 hese
verses from God’s word tell us that race and ethnicity
are a permanent reality (Note: for brevity’s sake,
I won’t distinguish race, from ethnicity and culture.
Yall get the point right). Although the social construct
of race that man has devised to form an oppressive system is
not what God intended when he separated humanity in Genesis
11:9, He still will bring glory to Himself in spite of us. As
God’s change agents in the earth, are we as Christians
hindering His work due to cultural incompetence, racial ignorance
and an often socially irrelevant gospel?
Recently I watched a movie called Unshackled based
on a true story that chronicled the integration of a Georgia
prison in the 1950s. It was quite interesting to see the racial
dynamics and how the friendship of the two main characters;
one black, one white, evolved from antagonistic protagonists,
to a life changing, enduring relationship. It’s rare
that films capture true friendships involving men that are
not rooted in sports, chasing women and getting high. One
of the lines of dialogue that stood out to me happened when
the two lead characters were forced to “pilot”
the integration by becoming cellmates, an unlikely pairing
given their beef in the film up to this point. It went like
this:
 Black
Guy – “You hate me don’t you?”
White guy - “Yes!”
Black guy – “Why?”
White guy – “I could give
you 50 reasons”
Black guy – “Name one”
White guy – (Pausing) “Because
you’re black”
Black guy – “You hate me
because of the color of my skin, I hate you because you’d
be an (expletive here) in any color”
To this the white guy looks somewhat dumbfounded and thus
begins the personal reflection that both men undergo to examine
why they disliked each other in the first place. The movie
ends after both men get out of prison and then goes to a real
life clip of the white guy addressing an audience of students
telling them about making right decisions and true friendship
at which point he acknowledges his black friend for saving
his life and teaching him about love.
After the film I found myself reflecting on the body of Christ
and it’s many issues that often involve race: the very
public beef among two big name televangelists that I’ll
leave unnamed, the ethnicity of Jesus for some in Mel Gibson’s
recent movie, the Promise Keepers Movement’s attempt
at racial reconciliation and the subsequent reactions to it
in both the black and white communities, and more trivially
(but problematic in its inference) the recent pseudo-question
on our message board as to whether The Yuinon was a “black
site”. I could go on, but most notably is still something
to which most of us can relate, the 11:00 AM Sunday
morning hour, said to be the most segregated hour in the country,
not just Christendom!
Sometimes it can be overwhelming and discouraging when one
ponders all of these things and others not mentioned. They
can hinder a person’s growth or even the gospel, as
the name of God is often blasphemed among the gentiles (unbelievers)
because of us.
As it is written God’s
name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you (Rom.
2:24 NIV)
But let’s focus on the micro, not the macro and control
what we can, what happens in our own lives. After all, our
personal growth is the precursor for healthy corporate bodies
of believers and authentic fellowship. With that said, here
is my question for you? How many genuine friendships do you
have with people of another race/ethnicity? None? One? A few?
Only you truly know and only you know if these relationships
are truly genuine. I admit my list is too short. Do you avoid
talking about race; the elephant in America’s front
yard that many pretend isn’t there? Do you avoid
difficult conversations for fear of discomfort? Do
you assume you know the answers to various questions? Are
you a “different” person in conduct and language
based on whom you’re with? Are you embarrassed by what
you don’t know and afraid to look ignorant? These are
just a few questions I suggest pondering (and I’d like
to hear feedback from you all about your authentic multi-racial
relationships, or lack thereof and how they grew and continue
to grow).
– Love the Lord your God with
all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.
– ( Deuteronomy 6:5 NIV )
Let me share an example from my own life. A white friend
of mine with whom I’d been working on a project for
while had an aggravating knack for being what I’d termed
paternalistic, meaning fatherly. Now as a grown man of African
descent who has gone through some deliverance regarding bitterness
and anger based on our sojourn as a people here in the Americas,
the last thing I wanted or needed was a (younger) white guy
always second guessing me, and over-explaining things I already
knew. For a while I joked about it and responded with sarcasm,
but it was nagging at me internally. Finally when we had a
conversation about it, I learned that I had misconstrued some
things. This brother in Christ was just naturally what people
call “anal”, overly detailed, long-winded and
repetitive. This personality trait, is not germane to one
group of people. I had made it to something altogether different.
He reassured me that he had not intentionally devalued my
input and that he wasn’t suffering from a “superiority
complex.” We pressed forward with clear consciouses,
nipping any buds that we may have ignored that could’ve
grown into roots of bitterness and kept our friendship at
a “project only” and superficial level.
I’m glad to say that today I count this brother as a
friend with whom I can freely talk, share prayer requests
and not feel like he’s listening out of “politeness”
instead of sincerity.
Now some of you might say, good and well, a sign of maturation,
fruit for two born again Christians. After all, we are new
creatures and our minds should be renewed from the
worldly mold which includes racism, (including that of the
internal sort) pre-judging others, stereotypes, and better
or lesser-than mentalities.
