The Danger of Critical Race Theory and a Character Trait all Christians Should Have
Promotion Monday.
Welcome back to another “Promotion Monday!”
Today, I’m sharing some thoughts from Brandon Edwards that he posted on Facebook. You’ve probably heard a few things about “Critical Race Theory,” but maybe you don’t know too much about it.
It is a huge topic of discussion in our society right now, and I think Brandon does a good job highlighting things we need to consider.
The Danger of Critical Race Theory (CRT).
The danger of Critical Race Theory to the believer is tough to see at times - for it invites the believer to deal with a moral issue - that of racism - and provides ample evidence of its faults.
Few, if any, would deny racism is in and of itself sinful, thus this creates a strong desire for the believer to delve into the depths of racism within the newly given lens (through school systems, corporate training, government actions, etc.) that is Critical Race Theory. CRT does not shy away from the language of sin - or that it is dealing with a "moral" and even "existential problem."
What so many believers miss is that FOR this moral problem CRT offers a solution - and it is within this solution that the believer is left with nowhere to turn.
The Solution Critical Race Theory Offers.
The solution is not, as claimed, racial equality - but of racial equity. It sets forth equality of outcomes instead of equality of opportunity. It groups individuals into subgroups (Intersectionality) and presupposes value to each identity based solely on ethnicity, race, sexuality, and gender.
CRT directly does the exact opposite of what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. claimed in his, "I Have a Dream Speech." Instead of the character of the individual, it is the skin tone of the grouping. Instead of the personal experiences of the individual, it is the collective experience of the collective - with oftentimes the racist actions of the few magnified as the beliefs of all.
It divides - and provides no unification at all. It invites people to empathy but provides disdain. It invites people to listen while silencing others. It portrays itself as virtuous while advocating no virtue beyond its own. It speaks of the love for a neighbor while classifying all as "other."
CRT is not merely a philosophy or a way through which to view the world - It provides an answer to a moral problem - and it is not a Biblical one.
The Problem of Critical Race Theory for the Believer.
Breaking it down to its simplest terms, CRT says, "If I am wronged, I am right. If I am the most wronged, I am the most right." It presupposes that the answers provided by those who have historically been wronged be automatically right - no matter what is proposed as the solution.
This is the problem with CRT for the believer - not that grave injustices are highlighted, that oppression is challenged, and that our brothers and sisters of color are heard, but that the solutions that are offered are not Biblical. They are divisive, antagonistic, and problematic.
CRT offers justice without mercy, justice without grace, justice without forgiveness - and presupposes inherited sin based solely on the pigmentation of ones skin.
CRT does exactly what "biblical" segregationist/racists of the 17th and 18th century did - it provides a "biblical" framework (marginalization of a people as ethnically inferior or wrong) and presupposes sin upon them. It segregated people as a "good and moral" thing - and it is happening all over again.
We are being divided into groups and told to repent - based solely on the collective identity of "whiteness" - not the actions of our lives, the content of our hearts, or the power of our words, but solely by the color of our skin.
CRT is racism reborn, repackaged, and reimagined - and it should be called out by faithful brothers in Christ in the same way that it was in the 17th century and 18th century.
Racism Is evil - and ANY philosophy that espouses such nonsense should be shown to be what it is - an empty well that promises much but gives little."
Love your neighbor. Always.
Do You Have This Trait?
The Gospel Broadcasting Network produced a video with Cliff Goodwin about a character trait all Christians ought to have.
I appreciate hearing this side of the argument. Reminds me of a saying my dad says often: backwards never, forward ever. God is in control!
One of my former churches (strongly "left") offered an online class in, I believe, early 2021, that turned out to be an introductory CRT class. I had been joining in with their online Bible study classes as a "conservative" participant, but I couldn't see any reason to become involved with this particular class. But then several people invited me, and I attended the first session and the beginning of the second. At the second session I stayed only long enough to explain why I was exiting.
In the short time I was there I identified two major problems with the class and curriculum. First, God was hardly present in the discussion, being found only in a prepared prayer at the beginning. Second, a range of "wrongs" was being introduced and discussed, but completely outside the context of sin. You can't meaningfully talk about these things without understanding sin. But they did talk that way, and did not understand sin.
As I was leaving, after pointing these things out, something was said about God being introduced into the discussion later on. That was clear enough. There, God is down the list somewhere. Since then, that church has continued on that path with additional classes, and I have changed focus to other outreach activities and for the most part lost contact with them. I still pray for them, but I am not aware of anything else left that I can do.