Does This Make Me Look Racist?

Today, when it comes to race relations in America things are much worse than I think it used to be, especially in the Christian church. I think that there is just a disconnect between black Christians and white Christians. I see that many white Christians become really sensitive when we we black Christians bring up racism and slavery and then both sides begin throwing around accusations of racism against the other. I think that's unfair. Not all claiming to be white Evangelical Christians are racist and want to bring all non-white people to heel with a right foot on their necks. Some do. But not all. I think the current Twitter/YouTube threads I have been following are problematic because we are not making a distinction between the people who are trying to follow Christ and those who are racist.

This post is with regard to three theologians who have found themselves on opposing sides regarding

President Trump and racism in American Society and in the Church. Bishop Talbert Wesley Swan II, Dr. James White, and Dr. Michael L Brown have been in controversy for the past week. These three men are worthy of respect and have a few things in common. I believe each one truly loves Jesus and the Church. All three have degrees and years of study. All three serve in churches. They each have a podcast/radio show in which they discuss Bible and social issues.  But they disagree about racism and who is being racist. I am going to attempt to follow a time-line so we can see what happened.

I first heard about this current round of controversy from Dr Jame White on his Dividing Line broadcast from November 21, 2019. He accused Bishop Swan of  being a black racist to Dr Michael Brown. I was confused. I felt that Dr White was dismissive and not respectful of  Swan at all. But the truth is I have followed both White and Dr Brown for years and I know the kind of men they are. Dr Brown is worthy of respect. Anyone who has spent any time listening him have to know he ain't racist. However when I looked up Talbert I found a lot in common between myself, Swan, and Dr Brown. Swan is a Bishop in the same denomination I am in, Church of God in Christ, and like us Dr Brown is Pentecostal. We agree that abortion on-demand is wrong.  The Bible is inerrant. Homosexuality is not God's best for anyone. And James White would agree with all those statements as well. What happened? If you look at what James White says in the following video, I think you can see the problem: Swan posted a Tweet that Brown responded to in good faith, but instead of a helpful dialogue it degenerated to Swan and his supporters to stop listening to Brown and instead there is more name-calling.






This started with Talbert seemingly saying that all white evangelical Christians are racists and bigotted and this was why they overwhelmingly supported Donald Trump and voted for him despite all the moral failing we can point to. Dr. Michael Brown pushed backed on that a little. He wrote an article a bout why it's wrong to equate all white Christians with white supremacy. You can read the article for yourself: The Religion of White Supremacy? In it, I notice that Dr Brown does not deny that racism against black and brown people is a problem in the church and in society. He merely points out that it's racist to think all white people are racist just because they are white. I agree with him,

To call this the religion of white supremacy rather than Christianity is to make a bigoted and biased remark.


The problem is that I think they are talking past each other because if you listen to what Talbert and most Black christians are saying about social justice, not all are trying to say that all white people are racist and need to be held accountable and punished for being racist. No, we are talking about how all American institutions are tainted by racism and bigotry and negatively affect people today inside and outside of our churches. We want justice and the system fixed because that is what God says He wants us to be working towards.

To be fair to Dr Michael Brown, I do not know how anyone can listen to him and come away think that he's racist just because he points out that he and many white Christians he knows are not racist, while he does not deny that are institutions are racists. What more could we ask of him? He is on public record working for social justice and spreading the Gospel the way God has defined them in scripture.



I think that Swan is getting the short end. Dr James White does not seem to spend much time on him outside of reading his Wikipedia page but Dr Brown did look him up and realized that they were in agreement on homosexuality but Dr White dismissed Swan because he does not look like or sound like someone whom he puts stock in. This is the kind of racism that Swan and other black people be talking about and why I would say that Dr Brown is not racist. In most circumstances Dr White does try to understand other people's viewpoint. I just do not think he did that with Bishop Swan.  We should allow people to speak for themselves. Look at what Swan has taught recently on his radio program.





It should not be an issue to listen to one another. Although Dr James White is not a racist person he does not understand Black people. He doesn't even try like Dr Michael Brown does. During the Twitter exchange, Bishop Swan retweeted something Dr James White tweeted and I think it exemplifies the issue.

This obtuse, evangelical bigot, who claims Black women “kill their unborn children” because of their “rebellious sexual ethics,” has the caucasity to do a podcast calling me racist and complaining about “Black racism” and “Black racists.”

