It's one thing to acknowledge that racism is a stain or blemish on American Christianity. It's another to lament the fact that racism has been woven into the fabric of American Christianity.
The former requires amendment. The latter requires deconstruction and reconstruction.
The former requires amendment. The latter requires deconstruction and reconstruction.
It's one thing to acknowledge that Christian leaders of the past had racist "skeletons in their closet." It's another to take a cold splash of reality and see that they had fully-enfleshed racism in their living room, office, front porch, pulpit, lecture hall, etc.
It's one thing to say that sometimes the American church used greed & lust for power as sinful means toward good ends. It's another thing to side with God & say that the American church has consistently been bedfellows with empire and empire ethics over Christ's kingdom and call.
It's one thing to say, "Well, God works all things for our good and his glory" regarding heinous and systemic sins the church has committed or condoned. It's another thing to say, "We used God and his name as an excuse to do great evil. Have mercy on us, Lord."
It's one thing to say, "But, the church in America has a strong history of sending missionaries around the world!" It's another to recognize that missionary work from the west has been (and often continues to be) within the spectrum of colonization and Western cultural supremacy.
It's one thing to say you're for "diversity" and want to plant "multiethnic churches." It's another to make it your life goal to simply sit, listen, and learn from Christians of color in academic, church, literature, and real-life settings and reassess your cultural assumptions.
It's one thing to say that you're "not a patriarchal church" and are "against sexism." It's another to proactively deconstruct and reconstruct practices and systems that will ultimately enable women to employ their God-given gifts to serve men, women, and children in the church.
It's one thing to recognize that you need to "spit out the bones" of your theological heroes. It's another to recognize that Christians of color and marginalized communities have already been experts on that task of discernment for centuries because of your theological heroes.
It's one thing to say, "Well, we can't help but appease that donor because without the money, our church/organization will cease to exist." It's another to trust Jesus and say, "Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you."
It's one thing to say "I'm covenantal. I love covenants. Covenant theology, covenant community..." It's another to say, "The way I've spoken about millennials, Gen. Z, and beyond goes completely against the idea of covenant theology and the God of generations. Have mercy on me."
It's one thing to recognize that secularization is an external threat to the well-being of the church. It's another to realize that that threat pales in comparison to the generations of hypocrisy, complicity, and evil that have gone unchallenged within the church.
It's one thing to acknowledge these horrible truths about the church in America. It's another to wake up from your slumber, arise, and in the power of Jesus' resurrection, you make it your lifelong goal to make things right for God's glory and for the sake of others. Godspeed.
