About The Purple Zone

The Purple Zone is an initiative by The Rev. Dr. Leah Schade, Associate Professor of Preaching and Worship at Lexington Theological Seminary.  Drawing on data gathered from over 3000 clergy and 1000 congregants in the U.S. during this divisive time in our nation's history.  The goal is to help Christians and pastors think about how we can engage social issues during this deeply divided time using Scripture, theology, and ethical frameworks.

The Purple Zone is a resource for helping the church understand the challenges facing parish pastors and congregations, and establishing both scriptural and theological rationale and authorization for addressing contentious justice issues.

The Purple Zone aims to encourage and equip pastors and congregations to address the vital justice issues of our time by attending faithfully to God’s Word, listening intently to each other, navigating the risks, and attuning to the guidance of the Holy Spirit by prophetically “speaking truth in love” in ways that enable congregations to genuinely hear and respond to God's Word. Key to this endeavor is the use of a process called “deliberative dialogue” for finding hopeful avenues of action that engage both public theology and intentional civil discourse.