We don't need to be afraid of CRT

[Falco Underhill]

A really good interview about biblical unity.

Thanks for sharing that with us, Gary. It was a real blessing.

[joshuabgood]

An appropriate article for this conversation. David Platt is paying a step price for his advocacy.

https://frenchpress.thedispatch.com/p/s ... nt-2456751

[joshuabgood]

A really good interview about biblical unity. One of the most troubling things to me in this conversation among Christians has been the lack of biblical focus and answers to this issue.

There is a lot of Biblical data for addressing racism.

This article written by Josh Nisly a minister from BMA serving in NYC.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1B2d ... p=drivesdk

[Robert]

There is a lot of Biblical data for addressing racism.

There is racism. There is elitism. There is Mennonism. There is a lot of isms.

The answer to all of it is simple. It is humble love. Jesus calls us to this. I am not perfect. I need reminders. I do not need a system to implement it. I just need to be reminded of who I follow.

[temporal1]

i don’t like responding before GaryK to this.
i’m tempted to put it in Bunny Trails for that reason. sigh. decisions, decisions.
Robert has depth of experience and insight. As do others walking the talk on this forum. some for decades.

A really good interview about biblical unity.
One of the most troubling things to me in this conversation among Christians has been the lack of biblical focus and answers to this issue.

There is a lot of Biblical data for addressing racism.
This article written by Josh Nisly a minister from BMA serving in NYC.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1B2d ... p=drivesdk

It’s Page 22 in this thread. Gary’s observation about this thread is valid.

A couple of points:
To begin, there is a presumption “white” churches are WANTED by “everyone,” i see no indication to think this.
What if this is UNwanted?
In Voddie B’s video on why he+his family decided to join a white church, HE was attempting to minister to white folks, even tho it’s NOT what they/his family wanted. VB questions why black pastors do not “lose sleep” over ministering to white folks/churches.

J Nisly:
Where do we find ourselves?
With vanishingly few exceptions, the American Mennonite church finds itself exclusively composed of Caucasions of European origin. Why is this?
One cannot claim that this is due to African American’s lack of faith -
African Americans are much more religious, and devoutly religious, than white Americans.
If we are to live up to the early church’s example, we must start by acknowledging that something is wrong.

Certainly, this reflects what scriptures tell us: authentic faith is offered to everyone equally (altho not in lib politicians’/academia’s definition of “equally”) those in comfort and wealth will be most challenged, the camel and the needles’ eye continue to resonate.

(“vanishingly?” was the “American Mennonite church” more integrated in history?)

Integration of public schools was forced by the sword, churches have not been.
Is this inherently bad? i seriously doubt it.
Only if one is convinced lib academia’s view of (statistics as god) is The Way, The Truth, and The Life.

i guess i respect VB’s view that suggests the actions and desires of Christians should be expected to look pretty similar;
i.e., where are black pastors leading their flocks to white churches? and that kind of thing. they are FREE to do so. they don’t. strongly suggesting they don’t want to. people enjoy the company of their familiar culture. all continents.

in recent years, i’ve often read, YOUNG black people are so happy with their lives, including education, employment, church, family and social lives, they do NOT want to be bothered by white people, they want to be left in peace. they really don’t think much about the 1960’s. i have been treated like an unwanted interloper. not badly, just not wanted.

just like lots of white young people, they’re busy with their lives at hand, and don’t care much about history and how they got what they have. they aren’t inviting white people to join them, they don’t want to be bothered. who-can-blame-them?

they have Jesus.
they don’t need white people to have Jesus. this is proven around the world.
can white people live with that? there is good reason to question. imho.

maybe the starting place is to respect others for who they are, rather than presuming they’re just dying to be who we are, to have what we have. i suspect tone deafness.

VB joined a white church - to evangelize to white people. see his video on that.
it wasn’t easy. people “who looked like him” criticized him. this hurts.
he questions where they are with that.

He wanted to follow Jesus, to please Jesus. Not easy.
He asks good questions about what it means to Jesus to level the playing field. This doesn’t always look just like white lib academia. Imagine that.

The thing with Jesus is, He never saw things just like human statistitians. He saw things perfectly.
Then He messed with everyone’s heads about how to respond. Every time.

When we’re convinced we’re right, think again. Probably not.

J Nisly:
Could it be because we have not welcomed the immigrants, fed the poor, and invited them to our feasts? Could it be because we have ignored the weightier matters of the law, such as justice and mercy? Could it be that we have embraced a “new gospel” which erases the individual and corporate responsibility that the Bible teaches?

is what you have to offer better than what they already have? it might not be. are standing presumptions valid? do they stand up to scrutiny? or refuse scrutiny?

[Josh]

Could it be because we have not welcomed the immigrants, fed the poor, and invited them to our feasts? Could it be because we have ignored the weightier matters of the law, such as justice and mercy? Could it be that we have embraced a “new gospel” which erases the individual and corporate responsibility that the Bible teaches?

Various mainline Protestant denominations (TEC USA in particular is one easy to find statistics for), along with MC USA in the Mennonite world, have tried very hard to do the above. They also remain amongst the most “segregated” denominations.

Adopting left wing progressive ideology doesn’t lead to a church that fulfils racial quotas.

[MaxPC]

There is a lot of Biblical data for addressing racism.

There is racism. There is elitism. There is Mennonism. There is a lot of isms.

The answer to all of it is simple. It is humble love. Jesus calls us to this. I am not perfect. I need reminders. I do not need a system to implement it. I just need to be reminded of who I follow.

AMEN AND AMEN

[joshuabgood]

There is a lot of Biblical data for addressing racism.

There is racism. There is elitism. There is Mennonism. There is a lot of isms.

The answer to all of it is simple. It is humble love. Jesus calls us to this. I am not perfect. I need reminders. I do not need a system to implement it. I just need to be reminded of who I follow.

AMEN AND AMEN

Did you read the David French article I linked?

[Sliceitup]

There is a lot of Biblical data for addressing racism.

There is racism. There is elitism. There is Mennonism. There is a lot of isms.

The answer to all of it is simple. It is humble love. Jesus calls us to this. I am not perfect. I need reminders. I do not need a system to implement it. I just need to be reminded of who I follow.

This seems really simplistic and, well, conveniently ignores that Jesus has called us to this humble love for ages now. And yet, somehow, his words haven’t really kept professing Christ followers from being racist (or all other kinds of evil) throughout those ages. His followers seem to be supremely bad at the ‘simple’ act of following his words.

[silentreader]

There is a lot of Biblical data for addressing racism.

There is racism. There is elitism. There is Mennonism. There is a lot of isms.

The answer to all of it is simple. It is humble love. Jesus calls us to this. I am not perfect. I need reminders. I do not need a system to implement it. I just need to be reminded of who I follow.

This seems really simplistic and, well, conveniently ignores that Jesus has called us to this humble love for ages now. And yet, somehow, his words haven’t really kept professing Christ followers from being racist (or all other kinds of evil) throughout those ages. His followers seem to be supremely bad at the ‘simple’ act of following his words.

The key word here is "professing". There have been many IMO un-Christlike acts done in the name of Christ over the centuries. Is that the mark of a true Christ-follower?