The Church and Race Relations

One of the many challenges that the Christian Church has been faced with in a very intensive way in recent times is that of race relations.  This is not to say that this has not been an issue in the past. Any good student of both secular and Church history knows that this issue is nothing new.  As a matter of fact, the New Testament itself makes reference to issues of discrimination based on ethnicity and race.  The one situation is where the Greek members of the first century Church lodged a complaint that their widows were not being as well taken care of and provided for as were the Jewish members of the Church.  The other situation was where God gave Peter ( a Jew turned Christian) a vision of unclean meats descending from heaven and commanding him to eat them.  After his initial resistance in which he stated that he did not eat anything unclean, God told him not to classify anything as unclean that God had cleansed.  This vision was given to Peter in preparation for his encounter with Cornelius, a Gentile affiliated with the Roman Army.  The Apostle Paul on one occasion had to call Peter to task for playing both sides of the fence with Jews and Gentiles, associating with one group while disassociating from the other, at different times. 

So we ask, then, how can the Church confront a social ill which exists within its very ranks?  How can the Church address the issue of societal racism, when racism exists within the very life of the Church itself?  How can the Church point to the issues of societal racism, when throughout its very own history, the Church has functioned as a racist institution?

The issues that have brought racism to the surface again in recent times have been that of the relationship between the African American and Latino communities on the one hand, and law enforcement on the other.  Caucasian police officers have shot and killed unarmed African Americans, and conversely, in recent times, an African American shot and killed two police officers, neither of which by the way, was Caucasian. 

Dare we as a Christian community fall into the trap of " the pot calling the kettle black?"  How can we confront something which is a very part of our institutional fabric?

While there are no easy answers to these questions, I propose the following steps (consider them baby steps or giant steps, as you wish) for the Christian community to deal with this matter.

1.  Affirm our oneness in Christ.  I do not mean this as a platitude or as a slogan.  What I mean by this is that we have to acknowledge that the reconciling acts of God in Christ were for the whole world, Gentile and Jew, African American and Caucasian, Asian, Latino, Native American, etc., and not just for a select ethnic, national, or racial group.  "God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Godself," says the Apostle Paul.  We have to break down and dismantle any structures of racism which exist in our faith community.  We must also address individual racist attitudes that are rampant within the membership of the Church.  We have to ask ourselves, if, as individuals we have, if nothing else, subconscious and unintentional racist attitudes that we may not even be aware of.  For example,  I will admit that due to television stereotypes of certain ethnic or national groups involved in crime. for sometime I tended to believe that all Italians must have some type of affiliation with the Mafia or that all Irish men were either all drunkards, or had a history of having many drunkards in their families.  Again, these were subconscious attitudes due to the influence of social stereotyping.

2.  Unmask, identify, denounce (prophetically speaking) the pervasive racism which permeates society, especially here in the good ole U.S.A, "land of the free and home of the brave."  We need to call a spade a spade, regardless of whether it takes us out of our individual comfort zones. 

3.  Do everything in our power to dismantle the racist structures which are alive and well in our social institutions, church, the public school system (the school to prison pipeline), law enforcement, housing market, etc.  A prophetic message calls for prophetic action.  We need to learn to "pray with our legs," in other words, add action to our speeches.  This should not be taken as "anti-church, anti-school, anti-law enforcement," etc. as such, but rather calls for a revamping of these social entities so that they can reflect full equality and fully applied justice.

I invite you, the reader to comment on this essay.  Feel free to BYOV (Bring Your Own View) and tell us how you think we as a Christian community can confront and deal with the issue of racism.
Your comments will be very helpful.

In the Name of the Creator, and of the Liberator, and of the Sustainer. Amen.

Dr. Juan A. Ayala-Carmona

Will the Real Jesus Please Stand Up?

One of the many reasons why we find rejection of the Christian faith is because each Christian community claims something different about the person that they claim to be the founder of their faith and the incarnation of God as well. They each clam to have the true identity and picture of who Jesus was and is today.  These disputes are as old as the Christian religion itself.  When we read the Gospel accounts, we find different views of    Jesus  depending on which audience the Gospel writer is addressing. In John's Gospel account and the letters of John a the end of the New Testament, we find that the early Church in the first century was contending with the various view of Jesus that were prevalent at the time.  In the fourth century, there were many debates and conflicts taking place about the being and nature of Jesus.Christological controversies of the fourth and fifth centuries threatened to tear the Church apart through the arguments and debates which took place relative to the person of Jesus. Some said that Jesus was the incarnate God.  Others said that Jesus was an artificial imitation of God, slightly higher than angels and humans, but inferior to God.  Others, yet, claimed that Jesus had the two natures (divine and human) blended into one nature.

