A response to: “Unity or Uproar? A Biblical Vision of Justice for a Divided Age”
Speaker: Dr. Thaddeus Williams
I feel like I need to confess that I start this review from a place of distrust and confusion. I know that the speaker and I disagree, but I’m distracted by his style of argument more than the essence of his arguments. I’m trying my best to understand, but frankly, he tends to be so vague and leave so much up to assumptions, that I am probably not representing his true thoughts or beliefs here. He’s a professor and a doctor, but I want to go over this talk with a red pen, slashing out the tangents and asking for citations in the margins. I suspect that he is not arguing in good faith, and that’s a bad place to start a discussion. I’ll try anyway.
Social Justice Warriors
We open on an antagonistic note, because he’s talking about me. Not actually me, of course; he doesn’t know me. But a caricature that’s meant to be me.
Dr. Williams explains: Before social justice got to people like me, I was “bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for the Gospel, excited for missions, shouting the good news of salvation. Grace alone, faith alone, in Christ alone, for God’s glory alone.”
But after, some ideologue convinced me that my “primary mission was to fight systemic injustice. The fruits of the spirit were replaced by resentment, rage, suspicion, assuming the worst of other’s motives, and a quickness to be offended.”
And what’s worse? I’m not even just the “after” — I’m the ideologue who’s duping young people into believing these things.
Okay, now that we’ve painted a picture of our divisions, let’s slow down. I want to start with compassion. When he describes these people, he makes it sound like they are personal friends of his. I don’t know if that’s true, but if it is, I’m sorry that he’s lost friendships. I feel the same way. Divisions among family in the faith are very painful. I stand with you in wanting unity. But, I want us to have true unity through justice and restoration: not to pretend that our issues can be ignored.
“They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. 'Peace, peace,' they say, when there is no peace.” -Jeremiah 6:14
"I’m offended"
This relates to the big issue about taking offense. Dr. Williams says, “In our day, it’s a virtue to be quick to take offense.” I find this to be an extraordinary claim. I would like him to provide examples: what teachers are saying this? I feel like he is saying this to poison the well. Now when I respond to him, no matter what I say, he can respond, “See? I told you. She takes offense to everything.” As if there aren’t things we need to speak up about. As if there aren’t injustices for us to fight.
So I’m going to argue anyway. You can call it taking offense if you like. I don’t think it makes my arguments untrue.
"Social Justice Work was Better in the Past"
Dr. Williams appeals to past glories when he talks about doing social justice work “the right way.” He brings up the examples of William Wilberforce and John Newton, whose abolitionist and political work ended slavery in the UK. A wonderful example, although I want to point out that the only protests that meet today’s approval are seated firmly in the past. If we lived then, are you quite sure you’d want their uproar over unity?
Later he makes an argument I find startling. (He may be quoting economist Thomas Sowell here.) “Conservative religious activists ended slavery.” “If they were alive today, we’d call them the Religious Right.” I don’t know who gets to claim Wilberforce (or the American abolitionists). I find it prideful to be so sure that they would be proud of you and everything you do. I’m not sure these historical figures fit that neatly into a conservative/liberal dichotomy. (I’m sure Wilberforce and I wouldn’t see eye to eye on many issues.)
And Dr. Williams must have a very different definition of conservatism than I do. (I know some people who think to be conservative just means to be Christian, and perhaps that’s the whole argument here.) I think an important aspect of conservatism is about looking to the past: finding good things and maintaining (conserving) them. But that isn’t something we want to do with slavery. Wilberforce and his team looked toward the future. On this issue, the past was not something we want to keep.
…let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. -Hebrews 12:1b-2a
I think he is attempting to make a valid point that Christians, throughout history, have done good things for the cause of justice. I agree. (If you’d like to read more about Wilberforce or other historical Christians who’ve done social justice work, here are links on this blog.) However, this history is not an excuse to ignore the oppression and injustice caused by Christians. American abolitionists were not called “Bible-believing Christians” in their day, like he suggests. They were the heretics. Slave-owners were the ones who took the Bible “literally.” There are still pastors today who will defend slavery.
"I’m suspicious"
But enough about conservatives vs. liberals. Dr. Williams wants to stop such divisions. (Or he wants all Christians to join him on the correct side of the political spectrum. I’m not sure.) A main point of his social justice work is that we shouldn’t have group identities. (Or perhaps that our group identities shouldn’t be very important. Again, it’s hard to tell what he’s saying.)
I was raised to be “colorblind,” a simplistic interpretation of Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream that “people will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” In my education, this meant ignoring people’s color and ethnicity. (I would argue this was not King’s intention.) Thus, things like “Black Pride” or “Native Pride” seem offensive to colorblind white folk, who are steadfastly pretending that we have no differences. Colorblindness also helps us ignore injustice: someone recently told me that the first thing I should do to solve the disproportionate incarceration of black and brown people would be to stop talking about it.
Maybe that is part of Dr. William’s argument. When he describes it in more detail, it seems further and further from the reality I know. He describes a table where modern social justice divides people. “You can’t sit by Bob. Bob isn’t your brother in Christ. He’s a Roman oppressor.”
