Critical Race Theory was dispelled by The Southern Baptist Convention in a statement in 2019. Fall 2020 the previous occupant in D.C. made a stink and banned diversity training from all federal agencies and departments. A few weeks later that ignited confidence in the six Presidents of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminaries to hop on board and put out their own statement condemning Critical Race Theory, thus contradicting their own resolution from 1995 regarding racism within their denomination. But we’ll get more into that next week.
This week I want to talk about how Evangelicals don’t want anyone to tell them racism is a sin thus they should deal with the consequences of that sin. And it’s about time for the Mass Black Exit leaving the largest Protestant sect in the country.
Let’s get into this part I.
Y’all ready?
I belonged to a church that I didn’t know was Evangelical. In fact, I had never heard the word until a few years ago. I left church but wasn’t sure why. My break from church was for a 15 year period. I was so disillusioned with church, frustrated, felt it was a bunch of hypocrites and overall disdain for a place I thought should be my safe space. It wasn’t until I took to studying the Bible on my own that I began deep diving into aspects of theology, scripture and Biblical understanding that I realized Evangelicalism is a cancer in The Black Church. And it wasn’t until a few days ago that I learned my former church has that cancer festering within. (Remember I’ll get to that next week but keep reading.)
My opposition to Evangelicalism and their theological stance has everything to do with them putting the Bible as the foundation yet overlooking actual scripture when it applies to the misdeeds of their own leadership. And the basis of which the convention was founded. The Southern Baptist Convention was founded in 1845 (y’all isn’t this around the time of the Civil War? Keep up.) because they felt missionaries should and could own slaves. Yep, that’s right.
Now fast forward to 2020 when the fallout over the Southern Baptist Convention’s statement on Critical Race Theory during a tumultuous year where race, racism and injustice were literally visible on the global stage. And they saw nothing wrong with putting that statement out. With NO input from any Black Pastor, I might add. Ignoring how it would affect the 400,000 some odd Black members of their convention. Or did they not even care?
CRITICAL RACE THEORY
Let’s start with this statement from the Washington Post which pretty much sums up what some Black Pastors within the convention are thinking. “The presidents said it is dangerous to view humans and conflict primarily through the lens of race or gender or sexuality instead of via scriptural concepts such as sin.” If racism is a sin then Critical Race Theory has its place in the church. Yeah? No? It’s almost like they are redefining sin along the way to avoid the elephant in the room. And that elephant is racism is the root of the Southern Baptist Convention whether other Black Pastors want to acknowledge it or not. But I will. I am on this blog. And I will continue to do so.
Before we go any further, let’s learn what this term means. Critical race theory (CRT), the view that the law and legal institutions are inherently racist and that race itself, instead of being biologically grounded and natural, is a socially constructed concept that is used by white people to further their economic and political interests at the expense of people of colour. According to critical race theory (CRT), racial inequality emerges from the social, economic, and legal differences that white people create between “races” to maintain elite white interests in labour markets and politics, giving rise to poverty and criminality in many minority communities.
Now that we know what Critical Race Theory means, it seems that it’s a plausible theory that can and should be looked at through the lens of the Bible. However, according to Christinaity Today, “Some worry that a systemic view of racism, where a person is considered privileged or disadvantaged in society because of their race, conflicts with Christian beliefs about forgiveness or people holding equal value before God.” And that’s it folks. I’ve noticed that everything comes back to forgiveness. That whenever someone is wronged or a sin committed Evangelicals are quick to say forgive. Because it’s in the Bible. But let’s take a pause.
Forgiveness doesn’t mean that consequences won’t exist due to that sin.
Forgiveness doesn’t mean that scars won’t exist due apologizing.
There are many cases in the Bible where God allowed the consequences of sin to happen such as David losing his child with Bathsheba. He raped a woman, killed her husband and forced her to marry him. Was God supposed to just let that go because forgiveness is in the Bible? According to Evangelicals theology, they would have probably made Bathsheba stand in front of the church and take all the blame from this situation. Then make her forgive David for all the harm he caused her.
Let’s use another story from the Bible. If we look at Isaiah chapters 5 and 6 we see God destroying his own people for their wicked ways. I want to start at chapter 5 verse 8.
“Woe (judgment is coming) to those who join house to house and join field to field [to increase their holdings by depriving others], Until there is no more room [for others], So that you have to live alone in the midst of the land!”
Isaiah 5:8 (AMP)
Essentially people had turned away from God and started to do things the way they wanted. It was more about power and wealth. Sounds familiar to me. Now if you really read chapter 5 God lays out who judgment is coming for and it’s quite a lot of wickedness. And some of that wickedness is prevalent in churches today. A little too prevalent. So Isaiah told God to send him in chapter 6 verse 8. God sent Isaiah to do what needed to be done to set things back on track. Do you think if they asked for forgiveness would God have not punished them? He would have forgiven them but I don’t think he wouldn’t have given a consequence.
Consequences are a reminder that what we did, we probably shouldn’t do again.
Yet, consequences don’t seem to go hand in hand with sins committed in the SBC primarily the sin of racism. See I was going somewhere with these stories.
These stories are used but often overlook that consequences are part of God’s plan as well as forgiveness. Jemar Tisby said in Faithfully Magazine, “The seminary presidents could have simply acknowledged the 20th anniversary of the Baptist Faith and Message’s adoption and stated that they remain dedicated to its doctrines. Instead, they focused on Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Intersectionality. By highlighting ‘Critical Race Theory, Intersectionality, and any version of Critical Theory’ as particularly acute threats to Southern Baptist orthodoxy, the seminary presidents take aim at virtually anyone who advocates for racial justice beyond hugs, handshakes, and symbolic statements.”
And if we go back to Isaiah chapter 5 and 6 we see the destruction God allowed when there was wickedness. There weren’t hugs, handshakes, or a symbolic statement. There were desolate cities, people deserted far away from home, literal death, etc. Chapter 5 verse 25 said the anger of the Lord burned against His people. Racism is wickedness. There’s no other way to put it. And God’s anger will burn against people who claim they are His but still stand firm in wickedness (racism) because it benefits their self-interests.
Honestly, it’s time for Black Churches to look at the self-interest of their members because if they don’t their member’s mental health could take a toll as well as spiritual health. I wholeheartedly believe that Black Churches can thrive and flourish outside of the realm of Evangelicalism. There are seven main denominations that are historically African American. Leaving the Southern Baptist Convention will mean less money for many churches. Less funding for missionaries. But church is more about building funds and missions. It’s about the souls of its people. So if you stick with a convention that is slowly poisoning the hearts and minds of its Black congregants to see Critical Race Theory as a divisive tool against the Bible then we’ll never get to the point of uprooting racism from churches especially the ingrained racial effects that are steeped within many Black Churches.
Next week I’ll go into what church I left, what that Pastor has to say about CRT and why I believe all Black churches must get out of that convention and never return.
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