 

In later centuries, the image of Jesus that was presented by the Church was that of one who resembled those in power.  In Euro-America, even to this day, Jesus came to be depicted as a blonde hair, blue-eyed Jesus, which in essence, was a Jesus reflective of the white middle class and the white-power structure in Euro-America.  In some of the hymns (for example, "Fairest Lord Jesus), it was assumed that Jesus looked more European or American than Asian or African.  In the white Protestant churches in the U.S.A. Jesus is painted or depicted as white, and many members of these churches assume that the depictions and paintings are "Gospel truth."  As a matter of fact, it was and is thought today, that the paintings and depictions of Jesus as Caucasian corresponds more to the Gospel narratives that we find written in the New Testament.

 

Because of the advent of Liberation Theology in Latin America, and other countries of the so-called Third World, Jesus is now depicted in those countries in images of people of those nationalities. In other words,  Jesus is depicted as black in Africa, and among people of African descent in different nations, including the U.S.A. In Asia, He would be depicted as looking like Chinese, Japanese, Indian, etc.  Furthermore, because of Liberation Theology's emphasis on social class, Jesus would be depicted as a poor person who was a social prophet denouncing oppression.  This image would also be present in the so-called "Jesus Seminar" movement of the late 1980's and 1990's.  This movement would project a Jesus who was disillusioned with His own aspirations and goals relative to the future of humanity and the reign of God.

 

There are those who might attempt resolving this problem by quoting Scripture. This, however, does not solve the problem completely for the reasons already mentioned, i.e. that even in Scripture we find Jesus presented in various images, depending on the audience addressed and the issue involved.

One theologian back in the 1960's stated that it wasn't a question of determining what Jesus was like in the first century, but rather asking who is for us today what Jesus was for the people of His time?

 

So then, we go back to square one.  Will the real Jesus please stand up?  Rather than propose my physical image of what Jesus looked like or what His color was, I would rather state that for me Jesus (independent of any of these other factors) was sent by God into the world to liberate us from the power of individual and systemic sin.   To me, Jesus's mission is far more important that his ethncity, nationality, or race. 

 

Can you share with us who the real Jesus is for you?  Is it the Jesus who is aligned and linked with the power structures of oppression?  Is Jesus linked with those social groups who are oppressed? Or is Jesus "neutral," not really caring one way or the other about those actions and policies that dehumanize people?  Please give us your image of  Jesus.

 

Grace and peace,

 

Dr. Juan A. Ayala-Carmona

Which Lives Matter?

In the aftermath of the shooting of unarmed African Americans by police officers, as well as the shooting of police officers by African Americans and/or Latinos, we are now being constantly bombarded by the sayings of "Black lives matter," and "All lives matter."  It is not my purpose here to put one paradigm against the other, but rather to have us look at the worth of human dignity and lives in a broader context.  The questions for us would be the following:

1.  Whose lives matter the most?

2.  How do we go about determining whose lives matter the most?

3.  Who made us God that we should be so arrogant as to think that we have a right to determine the value of one life vs. another?

I will leave it up to you, the reader, to answer those questions in your own way and to draw your own conclusions regarding these vital matters.

It is this writer's position that no one individual or corporate entity is the final authority on whose life matters the most.  The final determination lies with God the Creator, independent of how you perceive Her/him and independent of what your faith community affiliation/or lack thereof is. 

God is the author and creator of life, and only God can determine and authenticate the value of life. I am personally opposed to the notion that we can place value on the lives of people based on class, gender, or ethnicity and race.  I am further opposed to the notion that the value of life is contingent on the type of employment that one is engaged in, and in this particular case, so-called "law enforcement."  When the life of an unarmed African American is taken by "law enforcement," the tendency is to bring up that person's alleged criminal history, whether proven or not.  But when the life of a law enforcement officer is taken, the reaction is to downplay or deny that person's alleged criminal history and abuse of power.  Furthermore, when the life of a law enforcement officer is taken, there is the tendency to react as if that person's life is of more intrinsic worth than any one else's.  We are very inconsistent in weighing the scales of the value of life.

In a recent thread of communications that I have been engaged in on Facebook, it has been said that "RESPECT" is the key to addressing these issues and solving these problems.  While I do agree that "RESPECT" is necessary and vital, we must careful not to allow the concept of "RESPECT" to become a mere platitude or slogan which is not supported by concrete action.  "RESPECT" has to be mutual between the community and law enforcement.  "RESPECT" entails the uncomfortable task of engaging in the combat against social injustice.  This task requires us to do whatever is in our power to dismantle the structures of injustice.  Anything short of this is just rhetorical conversation and "hot air."  This engagement will demonstrate that we truly believe that ALL lives matter.  Please feel free to comment and contribute your perspectives on both the subject and this above essay. Dialogue is important for our communities to move forward in peace and reconciliation.

