Racism is defined by the Oxford Dictionary in English as: “The belief that all members of each race possess characteristics, abilities, or qualities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races.”
https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/racism

The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines racism as: “a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race”. It provides another definition as: “a doctrine or political program based on the assumption of racism and designed to execute its principles “

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/racism

Racism is stupid. In fact, racism is so stupid that I tell my kids that anyone who identifies themselves as a racist is letting everyone around them know that they are stupid. Its stupidity lies in the fact that a person or group is assessed, judged, responded to or treated on the basis of their phenotype or external “racial” characteristics. It gets worse when you consider that there is no difference in the genotypes of all human beings, regardless of them being assigned to different “races”. It is a silly and harmful attitude which is transmitted to children who are not born racist, but are socialized into it by institutions which make up our social fabric such as the family, education systems, and government, to name a few.

The bad news is racism is ubiquitous in America. Racism is rampant among whites, black or African Americans, Hispanics and any racial or ethnically homogeneous group which dominate any geographical or social area in the US. White people express racism in their cultural and programmed behaviors, black people justify their racist expressions and behavior with the excuse that they have been oppressed and are just righting the wrong in their racist attitudes and rhetoric. Hispanics express their racism in their native tongue and behavior which the white and black Americans believe to be “cultural” expressions and attitudes.

In a more general sense, racism is very conspicuous in public utterances of political commentators and media personnel. Democrats split the American people up into racial and so called “minority” groups. Almost every political issue is greeted with critiques such as “racist”, “borderline racist” or some such reference to race. For their part, Republicans overlook racism in their more macro “one size fits all” approach to public policy. Republicans carefully and sometimes insensitively ignore the fact that racism does exist. Instead, they choose to defend stewardship of the great American nation without nuancing their defense with the empathy that those who have been on the negative receiving end of racism deserve.

At a more personal level, if race is the first thing you focus on when interacting with any individual or group, you are racist. The very terms “white”, “black” and “Hispanic” which Americans attach to their main population segments at every turn is racist and frankly ridiculous. There are places in the world where one’s race is not an issue in official documentation which affect the individual’s everyday life and only becomes relevant for the purposes of a census for instance.

That Americans are so routinely divided up in daily life is an indication of the institutionalized and deeply ingrained racism which pervades our everyday reality. You have been cultured into this way of seeing your fellow Americans and are perpetuating this experience. You may not be that awful, bigoted person who wants to keep oppressed minorities in their places, but are kind and well-meaning, not intent on doing harm to anyone and you might even be committed to righting the historical wrong meted out to African Americans and Hispanics for example.

Positive or not, racism is essentially subconsciously or consciously viewing people in terms of their phenotype and ethnic characteristics instead of seeing them as human beings first. When racism is in play, people are identified by their race before any other characteristics even when race is not a relevant factor.

Paradoxically, Americans are carefully taught to see racism as negative and there is a general acceptance that it is undesirable and should be eradicated, at least in Civil Rights law, affirmative action policies, and on many Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) statements offered by potential employers and organizations interfacing with the public. Those who want to make up to black people for their suffering, engage in positive imaging of black people for example. Racial references are embraced in an attempt to “highlight” the achievements of these people. This kind of reference is found in supposedly objective media sources such as the National public Radio.

The net result of all this focus on race is that racism is very present and thriving in the US. This observation is so obvious and passé that it is rather frustrating and discouraging to have to be writing about this subject in 2018. However, the fact is racism is very alive and evident in our Churches today as well. Believers do not generally seem perturbed by the very conspicuous racial segregation in churches. You have “black” churches with “black” “Christian and music worshipping God. Down the road there are “white” congregations with their Christian music and worship styles. Across the street you might find a “Mexican” church where “Spanish” Christian music is used to praise God… and so on and so forth. This difference is explained by socially coined phenomena like “cultural diversity” which make liberally minded and other “do gooders” (including Christians) feel comfortable and sometimes pleased with the diverse nature of American communities. We church goers live in our little enclaves and reach out to our racially identical fellowman. So, our Churches go on with our segregated populations and disparate cultures ostensibly worshiping God.

As mature believers we must come to recognize that racism is wrong and contrary to God’s intentions for his people. Not only does the Bible make it clear that God is not racist, but he does not recognize racism as a valid characteristic on which to divide the Church. In Colossians 3:9-11 Paul reminds believers that they are to engage in new kinds of behaviors which reflect the unity of races achieved by Christ because God does not recognize racial nor ethnic divisions in His Church. Further on (Col 3:12-14) we are encouraged to display humility, kindness, mercy, patience and most of all love to each other as we mature.

I could go through all the reasons why racism in the church should be discouraged and eliminated, but we know from the lived American experience why it is wrong and detrimental to the spread of the Gospel. Why shouldn’t a white person be free and comfortable in a black congregation? On the other hand, why should a black person feel conspicuous and noticeably uncomfortable in a White Church? Why should we have segregated church congregations at all?

Is it because racism though negative is a well-established norm which the American society is not yet ready to change? After all racism does seem to serve social functions, if we are to adopt a Parsonian view of our social fabric. Democrats can wield the racism hammer at every issue, perceived as a racist nail to be hammered repeatedly and out of context until the nonracist viewer feels like screaming in frustration at the eminent foolishness and puerile attempts at manipulating racist sentiments in their audience. In short, Democrats use it to promote a victim mentality in their historically oppressed minority target groups. Meanwhile government can provide millions of dollars in handouts through social policies and mechanisms such as the welfare system without any obligation to effecting real change in the status of their target beneficiaries. Many a 501c organizations have sprung up, collecting tax payers’ dollars to address the specific needs of different segments of the population without securing real, empowering transformation in their negative social and economic situations.

On the part of the actual victims of racism there is also an unwillingness to let go of the victim mentality which fosters resentment, hatred, and unforgiveness; justifies self-destructive practices; and displaces personal responsibility. They can blame the other racial groups for all the problems and barriers they have faced. Then they can demand reparation and justice as replacement for their own self empowering action. For their part, those who were at the top of the food chain in a racist America can continue to perpetuate hatred, mistrust and fear; and express arrogance and callousness as they ignore the existence of this problem and avoid responsibility for the other racial group’s social plights. Meanwhile they perpetuate the “white club “mentality where they look out for their own and lock arms against those who would want to invade their territory at the top of the food chain.

God’s rejection of racism is not to say that He does not appreciate cultural distinctions. In Revelation 5:9, 14:6 God not only evangelizes everybody all over the world, but heaven will show off a dazzling array of believers from Every nation, tribe and tongues. This means that racist though you may be on earth, if or when you get to stand around the throne of God, you will have to accept all those other people with whom you could not coexist nor form cultural bonds on earth. Let’s start by practicing openness and acceptance of other cultures in our segregated churches today. Let’s all become blind- color, race and ethnically blind and mix our churches up with all kinds of racially derived persons from everywhere. Let’s empty ourselves of racism in Churches and begin to see individuals as human beings first, second and last.