Racism—Surely Not I, Lord?
“No racism in Mexico”
While living in Mexico, I was frequently asked about prejudice in the United States. People see news reports and get the impression that this country is on the verge of race wars. When I would ask if there is prejudice or discrimination in Mexico, the answer was always pretty clear that they don't have to worry about that since everyone is Mexican.
Personally, that worked pretty well for my family and me. As white “gringos” we were mostly treated with great respect as individuals even as many Mexican intellectuals would berate our country's “imperialistic” inclinations. Probably they assumed we had money (not knowing about mission boards), education, and some degree of power. That assumption made most people treat us with respect even when they didn't know us.
At the same time, I was repeatedly reminded of the darker side of that equation. If “white” American or European-looking people are given some favor, what about the darker indigenous people? The darker the skin, the more they were assumed to be uneducated, poor, ignorant, backward, and powerless—and initially, that is how they would be treated.
It was nice to hear there wasn't any racism in Mexico. But I could see it! I experienced its positive and negative effects. The curious thing is that Mexicans were not aware of it. (Of course, people rarely complain about the kind of discrimination that favors them.)
Positive discrimination doesn't generally get noticed; we just think we deserve that kind of treatment.
“Surely not I, Lord?”
Is it possible that the American church is still in bondage to the same racism and prejudices as the culture around it? Is it possible that we too hold attitudes that ultimately oppress others for whom Christ has died? The disciples at the Last Supper gathered around Jesus when he let them know that one of them would betray him. Each of them exclaimed, “Surely not I, Lord?” But it was a question, and rightly so. When do we really know of what we are capable, for good or for ill? Our perceptions and motives are a tangle of obvious and subtle strands that lead from forgotten core experiences of our individual and collective past.
We usually respond to the suggestion that we might still be prejudiced in our hearts, attitudes, or actions and exclaim with the disciples, “Surely not I, Lord?” But, understandably, we're not quite sure.
Evangelizing to make people like us
Missiologists have long understood the strong pull of culture on the work of the missionary. Dr. Paul Hiebert, an authority in missions and anthropology, describes how cross-cultural ministry is an interchange not between two, but at least three cultures. Generally we think of the stress between the home culture and the “target” culture. But there also exists a culture that belongs to the Kingdom of God. The problem is not that the missionary forgets about the Kingdom of God. In fact, the missionary is wholeheartedly committed to the Kingdom of God. The problem is that the missionary often forgets the difference between the home culture and the Kingdom of God. This ends up being the same thing as forgetting about the Kingdom of God, because then the missionary becomes a representative of what he or she knows best–the home culture.
We all tend to generalize our successes and our failures. Did you find success by hard work and punctuality? That must be the way to success. Did you find freedom in Christ by listening to a televangelist? That must be the best way to evangelize. Have you had experiences of overwhelming intimacy with God in silent meetings for worship? Silent worship is probably the best way to worship God. But as you can see, other people have different experiences and would come to different conclusions.
In a different culture, where experiences and the interpretation of those experiences are categorically different from our own, we must expect different preferences, values, attitudes, ways of doing things, and measures for success and failure. We may respect those differences, but, at least initially, we probably won't like them. They will at least be unfamiliar and uncomfortable, and much of the time we will just think they are wrong.
In evangelism, we should not attempt to make people be just like us. The purpose of evangelism is to call people to Christ, to his life and way of living it. Of course we know intellectually that white American society does not perfectly reflect the Kingdom of God, but something deep within tells us it is the “next best thing” to heaven, and “if only other cultures would imitate us then….” That's just what Jesus was getting at when he talked about logs and specks in people's eyes. That is the very source of prejudice, discrimination, and racism.
Our doors are open to everyone!
We assume that people are like “us”–or should be. People ought to manage their time like I do, buy things like I do, clean their homes like I do, and even throw things away like I do.
It is important to clarify that I am not talking about moral relativism. Moral relativism does not recognize any absolute good or bad and is becoming a primary characteristic of the secular culture around us that is infiltrating the mindset of American churches. Moral relativism is a bankrupt philosophy that, through sleight of hand, insists on what it denies. It supports an absolute value of relativism while denying the existence of absolute values. Christ simply says, “I am the way….”
But there is another sense in which what really is good in one way is really bad at the same time.
Biblically, this can be seen in the gospel presentation of the Pharisees. Jesus himself acknowledged many of the good things the Pharisees did even as he criticized their spirit of self-centeredness. Their tithing was good, but in their meticulous tithing they neglected key matters of “justice, mercy, and faithfulness” (Matthew 23:23). Their passion to win converts was impressive, but to what end (Matthew 23:15)? Their words were good, and Jesus counseled doing what they said, but their actions belied a heart problem that converted those good words into a spreading poison.
Most of us realize that our spiritual strength also indicates our area of greatest weakness. In order to excel in a particular area, a person will inevitably be flawed in another. The accountant is not likely to make a good family counselor; the evangelist is not often an encourager; the artist may not be the best treasurer.
On a national scale, take for example our American value for the efficient use of time (though it could easily be argued that with our cultural affinity for entertainment, the value of time usage may not be as much of a core value as it seems). In any case, most Americans would say that time should be “used” wisely and that it is a resource to be managed.
How does that value relate to racism? It is difficult for Americans to see that our value for the use of time (a good thing) is at the same time a bad thing as it competes with other values. In Mexico, the value of relationships trumps the value of time management, and people will spend extended periods of time with others in spite of impending or already-past appointments. To the American, that's scandalous. To the Mexican, it's scandalous and offensive to abandon a friend (or end a time of worship) because the clock indicates a certain hour.
“Moving on”
As we look at the source of racism in our cultural values, we soon realize we can never be fully free of prejudice. We must judge things based on our knowledge and experience and will inevitably fall into false judgments set up for us by the culture around us.
But it is the Christian who must respond to Jesus' great commission to go out to the world to be Christ's witness and preach the good news. We are the ones responsible for crossing cultural barriers, and not the non-Christians who are described as “lost,” “blinded,” and “like sheep without a shepherd.”
Missionaries are trained to do this, yet culture shock is a common reaction as the individual missionary's prejudices and values are challenged. The same thing happens when the experienced missionary returns to the home culture and finds that the home culture suddenly seems foreign, decadent, materialistic, and arrogant compared to the second culture in the light of the Kingdom of God. That too is an exaggeration and a new prejudice that the missionary will get over. The reality is that all human cultures are fallen in differing ways and degrees.
Today we no longer have the luxury of letting missionaries do the task of cross-cultural ministry. Other cultural groups fill our communities, and church people are in contact with them every day. We are Jesus' witnesses and ambassadors whether we like it or not. It is not enough that “our doors are open to everyone” when most everyone else will not be comfortable or motivated to enter those doors, and when Christ calls us to go out. Consider how many times you have worshiped in another cultural church in your community (African American, Hih3ic, or Chinese). Even though their doors are open to you, would you make that your family's church home? And you are already a Christian!
Overcoming prejudices means taking positive steps forward—helping to sponsor a mission church, inviting a H3ish-speaking pastor to minister in your church facilities, encouraging public service projects for language, mentoring or providing social services, or intentionally making a friend from another culture. These kinds of things can shatter our own prejudices and help us to see people not for the things they do wrong, but for the value each one has in the loving eyes of God.
After all, if we consistently judge our own family, friends, and community for all the wrong they do, we probably will not be well-accepted by them either! Crossing cultural barriers means putting our judgments on hold so we can recognize the beauty of God's work in all cultures and individuals. Then we will be able as a friend to share the good news that has come for all peoples—a savior, even Christ, our Lord.
