Robyn Henderson-Espinoza—who now goes by the name Roberto Che Espinoza—is a Consulting Faculty Member at Duke Divinity School, a seminary affiliated with the United Methodist Church. She identifies as a “non-binary, trans-queer, Latinx” and was named one of the “10 Faith Leaders to Watch in 2018” by the Center for American Progress. Espinoza describes her work as bringing heaven to earth by studying a “brown Palestinian Jew who was executed by the Roman Empire.” Much of her ministry intertwines biblical doctrine with left-wing social movements. Although an ordained minister, Espinoza appears to deny the divinity of Jesus Christ. In an article titled, “Decolonizing Jesus and his Teachings,” Espinoza offers a course about “decolonizing” Jesus and his “myths and teachings that have been institutionalized.” An accompanying meme of a “Colonizer Jesus” disputes that Jesus “died for your sins.”

In a separate interview, Espinoza further describes herself as a “public theologian” that seeks to “de-emphasize” biblical text to engage in “harm reduction” of communities marginalized by the Church. To accomplish this, Espinoza amplifies the voices of queer and transgender persons whom she alleges have been harmed by Scripture. An organization led by Espinoza—the “Activist Theology Program”—offers an “unraveling whiteness” course for “white bodies” who wish to dismantle their white supremacy. A portion of the class proceeds will be considered a “reparations tax” and paid towards a “BIPOC” organization. On her Twitter account, Espinoza alleges that all white Americans benefit from white supremacy and even claims that “whiteness” isn’t a race.

I'm finding that a lot of white folks are quick to say racism but can't bring themselves to talk about or identify with the ways in which white supremacy is at play and their benefitting from it. https://t.co/CWJbsDJnQw
— Dr. Roberto Che Espinoza ✊🏽 (@irobyn) July 1, 2020

True; it isn't a race, but whiteness embodies a pernicious logic of dominance that accelerates values & practices that fortify hegemonic systems. I'm just suggesting that our anti-racism education be framed in a way that acknowledges what whiteness is all about.
— Dr. Roberto Che Espinoza ✊🏽 (@irobyn) February 7, 2021

Espinoza, who is half-Latino, writes that she must work to undo her white supremacy every day.

As a Transqueer Latinx, public theologian, & scholar, I am spending time w @xroadsorg. Even though I identify as a person of color, I am conscripted into the ideology of white body supremacy & participate in technologies of racism. I have to undo these tentacles every day!
— Dr. Roberto Che Espinoza ✊🏽 (@irobyn) February 6, 2021

Espinoza opposes what she describes as “supremacy culture” within the Christian Church. During a lecture at Boston University, she defined this as a Church tethered to “race, economics, and the military war machine.” Espinoza further claims that a lack of “life-affirming systems” by Christians leads to a culture of “white supremacy and capitalism and violence.” “...we don’t know how to be responsible agents in the world, which is why we get evangelical theology where a White man can have a bad day and go kill a handful of people.” In a separate, self-promotional video, she further claims the “religion” of the United States is white nationalism. Espinoza describes her own beliefs as “activist theology,” or the unification of progressive movements with biblical theologies. Elsewhere, Espinoza defines activist theology as an offshoot of “liberation theology,” which is the ideological godchild of Marxism. The theory grew out of left-leaning Churches and social movements in the 1960s. Adherents promote the “liberation” of oppressed groups from economic or social oppression, namely that of systemic racism. During her speech at a “Theology Beer Camp,” Espinoza further defined activist theology as connecting “God-Talk” to the world’s contexts of “race, class, gender, sexuality, sex, and ability.” She calls on those in attendance to take a critical stance to fight “white supremacy and neo-fascism” in the Church. Espinoza deemphasizes God and religious texts in favor of progressive actions and self-affirmation throughout her work. “I don’t care what you believe,” she stated in the same speech, “I care about how you live your life. I care about your actions in the world.” In a separate article for her Substack, Espinoza declares that she has “no use for god” and calls on her readers to define their meaning and build the world they want to see: “...but what if Nietzsche was right that God is dead?....What if making meaning is the religion of today? What if that is how we build a new world?” The Professor Watchlist Team has reached out to Espinoza for comment. This profile will be updated accordingly.

Published - December 8th, 2022.