Race--Black and White in America

Black v White Racism in the US is a problem that perplexes many in the church. It has been said that 11:00 on Sunday morning is the most segregated hour of the week. That is less true today than in the past, but is still a fact. I want to share a perspective on why churches have not integrated nearly to the extent that other venues of American life have. It is not "race" per se, but a cultural difference that lies at the heart of it. Racism in America, between white and black people is unique in that it relates to the two groups vastly different "stories." Every culture, ever "group"--racial, ethnic, national, even denominational, has a "story." That is there is a past, somtimes with a "defining moment" that determines how the group as a whole views themselves and how they view life in general. For Jewish people the defining story is the Exodus--and today, the Holocaust as well. For the people of New Orleans hurricaine Katrina will define them for decades, even centuries to come. White and Black Americans have, each, a "story" about their past that fuels their view of the world, of life and what it is about, and even affects the way we read the Bible. "White" America lives out of a past built on the idea of "starting over in the New World" of "conquering the vast wilderness" of "finding opportunity and prosperity in 'a new nation, dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.'" The "pilgrim fathers" came to this land to find a new life, in the new Eden, to provide a better life for themselves and their posterity. The struggle was hard, but they succeeded! Each generation has had new struggles to face, but generally each generation has been even more prosperous and happy than the previous one. This is a story of triumph, of victory, of overcoming (overcoming the wilderness, overcoming the British, overcoming the "wild Indians" and the hard prairie sod, etc. etc.etc.). It is a story of success built on success and of enjoying "the blessings of prosperity and freedom." The African-American "story" is different. Their ancestors did not come to this country seeking a new life. This is not about "opportunity and prosperity. They live out of a past built on the reality of being torn from their homes, and brought to a place not of their choosing. It is the story of struggle, of bare existence, of defeat and servitude. Whatever the realities of today, for both groups, these are the stories that determine what is "normal"--not for every member, obviously, but for these groups as a whole. To this day, every white kid in America grows up hearing the pioneer story as "his" story. He expects, in his own life, to conquer the wilderness, to triumph (perhaps to conquer just a quarter acre in suburbia, but there has to be some reason for all the lawn fertilizer sold in suburban garden centers!). He expects victory and success. He expects his life to be prosperous and satisfying. This is why so many white folks are malcontent if, by the time they are forty-five, they have not achieved certain career goals, or are not happy in their jobs, home life, etc. The "story" for them is supposed to be about success and victory. To this day, every black kid in America grows up hearing that same story of the "pilgrim fathers" and the "bold pioneers." But he hears it not as "his" story but as "their story." His story is very different He expects life to be about "struggle" and about "hardship," and about "survival," not about "conquest" and "victory" and "triumph." It is a story of opportunity cut short, of privilege denied, of dependency and servitude. (This is broadly overdrawn, and there are a million exceptions out there on both sides, I know, but these are general trends). This is why Sunday morning is the most "segregated hour." The Gospel in a black church often focuses on the suffering of the cross. In a white church it focuses on "Triumph o'er the grave." In a Black Church, we experience "the fellowship of his sufferings." In a white church--Jesus conquered death--in a black church--Jesus suffered for us. In a white church we are "more than conquerors" and "soldiers of the cross" but in a black church we are "fellow strugglers in the cause." All of us, when we sing Amazing Grace, there is a point where the key changes and we all get louder .In a white church this happens on the verse that says "When we've been there ten thousand years!" In a black church this happens on "Through many dangers toils and snares I have already come!" In a white church, they sing "Victory in Jesus!" In a black church it is "We Shall Overcome--Someday!" Again this is broadly overdrawn and a million exception exist, but the general trend/perspective here is accurate, I believe. It also points to one more reason we need to listen to one another and hear the gospel through the ears of "the other." Our vastly different cultural backgrounds cause us to hear the gospel differently in many respects--we need to hear the gospel TOGETHER, and learn from one another "the whole counsel of God." Each group brings its assumptions about the possibilities, opportunities, and challenges that the Christian life presents--and in these days when so much in America is changing, economically, politically and every way, American Christians, of all kinds, can profit from sharing their experiences, their way of reading the gospel, and their way of relating it to life.

Changes since WWII

Most of the material in this post is from an e-mail sent to me by Mr. Terry Brown of Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary: September 1st we marked the 70th anniversary of the commencement of World War II in Europe. Think of how the world has changed because of and since that great mid-century conflict. Imperialism, at least the overt, old style, fell out of fashion, as did premeditated, loose-tongued racism. The British, for example, lost much of thier empire in the two decades following (and had been losing it somewhat even before), and people changed in their outlook regarding colonies and "inferiors." \ Today, the descendants of former colonies are about to overrun the old British Isles, transforming them into solid outposts of Third World reverse-colonization and an Islamic redoubt. Many changes have taken place in the U.S.A. since the beginning of that war, some of it a result, at least indirectly, of the conflict. Those who died before or during WWII, would not recognize, nor readily accept, the post-WWII America of the burgeoning Civil Rights movement, integration, a Catholic President (Kennedy), or the modern scale of massive handouts and wasteful mismanagement of government, local, state, and federal. Many of us may recall hearing our grandparents lamenting the passing of the old order, never believing for a second in the equality of the races, except, possibly, a heavenly leveling. And mere mention of the sexual revolution or the homosexual agenda would have left them agape that such things could happen "right here in America!" Much, if not all, of the aforementioned, I am confident, would not have transpired, or, at best, would have suffered long delay, had it not been for the convulsions of World War II. Besides the cultural convulsions, consider the alterations and advancements in technology. Many people who lived through the early 20th Century and into the fifties/sixties loathed air conditioning and central heating, finding these aberrations in nature to be repulsive and undesirable, believing they caused colds and sinusitis. Also, we today have nuclear power, due to the war, and far, far better automobiles, aircraft, and innumerable other changes. We, in fact today take the tide of change and development as firm and established not novel or experimental. As for information, we have lived to witness a shattering event—the arrival of the Internet—akin to the dawn of printing and moveable type or the advent of engine-driven transport. Yes, as I realize, a substantial portion of the world’s changes and acquisitions would have come, regardless of the carnage and upheaval of World War II. However, it accelerated these, and created a culture in which research and technological inovation were much better funded, and carried out on a bigger scale than the pre-war world ever imagined. Before the war, "technological research" was Thomas Edison tinkering in his laboratory. After the War, it was corporate research labs, some created by the need to produce war related technologies, but afterwards dedicated to "new consumer products." But, we must not forget that WWII did precipitate momentous disturbances, and I am not in the least sure that we in the West could mount such a crusade again. Very, very sadly another causality of the second war was a loss of morality and courage. Having been sapped of the energy such things produce, we probably will not muster the effort to repel the next dark storm, whether it be radical Islam or some internal foe. Our foundations, despite the bright victory of the WWII Allies, crumbles and ebbs by the day, and I, for one, fear that to reverse our course lies beyond our ability, grasp, or even desire. Perhaps this last consequence of the postwar years, the loss of nerve and pluck, rests as the greatest change of all.

How movies have changed in less than 60 years

This link is to an outstanding article by Phil Boatwright. He chronicles changes in the moral content of movies since the 1950s. His article is factual, and thoughtful, without ranting or manipulation.