At a time when Christianity is invoked to defend xenophobia and genocides, Andrew Murray-Desmond Tutu Prize winner Siya Khumalo asks a provocative question: what if saying “no” to the God sold by religion is an act of faith?

As a gay black activist who understands that abandoning Christianity to conservatives is conceding ideological ground to people who will use it, Khumalo analyses the ways in which faith, once used to defend apartheid, is distorted to advance today’s abuses of power. He understands that the narrative of a crucified God belongs to the marginalised, not the powerful; moreover, that the Bible can be contextualised and read from the perspective of the outcast rather than the perspectives of institutions, empires and technology companies. Doing so disarms the favoured weapon of dictatorial powers and their voters, re-engineering it into a tool for those who value freedom.