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Timothy Isaiah Cho

17 Apr, 9 tweets, 2 min read

When you do not have a gun, you are forced to find ways to creatively respond to threats (both perceived and real). When guns are seen as the easiest option, then there is no room for de-escalation, negotiation, reasoning, and other forms of resolution. The ethics become

"Shoot or be shot," "Own a gun or be a sitting duck," and "By whatever means necessary to protect [family, spouse, possessions, etc.]."

Choosing to not own and bear a gun may result in injury or worse. Yet, at the same time, the psychological trauma caused by taking

someone else's life (whether it is justified or not) takes a heavy and often life-long toll on one's emotional well-being.

As a Christian, this becomes especially complex of an issue because while the Bible as a whole does offer justification for killing in self-defense, Jesus

appears to turn that on its head as He commands an ethic of "turning the other cheek" and a form of non-violence that disrupts the lex talionis principle. Christ-followers are called to go "the extra mile" rather than reach for the immediate solution (e.g. Peter

cutting off the ear of one of the men who came to arrest Jesus). Even the fact of offering justification for killing in self-defense does not mean that the Bible offers it as a picture of the "good life" for humans. Jesus' ethic appears to provide a way to avoid the

harm done to one's self by taking another person's life, justified or not.

Christians need to ask themselves if they are helping shape a society that creates the potential for thriving or the downward spiral of fear. As is, the U.S. has a view of guns that is shaped more

by fear rather than the thriving of others. When fear and violence are made to be the necessary means to a feeling of safety and security, it is a clear indicator that fear has become an idol that requires the shedding of blood.

Christians especially should be the first ones

who can offer a reimagined society that is orbited around thriving and hope rather than fear. When the 2nd Amendment becomes the first tool a Christian pulls out of their toolbox rather than the 2nd greatest commandment, that's a clear sign of compromise and syncretism.

Christian witness is most powerful and prophetic *because* it offers an ethic that is not of this world. We cannot simply walk along the same well-worn paths of the world; we must offer something very different yet life-giving.

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More from @tisaiahcho

Timothy Isaiah Cho

@tisaiahcho

15 Apr

In 2010, I joined the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, excited that I had found a refuge from the crazy world of Evangelicalism. In 2017, I was seeking for refuge from the OPC and the spiritual abuse I experienced there.

timothyisaiahcho.medium.com/spiritual-abus…

There had been red flags along the way that I didn’t think twice about until after all of the spiritual abuse happened. But what really brought everything out to the light was in 2017 when my family became members of Providence OPC in Temecula, California.

At the time, the church was without a pastor. The former pastor, Jesse Pirschel, had taken a call elsewhere, and for over a year, the church had been on the search for a new pastor. Several difficult events had transpired before we joined the church that prevented the church from

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Timothy Isaiah Cho

@tisaiahcho

1 Apr

I purchased a copy of a book on the history of Christianity in Korea to help educate myself about my heritage. I have believers in my family going back several generations, so I'm only several steps removed from the 1907 Pyongyang Revival.

In the meantime, I'm doing some

reading on important figures in Korean Christianity, and I came across 윤치호 (Yun Chi-Ho), who was an influential Korean Methodist. He spent some time at Vanderbilt University and Emery University in the U.S. studying English and theology. During this time, he

specifically noted his frustrations with racism and White supremacy that he experienced and witnessed on a routine basis as an international student. He specifically found a fundamental contradiction between a Christian view of equalizing grace and the practice of White supremacy

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Timothy Isaiah Cho

@tisaiahcho

31 Mar

Victims of spiritual abuse and racism are often told to "trust the process" of church accountability to deal with the perpetrators.

Many go through years of painstaking, drawn out, and retraumatizing formalities and procedural steps only to end up with no justice.

Not only that, but even worse, on this long road, they have lost support from friends and church family. They have had their names dragged through the mud as a "troublemaker" and "divisive." They have had to use their own time and money to get the healing they need.

The perpetrators, however, have often been able to continue in their positions uninterrupted. They have received more support and assistance. Many of them likely are still engaging in spiritual abuse and racism while "the process" is underway. Then, by the time "the

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Timothy Isaiah Cho

@tisaiahcho

31 Mar

Anti-Asian racism is found within other communities of color, & that needs to be addressed. The attacks on Asian Americans perpetrated by other people of color has to make us stop and think about the systemic and ideological reasons why people of Asian descent are being targeted.

There are instances where White supremacy and White adjacency have impacted the way other communities of color view Asian Americans. There are also instances where racial resentment between Asian Americans and other communities of color have influenced the current violence.

There are also exacerbating factors, such as historic media portrayals of Asian Americans and rhetoric surrounding Asian American communities. Trumpist rhetoric falls within an entire symphony of anti-Asian rhetoric, and it can't easily explain the rise in violence.

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Timothy Isaiah Cho

@tisaiahcho

29 Mar

Reformed and Evangelical Christians are very good at saying the equivalent of "go in peace, keep warm, and be well fed." (James 2:16).

It looks like *only* saying the following with no tangible actions to address physical suffering:

"I'll pray for you," "God will provide,"

"God works all things for good," "Maybe God closed a door..."

It looks like suggesting that God will meet someone's poverty through something miraculous (e.g. finding a check in the mail) but not through the hands and feet of the ordinary (i.e. Christians sharing).

It looks like saying you "understand" someone's experience of trauma, abuse, and/or racism in your shared circles while doing nothing to address it.

It looks like saying you want to just "focus on the gospel" and "not get distracted by social/political issues."

Read 6 tweets

Timothy Isaiah Cho

@tisaiahcho

23 Mar

@WhiteHorseInn

Storytime. Pull up a🪑.

In 2017, I was working for @WhiteHorseInn as one of the leaders of the organization. At the time, I was optimistic that the organization was making strides toward racial justice.

After the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, I waited

@Core_Christ

to see what our editorial team at @Core_Christ and @WhiteHorseInn would do to respond. The organization had written on topics related to racism and social justice before, so it was well within the orbit of the organization to respond to this event.

After days of silence, I realized that no one else on the leadership was going to initiate a response. So, I decided to write a piece titled "Is Racism a Gospel Issue or a Social Issue?" The article was very barebones. It was simply looking at passages in the Bible that show

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