Have you thought about race and racism in terms of your Christian faith?
Hi, I’m Rex Rogers and this is episode #163 of Discerning What Is Best, a podcast applying unchanging biblical principles in a rapidly changing world, and a Christian worldview to current issues and everyday life.
The tragic death of George Floyd, May 25, 2020, in the hands of a police officer and resulting nonstop social unrest plaguing American cities exacerbated an already fraught milieu in which it is almost impossible to conduct a deliberative conversation about race or racism. Some four years later, the situation has not appreciably improved.
With what seemed like a coup removing President Biden from the ticket, Vice President Kamala Harris became the presumptive Democrat Party nominee for President of the United States, 2024. She is of mixed-race heritage—and East Indian mother and a Jamaican father—something she has referenced periodically throughout her career.
Recently, Republican candidate former president Donald J. Trump attended the National Black Journalists conference. At the conference, ABC’s Rachel Scott asked Trump about his comments regarding Ms. Harris and other Black politicians and journalists. After a bit of back and forth on whether the question was nasty, Trump eventually said, “She was always of Indian heritage…I didn’t know she was black until a number of years ago when she happened to turn black.”
You no doubt heard or read some of the meltdown online or in mainstream media. Accusations and counteraccusations have been intense. So, race is now a campaign issue.
This podcast is not about the politics of Harris or Trump, nor a defense of either candidate’s positions. Rather, I want to suggest that this is a moment for us all to apply our Christian worldview to life and culture.
I cannot defend partisan or ideological talking points as the answer to all our questions or problems. I cannot defend party or ideological leaders as the inerrant source of answers to all our questions or problems. Reason is, they will always fail us.
So, I am back to my Christian worldview, i.e. my understanding of biblical theology and the philosophy of life God commends and commands. Perhaps I may misinterpret, or I may still be learning, or I see through a glass darkly and always will because I am not omniscient, but I can trust the Sovereign God of the Bible and His Word, and I can labor to apply the Word as we are commissioned to do in the Cultural Mandate (Genesis 1:28).
And besides, if you or I are going to discuss race or offshoots like systemic racism or White supremacy or White fragility or racial stereotypes or critical race theory or Black Lives Matter the organization vs Black lives matter the slogan or civil rights or defacto vs dejure segregation, or even justice and liberty for all…wouldn’t our perspective be more trustworthy if we based it upon an avowedly Christian worldview, rather than mere partisanship or ideology?
Where does our Christian worldview lead us in this matter or race or racism?
First, God created every human being “in his image,” and as such each person is temporally and eternally significant, possesses dignity, and is the highest order of creation (Genesis 1:26-27).
Second, all human beings, whatever their gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, or any other demographic, are who they are because the Sovereign God created them for his purposes: “From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands” (Acts 17:26).
Now, let’s think for a moment about how black, brown, red, yellow, and white people are alike:
- We are all created by God in His image. No person who has ever lived, whatever their race, is anything but a human being created by God in His image.
- All nations from one man, Adam. We are all human beings, actually, one race, the human race, all descendent from the first couple in the Garden of Eden.
- The times of our lives, the place where we live, and our specific demographics are all appointed by God.
- We are all uniquely gifted, individually significant with ultimate value, no matter our life’s circumstances, family bank account, education achieved, or our gender, nationality, race, or ethnicity.
- All human beings of all races are endowed with reason and moral responsibility, thus freedom and accountability.
- We are all mandated by God to develop culture, meaning work and invest ourselves in honoring God and human flourishing.
- Because of what’s called the Fall in the Garden of Eden, we all possess fallen, deceitful, sinful, depraved hearts.
- Consequently, every human being on earth needs to experience salvation by grace through faith in Christ.
- Every human being of every race and ethnicity is blessed by fulfilling God’s purposes via faith, family, fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace), free enterprise.
- In heaven someday, all races, ethnicities will be represented because heaven in one sense will be the most diverse community ever.
- No individual is reducible to just his or her race, for while part of the beauty of Creation, this characteristic is not the sum of existence. While demographics are important, they are not the ultimate definition of a human beings’ character or value:
Think about this: God loves every human being, and we are to love our neighbors, so racism has no place in God’s design.
But racism exists. It will always exit, because it lies in the deceitful, sinful heart of all human beings. Racism is not just a “white problem.” All people, whatever their race, can be or may have been guilty of racism at some time. Racism will always be with us. But this does not mean we should ignore it, much less advance or excuse it. We work to remove and eliminate it because we are to “love our neighbor as ourselves.”
Consequently, I see no reason why, realizing that many black Americans have struggled or suffered the effects of racism, that the American people should not discuss this problem and take reasonable actions to change the social system.
To do this is simply caring for our fellow human beings even as we recognize that someday we will likely need them to care for us.
So, while these biblical principles do not straightforwardly tell us, for example, what we should conclude about tense debates about police brutality or defunding the police, or about the morality or practicality of reparations these biblical principles should guide our attitudes as we conduct such discussions.
Biblical principles do not state outright whether Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion or DEI, is good or bad as such, but biblical principles should guide our thinking about all human beings, about work, merit, access or fairness, justice, right and wrong.
Biblical principles make it clear that race as we now know it is not ipso facto a bad thing, not some human anomaly, but a difference in human characteristics God allowed to develop for our blessing and benefit.
Scripture says this about the Church or Body of Christ: “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).
So, we can say that race is part of the variety, indeed the beauty, of God’s creation. Race is a gift of God.
We can say that racism is sin, no matter who expresses it. What God meant for good, sinful mankind has twisted for evil. Substituting one racism for another and re-segregating America is not the answer. Loving our neighbor is the answer.
When I evaluate the presidential candidates, I make my selection that has nothing to do with the color of their skin. I’d think it wiser to think about what they believe, what policies they support, whether I believe these policies are good for me and all Americans, including our grandchildren’s future.
Well, we’ll see you again soon. This podcast is about Discerning What Is Best. If you find this thought-provoking and helpful, follow us on your favorite podcast platform. Download an episode for your friends. For more Christian commentary, check my website, r-e-x-m as in Martin, that’s rexmrogers.com.
And remember, it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm.
© Rex M. Rogers – All Rights Reserved, 2024
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