Again, if Dr. Williams has had this experience, I’m sorry for it. But no one has ever told me, “You’re a white oppressor. We can’t sit together.” And even if they did, I don’t understand why this would be interpreted as a core teaching of modern social justice. I would interpret it as a hurt person trying to protect themselves. It’s not the aim of social justice – but one of the steps along the way is that, as a white person, if I need to give somebody space to do their healing, I’m going to give them space. I don’t need to force them to have a relationship with me. I hope for a relationship in the future.
Also… if you have had this experience, it may be a good time to ask yourself where you tried to sit at the table.
“When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” -Luke 14:8-11
If you have the opportunity to spend time with people who are different than you, come as a learner and a servant, not as a leader or preacher.
Gender is a useful comparison here. As a woman, there are times and situations where I feel unsafe around men. This doesn’t mean I hate men, or think all men are out to get me. But if I’m walking along at night, and a man starts following me, will you really begrudge me for being a bit fearful?
This may relate to Dr. William’s multiple references to suspicion. I think he’s saying that modern social justice teaches us to be suspicious of anyone outside our race. As I’m mulling this over, two examples come to mind. First, “Stop and Frisk.” This contentious police policy allowed officers to stop anyone they thought was suspicious, and search them for a weapon. Not surprisingly, the police primarily found people of color to be inherently suspicious, and stopped them at much greater rates. (This did not create a good relationship between the police and the people they were meant to serve.)
The second example of suspicion goes the other way around, when someone who has been stopped by police are afraid for their life. They are suspicious that the cops aren’t going to treat them well. This goes against my upbringing: I was always told that the police were my friends, and I could go to them if I needed help. I didn’t know other groups of people were teaching their children how to be extra careful around the police, because they had the power to harm them. I was startled when I heard this report from LeVar Burton, one of my childhood heroes, whose race I never considered, because his interactions with the police were so much more cautious and fearful than mine.
Yes, we dream of a future where both kinds of suspicion are gone. But this is a situation where the people in power have to surrender their suspicion first.
"I’m aggrieved"
Dr. William’s complains about a “game of historical grievances” as if this isn’t people’s reality in the present. He provides some articles as evidence. I read, “Can My Children Be Friends with White People?” It’s a poignant article. Of course there is hurt, but not only does the author admit that he does still have white friends, he also says the real problem is the actions or inactions of white friends, more so than their ethnicity. (The article is framed around Trump supporters. Dr. Williams does not address this topic in this talk.) “White People are Cowards” is also a thoughtful article. “Why Can’t We Hate Men?” was weaker; she makes good points with a bad conclusion. (I wouldn’t call these articles “mainstream” like he does. Opinion pieces are meant to be provocative.) Dr. Williams doesn’t actually address any of the points from these articles (which would have been interesting.) I think he was mostly using the titles to stir up offense in his audience.
“All have sinned and fallen short,” Dr. Williams quotes Romans 3:23. “Not ‘white people,’ not ‘economically privileged,’ not ‘straight people,’ not ‘capitalists,’ not ‘cops.’ All have sinned.” This is the point where I start banging my head. It deeply shows how he and I read the Bible differently. Yes, all have sinned. (Yes, white people, rich people, etc…) But I won’t pretend the Bible doesn’t put people in categories.
Have you read the Beattitudes? “Jesus said: Blessed are the poor in spirit… Blessed are those who mourn… Blessed are the meek… Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness… Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness…” from Matthew 5
Or maybe read the Magnificat? Mary said: “God has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.” (Luke 1:52-53)
Scorning the idea that “White people have sinned and fallen short” has the taste of entitlement to me. It feels like reading the scripture and rather than saying, “Wow, I’ve fallen short too.” turning and looking at your neighbor and saying, “You’ve fallen short. You’re no better than me.” Why does Dr. Williams feel a need to reassure his audience? Why inoculate them from feeling shame? It’s a comforting talk that makes you feel better about yourself, sure, but I don’t see it leading to unity.
Fruits
Dr. Williams makes a good point about the Fruits of the Spirit. I agree, social justice work should be full of fruit.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” -Galatians 5:22-23a
I recently heard a progressive Christian share a talk that was such a beautiful, bright picture of the future that it actually brought me to tears. I praised Jesus for giving hope in divided times. I prayed for true unity.
If you haven’t seen the fruits of the Spirit in my social justice work, I apologize. That genuinely gives me a lot of remorse. But if you don’t see Fruit in the movement… you aren’t looking. I’ve heard from so many inspiring teachers. I’m not a part of this because I’m driven by anger (even though anger can be healthy and important). I’m driven by a vision of a better future. I have hope in Jesus that the whole world is redeemable. “in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God… the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth.. -see Romans 8:19-27
Yes, my view on the Gospel has changed. My faith is no longer an other-worldly construct where praying the prayer of salvation, and getting others to pray it, is my only task as a believer. I take Jesus at his word when he says his mission statement:
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” -Luke 4:18-19
We actually want good news for the poor: an end to poverty. We actually want freedom for the prisoners: ending America’s bloated incarceration system. We actually want sight for the blind: healthcare for all people. Peace, patience, kindness, self-control are all deeply wrapped up in the dream for a better world. It can’t be done without love, joy, and faithfulness. But change will take some uproar too.
Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’” -Matthew 21:12-13
No comments:
Post a Comment