You can’t make this stuff up. https://t.co/i9j1OLUvQQ

— Bishop Talbert Swan (@TalbertSwan) November 24, 2019

James White makes tweets like this and then wonders why black people are offended. He reason it's true after all so it's not racist. It presupposes that it mostly black unwed mothers having abortions of convenience and black men not stepping up to being fathers and husbands that we should be, The point is being made with no distinction that not all black people live like that - painting all black people with a broad brush. I get Bishop Swan's frustration, but calling James White "obtuse" and a "bigot" is not any more true as what White seemingly wrote about all black people. I'd argue that in context, White was not referring to all black people but is ignorant to how slavery still plays a part in messing up people's lives today and he refuses to learn about it. At least Dr Michael Brown is open to this. May be is has to do with the fact Dr Michael Brown is a Messianic Jew makes it easier to understand racism and oppression.

There is a huge disconnect. I think we are having these issues because we are either too worried about offending others and being labeled racist or not worried enough about hurting our brothers and sisters who are not the same race as we are.

I have been listening to James White for years and just like  Bishop Swan said, he thinks that all black people who speak up for social justice think that we all want abortion and gay rights and all the unBiblical stuff society is trying to push on us. This is not true.  Bishop Swan has a book he wrote chronicling how God can deliver people from Homosexuality. He is merely asking people to look at themselves and ask are they doing enough to follow what God requires for social justice - beyond just the lip service.

To be fair, I did find a tweet from Bishop Swan that gave me pause, and I think it would require more research - regarding how Bishop Swan looks at Dr James Cone work. James Cone is considered the father of Black Liberation Theology and from what I know it's antithetical to the Gospel we should be preaching and teaching.

Newsflash: Comparing me to the late great theologian and freedom fighter James Cone is not an insult as you meant it to be. It’s an honor.

I referenced his writings several times in my sermon today.

Also, there’s no such thing as Black racism. https://t.co/MC4554HhUo

— Bishop Talbert Swan (@TalbertSwan) November 24, 2019

I think I need more understanding about what Bishop Swan means, but written some things about James Cone. You can read my posts about James Cone at the following link:

FacePalm of the Day #84 - Forsaking Paul for Jesus’ Sake

FacePalm of the Day #84 - Forsaking Paul for Jesus’ Sake

I came across a two part article by Caleb Wilde on his blog. In the first post, he talks about a story from Howard Thurman’s book, “Jesus and the Disinherited.” [Thurman is pictured on the left].He provides the following quote:

During much of my boyhood I (Howard Thurman) was cared for by my grandmother, who was born a slave and lived until the Civil War on a plantation near Madison, Florida. My regular chore was to do all of the reading for my grandmother — she could neither read nor write. Two or three times a week I would read the Bible aloud to her. I was deeply impressed by the fact that she was most particular about the choice of Scripture. For instance, I might read many of the more devotional Psalms, some of Isaiah, the Gospels again and again. But the Pauline epistles, never — except, at long intervals, the thirteenth chapter of First Corinthians. My curiosity knew no bounds, but we did not question her about anything.
When I was older and was half through college, I chanced to be spending a few days at home near the end of summer vacation. With a feeling of great temerity I asked her one day why it was that she would not let me read any of the Pauline letters. What she told me I shall never forget. ”During the days of slavery,” she said, “the master’s minister would occasionally hold services for the slaves. Old man McGhee was so mean that he would not let a Negro minister preach to his slaves. Always the white minister used as his text something from Paul. At least three or four times a year he used as a text: ‘Slaves, be obedient to them that are your masters …, as unto Christ.’ Then he would bless us. I promised my Maker that if I ever learned to read and if freedom ever came, I would not read that part of the Bible.’”

I am sensitive on this issue being a descended of African slaves myself. Although I am several more generations removed from slavery than Howard Thurman, all African-Americans have to answer the contradiction between what the Bible says and what the white American slavemasters told us it says. The Bible is infallible, but those claiming to be following Christ are not. my maternal side, I am six generations removed from slavery and she was kept in chains because her masters were afraid of her - she had too much spirit and personal power. She was the last woman from that side who was a slave that I am blood descended from. On my father's maternal lineage, I am four generations removed from slavery. Mary Lucas was her name. She endured the hardships and suffering of slavery, even having her husband sold away from her. By the grace of God, she was reunited with her husband after the Civil War and my great-grandmother Cynthia was born after that. Mary and her husband founded a church after they were free and thanked God for their freedom. I don't know how they understood Ephesians and Colossians passages about slavery, but I could talk to them today, or Thurman's grandmother, and explain how the following scriptures were corrupted and that there is no reason to avoid reading Paul's letters in the slightest. First the passages those racist heathens butchered are:

