You Owe Me Nothing
For the shackles
And the lynchings
And the rapes
For the denials (of my dignity, my contributions, my humanity)
For the denegration
The slurs
The bombings
Water hoses
And dogs
For inequality
And neglect
The blindness (yours and mine)
The affirmative non-action (killing my dignity, my contributions, my intelligence)
The oppression
The suppression
Misrepresentation
Baracades
Injustice
Disengaged
Second-rate (I’m your follower, never your leader, your inspiration, your friend, your family) loser
For revised history
And profiling
And …
Well, for all that and more, you owe me nothing
But respect and sincerity. Sensitivity and genuine friendship. Eyes WIDE open.
Rebuilding the brokenness
A strong bridge over
Trouble. Together.
Out of comfort
Zones
You owe me more than a check.
And I owe you more than my rage.
I owe you an apology because I love God.
Please forgive me.
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Matthew 5:21-24
“You have heard that it was said to the men of old, ‘You shall not kill; and whoever kills shall be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that every one who is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother shall be liable to the council, and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be liable to the hell of fire. So if you are offering your gift at the altar, and here remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come offer your gift.”
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How Black is Racial Reconciliation?
Tucked tightly in among some dusty books on the overflowing stacks in Stevens Bookstore, I found it: Tom Skinner’s How Black is the Gospel. That was my first brush with the gospel according to Dr. Skinner, New York gangster turned evangelist/prophet.
I have read the book from cover to cover, many times, dissecting it so I could use it during our racial reconciliation discussion groups or panel discussions on racism in the church. Weeks after that first Stevens discovery, I went back to the musty bookstore in search of Black and Free, written two years before Tom Skinner’s second landmark book. I found it, tattered and torn, but mine all the same. Mine to dissect and consume. And you better believe I did.
If you hang around racial reconciliation circles long enough you’ll find that both Skinner books have been seminal for many folks. Ed Gilbreath references both works in his Reconciliation Blues. And Michael O. Emerson in his Divided by Faith cites Skinner. Folk’ll talk about meeting Skinner at a CCDA conference or some other hallowed venue. They’ll talk about meeting his wife, Barbara Williams-Skinner. They’ll talk about Skinner being a gentle giant or a bridge builder.
I never met him. Only heard his recorded speeches on the Internet. But for me the man helped define a new kind of racial reconciliation. It was strong. It was revolutionary. It was BLACK. It didn’t have a skin color. Didn’t eat a certain type of food or listen to a particular type of music. Didn’t clap and sway at the same time.
It was Jesus, boiled down, stripped of His American skin of religiosity, plucked off the bone of pretense and served up on a rugged platter with plenty of truth and love. It was Jesus. And Jesus was BLACK–strong and revolutionary, that is.
That was then. But what about now?
Is our Jesus (and our gospel) strong enough, revolutionary enough to pull off true racial reconciliation? A real re-connection with our true call to a ministry of reconciliation. A re-conversation of grace and justice. Not a re-conniption or a re-circumvention.
But real re-conciliation. Strong and revolutionary. Black. True black.
If not then we Americans need another God and another gospel.
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More on Dr. Skinner
- 1994 Christianity Today article
- Tom Skinner’s Web site
- Speeches on UrbanMinistry.org
- Tom Skinner at Urbana, 1970 (Real Player format)
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I, Racist
Here’s a little yellow and white book with a shocking title. Selected and arranged by Ella Mazel, it’s been around since 1998 so you might have seen it. Despite the shocking title, it’s not a finger wagging tsking white-folks-bashing book. And it’s not big but it packs some major punch.
From Ms. Mazel’s Web site:
“Most of us white folk go through life comfortably without being conscious of the innumerable ways in which we are automatically privileged by the luck of our racial draw. This may not make us “racists” — but it makes us, unwittingly, beneficiaries of racism.”
In the weeks following the U.S. House of Representative’s resolution ‘apologizing to African-Americans for slavery and the era of Jim Crow,’ I’m hearing/reading/sensing an outcry from many whites, ‘Don’t call me a racist!‘ And then there are those (black and white) that reject the very word as having any viability to our post-modern post-racial America (whatever that means). Some say we’re all racists in some form, no matter what the skin color. Some say there is no race in Christ.
