The refrain “I can’t breathe” is a rallying cry for change that has reignited movements for racial justice in the United States. But for the Rev. Angela N. Parker, the refrain also references her scholarly work on authority and biblical texts.

Parker, a womanist New Testament scholar at Mercer University’s McAfee School of Theology, is the author of If God Still Breathes, Why Can’t I? Black Lives Matter and Biblical Authority (Eerdmans). In her book, Parker details how an authoritarian understanding of the Bible has been used to oppress and control.

Parker argues that the Bible is authoritative—not authoritarian. “I think about authority as conversations with,” she says. “We get authority wrong in the way we use it, and especially in the way people who consider themselves to be the power brokers use it.”

Parker says that while many think of the Bible as the final word—a conversation ender—the Bible is more accurately a conversation starter. When we leave our personal voice and experiences out of biblical interpretation, she argues, we miss out on an important opportunity for God to breathe in and through us. Wrestling with scripture, she says, is an ongoing and important process for everyone.

“A lot of us are holding our breaths through life,” Parker says. “I don’t want to be that type of person.”