Psalm 8:2 - From the mouths of children and nursing babies
you have ordained praise on account of your adversaries, so that you might put
an end to the vindictive enemy.
My granddaughter recently celebrated her 2nd birthday. Her parents, who are ministers, invited all the children from church to the party. Ten children came. It was a lot of fun watching them play games, eat cupcakes and enjoy being together. About an hour into the party it suddenly dawned on me that of the ten children who were present, 4 were African American, 3 were Asian, and 3 were Anglo. I doubt the children noticed. In fact, I'm sure the children did not notice because the children gathered there did not see each other as black or white or Asian, they were just friends from church celebrating a birthday. My granddaughter and her peers are growing up in world where the color of one's skin is no longer the divider between who your friends can be or where you can worship.
Lest you think that my granddaughter is some rare exception, it is important to point out that America's preschoolers are growing up in a vastly more racially diverse atmosphere than their parents or grandparents. If current trends continue, by 2020, only four years from now, there will no longer be any single racial group that will make up more than 50% of the U.S. population under the age of 18. With the youngest ages as the most diverse in American history.
This is good news for the church, and for the nation! Though we have made great strides in America in the last 50 years in the area of race relations, the Sunday morning hour still tends to be the most segregated hour of the week. Though it is most likely unintentional, it is still a reflection of what is in our hearts, which is that in our most intimate moments, we prefer to gather with other people who look, act and feel like us. However unintentional, when we gather to worship only with others who look just like us, we miss something valuable that we can learn from the larger body of Christ.
Lord, help us follow the example of our children and learn these valuable lessons about friends and church. Amen.
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Dr. Terry W. Dorsett has been a pastor, church planter, denominational leader and author in New England for more than 20 years. He is a happy husband, a proud father and adoring grandfather. He is a cancer survivor and believes that God works powerfully through times of suffering. He has written a number of books, including one about how the spirit of offense is destroying our current society. You can find all of his books at:
I wish I shared your optimism. I am a white man married to a beautiful black African woman, and we have one biological son who is 10. While it is true that we are living in the most racially diverse era in American history, there are powerful forces that are feverishly working to set us at each others' throats.
ReplyDeleteI can see this in my son's belief that he does not really belong since he is neither Caucasian nor African. The pressure to "take sides" - as though this were a war - is openly pushed by leaders of both major political parties, journalists, and leaders in academia. Even the very idea of racial integration seems radical and dangerous. I have found that one of the quickest ways to be accused of racism is to quote Martin Luther King’s speech about being judged by the content of your character instead of the color of your skin.
I feel the problem is especially acute in academia where I work. So-called "safe spaces" are a modern-day form of Jim Crow designed to keep away the hated Other, yet supposedly enlightened professors and administrators look the other way or are openly collaborating as these policies are implemented. College courses that promote racial and ethnic animosity are prominent at many public universities. There is increasing talk of assigning grades based upon the racial makeup of the students instead of their performance, where black students who fail are automatically assumed to be the victims of racism. I have been teaching for almost 20 years, and I have never seen an environment as racially charged and toxic as what we have now. I genuinely fear for the near-term future.
In a culture such as ours the Church could provide a prophetic voice calling all to repentance. Yet many Christians have either abandoned such efforts or have become part of the problem themselves. Recently a major Christian denomination decided to call for an end to displaying the Confederate flag. Talk about a wacky obsession over trivia! If this is all the Church has to offer, why not just become a political party?
I agree with you Terry, our children grew up going to boxing matches in Mesa AZ with African American kids, Latino kids, and even some white kids. They were taught that there are 2 types of people in the world, the saved and unsaved. But I also agree with the comment above from Recovering Lutheran. We have a black son married to a white wife they have had issues and so have their children that I won't go into here. The leaders and media in this country right now are hell bent on causing a division in the country and their main goal is through trying to get all the different races to hate each other no matter what they have been taught growing up. It scares me too.
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