Whatever the case, there is discomfort in my country, which speaks volumes of our need for healing. Whatever you call it, there are crippling/blinding/maiming scars. There’s an unaddressed, yet shared history. There are misconceptions, misperceptions, and missed opportunities.
Ms. Mazel hopes her book, a scab-jerking collection of quotes from black and white Americans, will bring healing and hope. She wants to see her country survive. I do too.
Talk is the start. This book could help. It’s free. Unfortunately real dialogue isn’t, but it’s worth it.
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A Confession
When Dr. King died, I was sill in diapers. Ford’s new muscle care, the Mustang, was brand new but the civil rights struggle was not.
I imagine that my parents and paternal grandmother, who played a huge role in my early development, tried to keep the turmoil of the times away from me as a toddled around the bare wood floors of that old clapboard house in Cherry, North Carolina.
But I think some things filtered in and became part of my virtual racial DNA, that part of me that needs to know about the whats, whens, and whys of the racial struggles of those times. That part that needs to make connections and reconcile (or at least, placate my conscience that we believers are striving for answers).
Over the years I’ve collected books on race penned in the 60s by people of faith, struggling/striving/praying for answers as well. I’m in debt to them. They help me put my arms around the some of the gnarly roots of racial hate in America.
Here’s a quote from Mandate for White Christians by Kyle Haselden (John Knox Press, 1966):
“What the white Christian church now needs to do is to free itself spiritually. … White Christians cannot escape from this mental and emotional prison so long as they think of the racial struggle in terms of “we” and “they.” … Christians are confused and inactive because it is difficult for the problem to understand the problem. Direct participation by the church in active solutions of the racial problems requires a confession of guilt, for the church continues to be the problem.”
Much of the racial oriented writings from this time focus on the merits of desegregation and the Christians role in that struggle to dismantle institutional racism. But it’s interesting to note that some of these writings are still relevant for today.
“The church continues to be the problem.” That’s a hard one. But that’s what Dr. Haselden, a white man who strongly endorsed President L. B. Johnson for re-election, wrote.
Is a confession of guilt the answer? Many folks are asking that questions right now. And others have simply given up, saying with their apathy and weariness, ’so what.’
Been there. Done that. Where’s my money?
You see, to some blacks the answer is not just a confession but financial reparations.
Dr. Haselden again:
“The Negro is caught in a vicious trap which the white man set. … White Christians are confused and immobilized because the Negro will not settle for the much he has gained but insists that he must as a man and a citizen have all that belongs to a man and a citizen, must have it now, and must have it here.”
Today many blacks want to get the money. Not an apology. Not a confession. Just money. Even though getting it could possibly mean mutilation, having left a foot or a hand in an attempt to escape the trap.
There must be a better way.
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Dancing on a Train
A BLACK STEAM ENGINE
I can’t help but feel like we’re dancing on a moving train.
Last week there was a lot of talk in Washington, DC about race and reconciliation. It was part of the Race and Reconciliation in America conference hosted by Bill and Janet Cohen. Bill Cohen, former Secretary of Defense, and his wife Janet, are known as Washington’s interracial couple. They hosted the conference for one key reason. From Janet’s Web site:
“This conference will convene a group of men and women from across the nation, and across professional disciplines, to discuss the seminal topic of race. The issue of race has dominated our national dialogue and divided our nation since the American Revolution.”
In CNN interview (part of the network’s Black in America series), the couple were really open about being an interracial couple inside the Beltway.
At one point Janet, a beautiful woman with a flawless coffee-with-cream complexion from humble roots, says:
“The perversions and quirkiness about race in this country, it’s like we’re taking two steps forward and three steps back but we’re moving forward all at the same time.”
MOVING FORWARD?
Sounds like dancing on a moving train. Bill and Janet, like many black/white couples, have seen their share of changes in the race scene in America. But they come out sounding positive and wanting to make a difference. That’s saying something coming from a seasoned DC couple.