Grace and peace,

Dr. Juan A. Ayala-Carmona

The Puerto Rican Diaspora: A Model Theology

Dear friends:

For those of you who have not heard this through Facebook or any other means, I want to share with you the good news that with the help of God, the moral support of my wife Ruth and my children Geoffrey, Jennica, and Jessica, and the stimulation and energy that I have received from knowing and interacting with you, that after two years of reading, research, and writing, I have finally completed my book "The Puerto Rican Diaspora: A Model Theology.  The book focuses on the migration of Puerto Ricans to the mainland U.S.A, the issues that affect us here, and the roles (both negative and positive) that religion has played in the life of the Puerto Rican-American community.  The next step is publication.  I am now in the process of seeking out prospective publishing houses.  If any of you know of any one that would be interested in publishing this work, please do not hesitate to let me know.  I am so grateful for having all of you in my life.

Grace and peace,

Juan Ayala-Carmona

The Season of Advent: Signs of Hope

For the Jewish community prior to the arrival of Jesus of Nazareth, there was a sense of both hope and despair.  The prophets of God made every attempt to encourage the people of Israel to remain steadfast in their hope that oppression by their enemies would cease for once and for all, and that they as a nation would ascend to a position of power and importance.  There is no doubt that many of them misinterpreted this hope for a type of Jewish imperialism.

On the other hand, there were those who despaired.  They had been hearing messages of consolation and hope for decades, and what they experienced was a vicious cycle of temporary spiritual revival and moral relapse.  Some of their kings would make every attempt to do the right thing in maintaining a monotheistic faith, while others would drag the nation down the road of polytheism.
Whenever they heard the prophets predict a future of restoration, they would respond with doubt and with cynicism.  They would even make fun of the prophets.

In the Christian community we have the same dynamic.  During the Season of the Advent, in which the Church prepares for the return of its Lord, we hear messages of hope, peace, and reconciliation. But at the same time we live with the reality of ethnic/racial, gender, and class barriers which need to be surmounted.  We also hear on a daily basis new of international conflict.  Subsequently, we can't help but wonder if we are deluding ourselves into thinking that justice and peace will finally prevail.

Today, December 17, 2014 is a very special day in the history of international relations.  It is also a very special day for the Church of Jesus the Christ as it hope against hope during the Season of the Advent.  As we continue to hold out hope for peace in the midst of despair, the President of the United States, Barack Obama makes an announcement that takes many people by pleasant surprise, and no doubt, angers others.  After an agreement relative to a prisoner swap, President Obama announced that the United States and Cuba would move to end their acrimony of over fifty years. He indicated that "we cannot continue to do the same thing for over a decade and expect different results. We have learned that isolation is not the answer and does not work."

I find it interesting that talks about reestablishing diplomatic relationships between the countries, overshadowed talks about ending the embargo that was imposed on the people of Cuba in the decade of the 1960's.  But it appears that reestablishing diplomatic relationships presupposes ending the embargo, which in essence, served no logical purpose other than to strengthen the Cuban regime under Presidents Fidel and Raul Castro.

This latest move can be interpreted in a variety of ways.  Some may wonder if the recent revelations that the CIA not only knew, but also encouraged and participated in the torture of detainees at Guantanamo Bay put the government of the USA to shame and left them with no alternative than to move in a different direction.  Others may say that President Obama is taking the position that "I am the President, I am in charge, and the hell with what you Republicans and other obstinate people think, I am moving forward."  Others may think that the President was "caving in" to certain interests groups in the Latino community in the U.S.A., including Cubans-Americans who realized that they had no vested interest in the U.S.A maintaining a strangulating hold on their families back home.

Undoubtedly, all of the above-mentioned factors played a role in these decisions, albeit a small one. However, there is one element that should not be overlooked in this, and it is the role that the communities of faith have played.  For decades many Christian leaders and churches sponsored exchanges between Cuba and the United States, though these exchanges were limited.  The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan of the Nation of Islam advocated for peaceful coexistence. In the most recent conversations, the Pope played a very important role in initiating them.

While we cannot afford to think that we will totally "kiss and make up," or that everything will be "honky dory," this announcement is a sign of hope.  In the community of faith, we must appreciate any concrete action taken to establish ties of harmony and peace between our country and other nations.  Truly, the Season of Advent, is a Season of hope for the future in terms of international relations and also for social affairs as we see signs that point to the coming universal reign of God. In the midst of despair, steps are being taken to move in the right direction.  Even so, come Lord Jesus.

In the Name of the Creator, and of the Liberator, and of the Sustainer. Amen.

Please feel free to comment.

Grace and peace,

Dr. Juan A. Ayala-Carmona