⁵ Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. ⁶ Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. ⁷ Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, ⁸ because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free. - Ephesians 6:5-8

²² Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. ²³ Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, ²⁴ since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. ²⁵ Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for their wrongs, and there is no favoritism. - Colossians 3:22-24

If you were a slave, unable and prevented to become literate yourself, if someone just read this to you in context of course you would take Thurman's grandmother's position. I don't know what my great-great-grandmother Mary thought about these passages, but I'm sure it occurred to many slaves, as it does to me, the question as to why it was important that slaves did not learn how to read? One of the reasons was that the slave masters did not want the slaves to know what Paul said about slave masters. This is what I would want to tell Thurman's grandmother.

1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ² “Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise— ³ “so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.”
⁴ Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.
⁵ Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. ⁶ Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. ⁷ Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, ⁸ because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free.
⁹ And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him. - Ephesians 6:1-9

I'm willing to bet money that the majority of slaves were not allowed to hear the whole passage. Paul is saying that slave-masters are accountable to God. God is their Master just like the slaves. Paul said that slaves should not be treated any kind of way. Notice that why slave-masters were trying to condemn slaves for wanting to be free and were rubbing the Bible in their faces, the Bible itself condemned them. Is the Bible wrong? No. Is there a need to put Jesus' teaching against Paul's and make a choice as to which one is right? No. I'm saddened for Thurmon's grandmother because some of the most grandiose and beautiful passages in the Bible were penned by Paul and she missed out on them because of a lie.

Forsaking Paul for Jesus’ Sake

The second post deals further with point Wilde tried to raise with the Thurmon's grandmother. He is making the point that for African Americans systematic theology and Biblical inerrancy and infallibility doesn't mean much to the religious experience of African Americans.

There’s a larger issue for grandma than the infallibility of the Bible. While the issue of infallibility might be one of the largest issues for us evangelicals who have labored to build up buttresses against supposed attacks from liberalism, we must remember that infallibility was our fight and not grandma’s fight.
Her struggle was against the white oppressors that tore families apart by selling black husbands and fathers to new slavemaster. Her struggle was against the stronghold that she was worth less than her white slave master. Her struggle was seeing her people beaten, mistreated and abused by men who claimed to be followers of Jesus.

The thing that is missing from this conversation is that if you allow the Bible to speak for himself and ignore the wicked slave master bent on controlling and dominating other human beings, you can see what the Bible is really saying and that it does have an answer for our people who are and were "beaten, mistreated and abused by men who claimed to be followers of Jesus." The Bible makes it clear that these men are not followers of Christ.

I also found it amazing that Wilde quotes from the works of  Dr. James Cone [pictured on the right], who is credited with starting Black Liberation Theology.

James Cone (to listen to his perspective, click here) makes a relevant statement. He writes that the Black community

“have not been preoccupied with definitions of inspiration and infallibility … it is as if blacks have intuitively drawn the all-important distinction between infallibility and reliability … how it is the true and basic source for discovering the truth of Jesus Christ. For this reason there has been no crisis of biblical authority in the black community” (102).

Cone’s distinction is helpful for those who find themselves wanting to talk back to grandma, as it helps us remember that she wasn’t reading the Bible to find all of its infallible truths so that she could arrange them in a systematic array of scholastical beauty; no, she was reading the Bible so that she could be lead closer to the One the Bible speaks of: Jesus.

I disagree with much of Cone's work because he changes the Gospel. Of course God hates sin and racisim and sexism, but the Jesus did not die on the cross for just the oppressed but also the oppressor. Because of sin, sometimes - depending on the circumstances - you are the oppressor and sometimes you are the oppressed. No one is better or worse than the worst slave holder. We all deserve hell and if weren't for Jesus we would all be going to hell. This is what Liberation theologies twist and distort. The Bible's infallible truth are not just scholastic beauty, it is also truth good practical life that leads us to the one the Bible speaks of - all the Bible speaks of Jesus! Jesus said:

"You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me," - John 5:39

That is why I read the Bible - all of it.


Forsaking Paul for Jesus’ Sake: Part 2

Related articles

• How the Bible was used to justify slavery, abolitionism (releasingreligion.blogspot.com)
• First Nazis, Now Confederates: Tarantino's Slave Movie (andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com)
• Would somebody please explain why so many black people in America convert to Islam? (barenakedislam.wordpress.com)