They recognize that things are not as far as they should be but they’ve moved forward. Hence the conference, which called together not just the ‘usual suspects’ of academics and sociologists, but the everyday men and women that battle with/for/against racial issues. The doctors, the lawyers, the grandmamas, and bus drivers. Yes, and I’ll bet there were those that own the bus lines and those that were forced to sit in the backs of buses for too long. It was that kind of conference, according to the press.
I’m interested to hear how things went. But more importantly I’m interested in seeing the church in America
step up to the plate of discussion. I’m glad that the Cohens did what they did. At least somebody is striking up a national dialogue. But what of the Christians. Where’s the biblically-based voice?
The train is moving forward. It’s big and powerful. And come November, it may be run by a black president. But is the train on the right track? Is it moving in the right direction racially?
We can only pray so.
CAN YOU HEAR THE MUSIC?
And what of this dance? Some Christians are dancing. Little pockets here and there, doing their thang among the least of those in Chicago or Atlanta. But do the believers in rural communities hear the same tune? Do they know the dance, the steps to biblical racial change?
Doesn’t look like it. And sadly, some Christians still think it’s sinful to even start the dance. And then there are some that can’t even hear the music when they open the Book.
*Video Source: http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/living/2008/07/17/bia.cohens.cnn
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The Obama Effect
Just ran across this YouTube video
Bronx students discuss Obama’s race speech
It’s not unusual to find kids talking about politics these days. Blame that on Obama. These inner city kids talk about politics and it’s refreshing.
They also talk about race and express hope for the future. I think that’s a good thing too. Talking, that is, if only the grownups did more dialogue on this level.
Unfortunately, their hope for racial harmony is tied to one man. That says a lot about the man (and his ability to connect on a gut level) and about the state of racial wholeness in this free America.
From one of the girls says something like this: “I feel like I’m gonna feel more safe [when Obama is president]. I’m gonna be sure something good is gonna happen for everybody.”
Another young girl says: “People will have a different perspective of America … they won’t really care about the person’s race and how they look. It’s gonna be about what they know, their knowledge, and experience.”
I’d love to hear your take on the video.
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Dropping Names
Bishop Eddie Long
Deanne Gist
Dr. Gary Chapman
Sharon Ewell Foster
Claudia Mair Burney
James Scott Bell
Jeremy Camp
Jerry B. Jenkins
My oh my, I’ve met quite a few Christian celebrities this week. The list could go on and on. People that you know (especially if you’re a Christian writer or artist).
You buy their books. You buy their CDs. You know them. I’ve met them. We’ve all been influenced, yes blessed by their words, their lyrics, their ministry.
But how about …
Cynthia Ballenger?
Chip MacGregor?
Les Stobbe?
Dee Stewart?
Elaine Patterson?
You probably don’t know them. But they are important in my journey. Surely no less valuable than the Eddie Longs and Jerry B. Jenkins’ in the Kingdom.
The tendency is so real to just focus on the ‘big guns’ and to give less or no credit to those that only make a little splash. But what does the Leader say. We are to honor the weaker vessel just as much as honor the stronger one. They are the same in God’s eyes.
We work for the same Boss. And supposedly the same pay. At least, that’s how it’ll work out in the end. So let us as writers and artists watch how we drop names and be especially careful that we don’t drop THE NAME in our pursuit of becoming a household name.
[Posted from ICRS]
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Shout
Posted from Orlando, FL. “Magic KingdomLand”
It’s funny how God finds you even when you run away. My kids like to play hiding games, especially the two younger ones. It never fails; they go ‘hide’ and then they instantly yell for you to come find them. Having you find them if all the fun.
For the past year or so, I’ve been hiding, in a sense. You see, I’m a little bit of a reluctant writer. Yes. There, I said (or at least wrote it).
Even though getting published was a 10-year journey, I didn’t pine away and (near-about) slash my wrists as some writers tell. I did want it but it didn’t consume me. AND I didn’t tell many people that I was trying to get a national platform as a writer. I was hiding.
And now, more than a year after the first book hit the shelves, I’m still hiding. My church is small. So it makes no sense that only a handful of people know that I’ve written two novels.
I recently had a friend from college berate me for not telling everyone in our former student Christian fellowship about my writing. Simple, I’m hiding. But I’m not doing it like my kids.