There is neither Jew nor
Greek, slave nor free, male nor free, for you are all one
in Christ Jesus – Galatians 3:28 (NIV)
Do not conform any longer
to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing
of your mind… - Romans 12:2 (NIV)
What’s troublesome saints is when we think
we’ve “matured” but fail to go through a
biblical process of healing, understanding race, identity,
purpose and naively say like Rodney King, “why can’t
we just all get along” and be the happy in the “melting
pot” of America.
Let me say here, lest the enemy enters and tries to get a
toehold here, I am not a “non-patriot” and I do
believe America is a great country, but in the melting pot
analogy, people get burned. I’ve heard it said we should
say America is like a tossed salad where different people
and cultures can maintain their distinct flavors and contribute
to the overall goodness of the salad. But too often,
our differences are still mistaken for lesser or better. Our
failure as Christians to address these issues and understand
how we’re socialized secularly results in us bringing
such ignorance into the body of Christ where we “spiritualize”
them with the above mentioned naiveté and avoid relevant
but difficult social conversations (our silence is
often a barrier to those we want to see won for Christ) about
things like slavery, power, oppression, reparations, reconciliation,
and others.
Recently here in Michigan during an annual summit, there
was a news special taped called Flashpoint where two news
anchors, one white and one black decided to have a panel discussion
about race involving various metro Detroit leaders. They realized
that as they convened this summit with leaders ranging from
the governor to the mayor, they could no longer ignore the
elephant in the room, race, and how it shapes the policies
and economics of Detroit. For those unaware Detroit is the
second most segregated city in the country (can’t get
into those reasons here). This panel discussion was an outgrowth
of the friendship of these two news anchors where they
had purposed that they would not allow race to hinder
their growth as friends and their understanding of each other
and the issues important to both of them. The discussion,
by the admission of all involved was very enriching. One of
the panelists, a well-known businessman with an advanced degree
acknowledged his embarrassment at not knowing what the Middle
Passage was, never heard of it, yet he was contributing to
a discussion dealing with issues that involve race where it
came up as a topic.
The point of me sharing this was not to “harp on the
past” (a frequent accusation levied by some who fail
to understand how the past informs our present) or advocate
a particular point of view as it relates to these issues,
but rather to highlight how we socially handicap ourselves
as believers and suffer for it at the most inopportune times.
As Christians, in an increasingly anti-Christian world, this
is unacceptable. Ignorance is not a tool. This man admitted
he needed some prior knowledge in his toolbox to speak with
some credibility to an issue that was important at a particular
point in time. He found his toolbox empty. As believers, iron
is supposed to sharpen iron, and information re-processed
biblically is one of the tools we must use. We can’t
show up on the mission field with pat, one sentence answers
or the four spiritual laws to people with well developed secular
theologies, or long thought about, complex, valid questions
about spiritual things. God gave us a mind and informed us
that the best use of it is for His glory. This includes defending
the faith and “rightly dividing His word” and
applying it to divisive social issues with an understanding
that even still all will not be won.
Preach the word; be prepared
in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and encourage-with
great patience and careful instruction – 2 Timothy 4:2
(NIV)
I believe that a willingness to engage these topics not just
from a sociological point of view, but a spiritual one is
why many are attracted to other religions that at least attempt
to “connect the dots” and make their beliefs socially
relevant, namely for African American men, Farrakhan and the
Nation of Islam. Satan is clever, he knows people
want to have what they believe permeate every area of their
lives, so for many the one-dimensional or compartmental Christianity
they see many believers practicing is unattractive.
The church can and has to do much better in the equipping
of its saints to intelligently navigate complex socio-cultural
issues but through a bibliocentric lens. Only then can we
have true unity devoid of superficiality, and be the witnesses
God would have us be as a multiethnic body of believers that
truly manifests Christ’s prayer in John 17:11.
Part of the testimony of God’s greatness is and will
be is how His glorious gospel endured through time from the
propagation of the earth through Noah’s three sons,
from whom came many ethnicities and how it transcended cultural,
barriers to bring those who would believe in His sovereignty
and His intentional creation of them, their skin color, and
hair texture into right relationship with Himself through
His son in order that they might spend eternity discovering
the wonders of who He is and how there is so much more where
their diverse beauty comes from.
-vessel
07.23.04
-Some resources for further reading on some of the topics
touched upon in this article are:
- Divided by Faith: Evangelical
Religion and The Problem of Race in America –
Michael Emerson
- United by Faith: The Multiracial
Congregation as an Answer to the Problem of Race –
Curtis Paul Deyoung
- Let’s Get to Know Each
Other: Dr. Tony Evans
- Defending Black Faith: Answers
to Tough Questions About African American Christianity
– Craig Keener, Glen Usry
- Black Man’s Religion:
Can Christianity be Afrocentric – Craig Keener,
Glen Usry
|
|
