(ThyBlackMan.com) For years, Racism has been defended by fastidious individuals by means of quoting selective portions of the Holy Scriptures. While proliferating this ignorance, these people are quick to quote Old Testament verses to justify many actions as such, but not limited to: slavery, prejudice, injustice, and pride. Even today, prejudice is still a “hot topic” for many people. Like the ancient arguments, the bible is, or so it appears, to be the source for racial justification. Let’s take another look! In doing so we’ll attempt to take the time to finally debunk this archaic myth. Jesus said (John 10:5) “my sheep know my voice and a stranger they will not follow.” It is tragic when people quote the bible to justify their own self righteousness and indignation when nothing can be farther from the truth.
The Bible and Slavery
The bible is revered as the “world’s bestseller,” yet, a paradox of human frailty reveals the fact that it is also the #1 stolen book on the planet; conversely, the bible does deal with slavery. Yes, the bible does validate slavery. However, as we look deeper at scripture, we find that the bible does not justify slavery, or at least not in the manner that racists try to impose on us. The word slavery as used in the Old Testament was often used interchangeably for what we call today, “indentured servitude“. So, basically, slaves of the Old Testament were indentured servants.
But how does the bible not justify slavery? It does not condone slavery. It gives us instructions on how slaves were to be treated. Most importantly, the bible speaks against the act of “man stealing“, which is what happened to Africans in the past. This is what the bible condemns. As we all know Jesus Himself spoke numerous times against prejudice. He says we are all one race: the human race. The bible itself never stresses a particular skin color or ethnicity over another.
Slave Owners
Although just a movie, I can remember watching the film, Twelve Years a Slave; the slave master was trying to indoctrinate the masses of slaves that the bible teaches that slavery is just. He finishes his lecture with the declarative phrase, “This is Scripture“. Ones initial reaction would be, “Dude, get a life!” But this depiction is based on real life events and this kind of indoctrination did happen during this course of history. Unfortunately, historical accounts are typically swayed towards the opinions or ethnicity of the writer.
The Ku Klux Klan and Black Panther Party
While this can be a touchy subject, both ethnocentric groups, the Ku Klux Klan and The Black Panther Party were among a number of groups who applied the bible to justify their missions. The same holds true for some Islamic groups. A commonly used phrase was “do not mix kinds” (even though this is not found in scripture, not even by interpretation). The biblical intention of not mixing is an instruction by God that pagans and believers should not intermarry. Even this verse is intended to be explained. God, according to the bible, did not want believers to intermarry with pagans and submit themselves to a blasphemous lifestyle. Instead, believers should be influential advocates by virtue of their love. The racism, hatred and divisiveness we see in politics and social media has no place in the pulpit, schools or progressive communities of our time.
In the present day, racism has breached our politicians and other elected officials, in my view, because they allow their personal perspective to be shaped by the lens of their politics. Our elected representatives are supposed to convey the will of the people. This is what I call the great divide. Political principles should be about choosing the best candidate. Instead, we circumvent the natural process by “not voting” because we don’t identify with the candidate pool. We’re often tempted to choose the candidate who runs the best smear campaign instead of the person with the best policies and innovative ideas.
It really saddens me to see a politician say one thing to his base in the primary; then move closer to the center as the campaign moves toward the general election. A spiel designed specifically for Caucasians, as the case may be and another to woo African Americans. When will this madness stop? Why is this? Because of racism, prejudice, and ethnic pride many will fail to see or inherit the Kingdom of Heaven.
These are not my words, it’s found in the Scriptures. One day, we as a nation, will adhere to the premise outlined in the bible that is referred to as The Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Rising up to live out this decree we will survive as a nation and the racist will be powerless to adversely affect our outlook on life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Can the church say Amen???!!!
Staff Writer; Stanley G. Buford
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