Last night, God called me on the rug about my hiding. No, He didn’t say ‘Hide not.’ And He didn’t say ‘Go forth and promote.’
But this is what He did say this. “Nothing compares to the promise I have.”* That is, nothing compares to what He has given me in the spiritual realm. What He has prepared for me there and what He offers me, as His child, on this planet far outweighs what I could gain for myself–with my keyboard and Thesaurus and a BIG promotion budget.
So as I sat there last night during the Gospel Music Association ‘concert’ holding my sleepy five-year old, God spoke to me like only He can–in a whisper, in the blink of an eye. God shouted. And I cried.
Below is the prayer I say as I come out of hiding. I do write so I guess that makes me a writer. And as a writing coming out of hiding, I shout out to those that might find me. May they find God and not me. Cause me is awful.
Anyway, this is my prayer:
“I am a person of unclean thoughts and words in a generation of people with unclean lips and words. I pine away after recognition. I slash my wrists accolades. Not holiness. Not shining God’s light. I’m jealous and resentful of others’ writing success. And I’m sorry.
“Nothing compares to the promise I have in You. A Christy doesn’t compare. Big book sales don’t compare. National recognition doesn’t compare. Being a household name doesn’t compare. Getting a third book deal doesn’t compare. Being on the bestseller list doesn’t compare.
“Being compared to Lisa Samson and Sharon Ewell Foster doesn’t compare. Being on national TV doesn’t compare.
“Here I am … weak and stupid … Lord cleanse me, forgive me, send me. Amen.”
* From ‘Shout to the Lord’ by Darlene Zschech
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And the Jordan Award Goes to …
… Dr. John M. Perkins, founder of Christian Community Development Association, CCDA. Dr. Perkins has been extremely instrumental in my reconciler’s journey. I first met him in the mid 90s during a series of intimate racial reconciliation gatherings organized by Reggie Edwards of Building Together Ministries (Raleigh, NC, USA).
Dr. Perkins struck me as a powerful man, full of grace, knowledge, and wisdom from The Father. And what a sharp wit. My kids met him once (in 2007). Instantly, he changed into a benevolent old man stooping to greet my three boys and telling them in a voice that melted my heart, to call him Grandpa John.
Dr. Perkins will receive the Jordan Lifetime Achievement Award on July 13 during the International Christian Retail Show. Here’s a portion of the news release.
The Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) will present the 2008 Jordon Lifetime Achievement Award to Dr. John M. Perkins - author, activist and humanitarian during the CBA & ECPA Awards Celebration to be held Sunday, July 13th, opening night of the International Christian Retail Show in Orlando, FL. Perkins, author of Let Justice Roll Down and The Preacher and the Klansman, has devoted his life to helping the poor through evangelism and community development. Let Justice Roll Down was selected by Christianity Today magazine in 2006 as #14 of “The Top 50 Books that Have Shaped Evangelicals.” (Read more here … )
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Kudos for Reconciliation Blues
Here I am in the middle of summer, prime reading season for me, usually. Truth is I’m swamped with too little time and so much to read.
Reconciliation Blues: A Black Evangelical’s Inside View of White Christianity by Ed Gilbreath is on my stack. Near the top in fact. Not sure when I’ll get to it (sorry, Ed), but in the meantime you’ll have to read what others are saying about it. Hopefully, I’ll be posting my comments/review this fall.
From The Link In Between:
While a powerful read for those already in the throes of the reconciliation movement, I would also highly recommend Reconciliation Blues for those who have not yet entered. While the issue of racism – especially in the church - is never an easy one, Gilbreath addresses the issue much with gentleness and grace. His vulnerability is a sigh of relief for other nonwhite believers who share his experience of isolation, and a challenge to those of us who too often forget how much we have to learn.
From The Old School Blog
Race relations is always ripe fare for bloggers and talk shows, but Ed goes deeper into human relationships. “Thoughtful” and “articulate” would be overused, hackneyed adjectives, but they fit. Thankfully, Ed’s ideas and words are always fresh. His is an important voice as the nation navigates across so many divides (red state-blue state, dominant culture-multi-cultural, religious-secular, etc.).
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Find out more about Ed and Reconciliation Blues at:
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