The problem is not Christianity...the problem is White Christianity...
When St. Paul was on the road to Damascus, he met Jesus.
As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”
And he said, “Who are You, Lord?”
Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.
Paul considered himself to be a righteous man. He was oppressing Christians, not because he was evil. He truly thought he was doing the right thing.
But on the road to Damascus, he learned otherwise…
Conversion – To change one’s mind or purpose…
He learned that he could accomplish so much more if he changed his mind and approach. He learned that the only way he could accomplish any of the good he had hoped to accomplish in his life was by changing his mind and approach.
And he was converted…
He had been following the wrong interpretation of the faith. And he needed to abandon that faulty interpretation…
And by his conversion, he changed the world…in his lifetime.
So, how do we abandon the White man’s interpretation of Christianity?
Conversion…
Like St. Paul, we must learn that the only way we can get to the Promised Land and embrace our calling as a people is to change our mind and approach to the faith.
When we do, we will be able to accomplish so much more…and in our lifetime.
When I presented all of this to Dee, of course it made sense to him…just like it makes sense to you.
My god-brother was raised in a Christian home, so the idea that faith was important was not far fetched.
The problem is that much of what masquerades as “faith,” seems completely irrelevant to the struggles we face as Blacks in America…
Much of what is given to us as “faith,” is good enough to help us “keep calm and push on,” but it doesn’t help us give purpose to what we’re experiencing. It doesn’t do much to empower our quest for freedom and keep us on course to the Promised Land.
White supremacy has diminished our humanity as Black people…as people created in the image of God. And that diminished identity has been preserved by western Christianity…
…it has been upheld by the Black Church.
(easy, now…calm down. I’m about to share an analogy that will help you digest that statement…)
Rather than compelling us to dispel the myths perpetrated by White supremacy, the Black Church has conditioned us to be satisfied as exceptions to the rule of Black inferiority…
“We ain’t like them niggas…”
Oh…you don’t think that’s the case?
Do you consciously think of and publicly proclaim your success as proof of of the strength and value of Black people?
Don’t you typically think of your success as proof of your abilities alone? Having nothing to do with the general abilities of Black people?
If you are one of the rare folk who do see your accomplishments as proof of both your own giftedness and the giftedness of Black people, then you will absolutely love where this is all going… #StayTuned
If you aren’t one of these rare individuals: you might want to close this window…
Since the assassination of Dr. King, the Black Church has gotten progressively worse at leading our people to the Promised Land.
I like to call us – I’m a priest and I’m Black, so I’m part of the “Black Church” – the new scribes and Pharisees. I stated this before, but now I want to help you better understand why I made that claim…
Remember the scribes and Pharisees of the Gospel?
They were the religious authorities during the time of Jesus…
As efforts started to consistently threaten the power of the Roman oppressors, the scribes and Pharisees gained more importance in the eyes of the Roman Empire.
The Romans understood that the Hebrew people listen to the religious authorities. Their culture demanded it.
So, the Romans understood that the easiest way to control the people and keep them from rebelling against their oppression was to control the religious authorities.
Discrediting those who opposed Roman oppression didn’t work…
Killing them didn’t work…
So if you can’t beat them…join them! Or better yet…compel them to join you!
And that’s exactly what happened with the Jewish authorities…
They were coopted by the Roman Empire. They became agents of oppression for their own people.
In exchange for status and prestige with their oppressors, they agreed to give the people just enough religion to keep them subdued and sedated in their oppression.
And by doing so, the efforts at uprising that did occur were misguided at best (i.e. Barabbas) and ultimately ineffective.
Yet since the religious authorities weren’t presenting any options for liberation, non-religious types decided to take matters into their own hands.
The new scribes & Pharisees aren’t going to give you an interpretation of the faith that will liberate you from White Supremacy…
Their goal is to maintain the status quo and secure their stature within White society. And to do that they must proclaim a gospel that keeps you in bondage…
…that keeps you distracted by the mirages along the way through the desert…
Compelling you to gain the whole world now, at the expense of your own soul…
Encouraging you to deny who you were created to be in order to become the acceptable Negro…
Those of you who recognize and reject this perspective of the Christian faith know that it’s important to emancipate yourselves from mental slavery…
You’ve likely been thinking about ways to actually break free and find a deeper spirituality that honors the fullness of your Black identity…
And there’s definitely a way!
There’s definitely an interpretation of Christianity that is empowering to the Black identity and that’s more ancient than any European interpretation.
