associate professor of Pastoral Theology and Social Transformation and director of Racial Intelligence Systems at United. 

Playing the Game: Embodied Brilliance beyond the Moral Limits of Race in Sport investigates racial and ethical intersections in cultural misinterpretations of US Black athleticism. It also shows how Black athletes expose white supremacy’s colonizing logic and the story it tells of a post-racial society.

The book applies womanist theological ethics and theologies of embodied spirituality to three exemplars—Marshawn Lynch, Steph Curry, and Deion Sanders. These men epitomize the play of racial politics surrounding Black male athlete depictions as “beast.” All three are celebrated public figures who illustrate, and then frustrate, cultural attempts to flatten the Black athlete’s embodied brilliance based on moral rationalities that reflect a racist history.

You are invited to join us for a private reception from 6:00 to 6:45 PM with a brief program at 6:15 PM on Wednesday, November 19, 2025. You will have the chance to meet the author, enjoy appetizers and refreshments, and hear from United’s president, Rev. Dr. Molly T. Marshall. 

The public 7:00 PM event includes a conversation with a group of panelists, including Minnesota Vikings fullback CJ Ham, who will help illuminate more themes in Dr. Green’s book. The author will field questions at the end of the event, and his books will be for sale and can be autographed.

Host Committee

Dr. Mary Farrell Bednarowski and Keith Bednarowski
Rev. Dr. Alika Galloway
David Graham
Frangena Johnson
Rev. Dr. Karen Smith Sellers
Rev. Stacey Smith
Robyn and Dr. Frank Sims
Sarah Carthens Watson

Registration