GOD IS NOT DEFEATED BY RACISM
What we discover with the cross is that God is not only not defeated by evil but is able to work through even the worst displays of human sinfulness to provide a redemptive possibility. The cross, which would have appeared to be the worst sin that humans could commit against the love of God, has become, instead, the very instrument of our redemption. This is the core truth of Redemptive Theology. As God made clear to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for (my) power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
In applying the truth of our faith to the issue of white racism, there are several aspects that need to be noted.
First, our faith assumes that God is omniscient and therefore knew from the beginning the nature of humanity and the effect of sin on God’s creative purpose. God knew the nature of the church, and the sin of racism is not a surprise to God who called the church into reality within this culture. God knew from the beginning that racism would be a part of the American culture and therefore a critical aspect of the community of faith within which God was working God’s saving work.[JaSQ2]
AN INVITATION TO TRUST A REDEMPTIVE GOD
Using the cross and the resurrection as our template for how God works in our world, congregations are invited to face the evil of the cross of racism, trusting that God is not defeated by such evil, and to search for ways that God can use even the reality of racism redemptively.
It is important to approach this search for the redemptive power of God with a combination of faith and humility. The Gospels recount that Jesus told his disciples three times that he would be crucified and would be raised from the dead. Despite Jesus having said this, it is clear that the disciples did not understand what this meant. They had to live the truth of the resurrection before they could understand it. We can believe that racism will be used redemptively, but we must live the truth of God’s redemptive power to discover its full meaning.
REPARATIONS
One aspect of God’s reconciling work may involve the issue of reparation. Desmond Tutu, in speaking about the struggle to overcome racism in South Africa, speaks of the challenge of reparations. To “put the past behind us” and act as if an act of confession clears the tables of justice and allows us to “get on with life” is to trivialize the pain of the past.
Part of our painful past is the fact that our constitution clearly states that our ancestors were fully aware of the economic value of slave labor in building a prosperous country. Historically, both Native Americans and African Americans paid a heavy price for the economic prosperity of this country. There is no way that one could calculate the value to African Americans in lives and wealth that racism has cost their ancestors. While there may be efforts to make symbolic economic reparation, as we have done with respect to Native Americans [JaSQ6] and to the Japanese Americans that we imprisoned during World War II, it would not be feasible to actually restore to a current generation that which has been taken from their ancestors. However, could God use our confession of sins redemptively in raising our awareness as to how to respond to the challenge posed by the new wave of immigration in our country?
PSYCHIC COST OF SLAVERY
There is also no clear way to calculate the psychic cost passed down through generations of African Americans with respect to the heritage of slavery that was imposed on them. The issue of the disproportionate incarceration of African-American males in our society might well be the result of a combination of the current prejudice of courts, police, and others and the historic psychic cost in which victims begin to accept the judgment of the dominant society.
If Black and White congregations were willing to explore that reality together, perhaps another form of reparation might be the focus of energy on the redemption of those who are in prison in our society. It would be a way that the Body of Christ could embody Jesus’ statement about his own ministry, “He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4:19)
EXCERPT FROM GOD’S TRANSFORMATION OF THE CHURCH THAT WILL BE PUBLISHED IN THE SPRING OF 2024.
[JaSQ1]Citation needed
[JaSQ2]This repeats page 18
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[JaSQ5]https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/jep.36.2.99
[JaSQ6]Not really – justice-seeking folks would say the reservations were ways to push out Native Americans to less desirable land and that we have repeatedly failed to uphold our treaties, etc. We have most definitely not made reparations… https://landback.org/
[JaSQ7]This is a huge jump in your thesis – if you want to go there, you need to elaborate. I also wouldn’t include it in the section about reparations. We owe reparations to restore opportunity to our Black neighbors. While our learnings could inform how we address immigration, that should not be the goal of reparations
[JaSQ8]Totally new font here? Are you using styles for your various headings?
[JQ9]Internalize rather than accept?
[JQ10]Citation needed
