Growing up in the church (read: those under the Christian umbrella), we were taught things like “love your neighbor,” “don’t kill,” and “we were all created equal in the eyes of God.”

So in 2020, how can so many Christians continue to support things like the Confederate flag, oppose things like government funded welfare, and completely miss the point of “Black Lives Matter”"? How are so many of these God-fearing people voting for policies that separate parents from children and put them in cages?

Why, when Christians are confronted with racism, do we immediately get defensive? Why was there so much hatred directed at Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a man of Christ, when he tried to fight for the rights of his Black brothers and sisters?

Has religion been White washed?

The answer: Yes, even religion has been White washed. Events, conversations, and practices of the Bible have been modified to satisfy White leaning agendas for decades.

Jemar Tisby, author of “The Color of Compromise,” writes:

“White Christian leaders have promoted and excused racial bigotry throughout American history. Theologians made biblical arguments to justify slavery. Prominent southern pastors urged “moderation” in debates about segregation during the civil-rights era.”

But – did you know?

Common Topics Religious People Should Relate to Racism and the Bible

Why is this verse significant?

• “The sin of racism is the opposite of love. In committing the sin of racism, we are not loving others. Instead, we are placing others outside of our hearts – way outside. Which is why it is a sin. It is also why we need to fight racism, especially in our own hearts. It is a poison that infects our souls. So, the question each of us must ask ourselves each and every day is this: who have I placed outside of my heart? And then we need to repent by asking ourselves, how can I show them that I love them?” - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

• “When asked which was the first of all the commandments, Jesus replied the first is this: ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ And the second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’” (Mk 12: 28-31).

• “Obviously, racism goes against the commandment of love. We are all called, therefore, to oppose racism in our communities. Loving neighbors who are different from us through kind and generous actions can be as simple as forming friendships, supporting minority-owned businesses, or participating in community activities with those of other faiths or other races. Loving our God obligates us to love our neighbors as well.” -Charlestondiocese.org

This topic is pretty straightforward. The Bible notes that there are differences with all murders (in Hebrew, kill translates to ‘murder',’ so anytime a person kills another person, it is considered murder). Deuteronomy 19 gives the following example:

Say you and your neighbor go into the forest to chop some wood, and all of a sudden, as you’re swinging the axe, the head of your axe flies off and hits your neighbor in the head and he dies – what do we call that?

This is clearly an accident, but in Biblical terms, this is still considered murder. “Thou shalt not kill” in unlawful and forbidden as stated in the Ten Commandments, because God made man in his image.

So how is this commandment related to racism?

There are a few ways you can interpret this Commandment:

• Gun control – A horrific mass murder was committed by a young white man, named Dylan Roof. He is a white nationalist who entered Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, a symbolic, historically Black church in Charleston, and shot 9 Black worshippers dead in cold blood. Nine people conducting a Bible study, worshipping God.

  • This boy had been able to get his hands on a firearm through a legal loophole, because it is easy for white men to access guns. The NRA is deeply ingrained in religious white communities, because of the allure of the 2nd amendment.

• George Floyd’s death – this untimely murder is problematic not only because of the nature of his death, but for what it represents. In terms of ‘murder’ like we talked about above, George’s death was unlawful and forbidden. Some religious people make arguments that he trying to use a fake $20 bill, a crime punishable by $1,000 fine. Read this statement from Mark McCoy, a white man who was also accused of using a counterfeit $20 bill:

  • “George Floyd and I were both arrested for allegedly spending a counterfeit $20 bill,” wrote Mark McCoy, a 44-year-old archaeology professor at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. “For George Floyd, a man my age, with two kids, it was a death sentence. For me, it is a story I sometimes tell at parties. That, my friends, is white privilege.”

  • In God’s eyes, this man was murdered.

  • In God’s eyes, we are all created equal.

As you know, the Constitution calls for “separation of church and state,” which more or less means keeping religion out of politics.

Religion and politics sometimes get blended into each other, especially when trying to appeal to a specific audience or send a message that religion supports some sort of political agenda. We sometimes see political misuse of the Bible, often for personal gain.

For example, watch this clip from an interview on the Colbert Report about a Congressman who wrote a bill to have the 10 Commandments displayed in Congress and the Senate:

Action Items for Change

• Consider utilizing your Bible Study for a different kind of study. Reading a book like The Color of Compromise as a congregation, and identifying changes you can make as a community can help racial justice issues.

  • You can also watch the video series here, and get the study guide here.

• Talk about this statement highlighted by Catholic Charities of St. Paul and Minneapolis, along with others:

  • “Each of us as Catholics must acknowledge a share in the mistakes and sins of the past. Many of us have been prisoners of fear and prejudice. We have preached the Gospel while closing our eyes to the racism it condemns. We have allowed conformity to social pressures to replace compliance with social justice.”

    Brothers and Sisters to Us, U.S. Catholic Bishops, 1979.