Uncomfortable

On Friday Ahmaud Arbery would have turned 26 years old.  On that day hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets to run 2.23 miles in his honor.  You see, on February 23rd, Ahmaud, a young black man was murdered by two white men while he was out jogging in Brunswick, GA.  Last Tuesday when the video of his murder showed up online, our nation finally noticed that another black man had been murdered for no reason, and with no justice.  People took to the telephones and social media demanding Justice for Ahmaud and finally the GBI got involved and the two men were arrested.  For months, the local DA and law enforcement actually covered up this incident.  

I thought about this all day yesterday as we celebrated Mother's Day.  I thought about what Ahmaud's mother must have gone through losing her son in such a senseless act of racist brutality.  I thought about what it must have been like for her to not only find out that he was gone, but then to have no legal recourse or representation in a corrupt justice system.  I imagine that was like screaming into a black hole, nobody listening, while drowning in the pain of losing your child.  I thought about the moms I know that are raising black children right now, and the fear that must overtake them when they read of yet another incident like this, another innocent young person of color losing his life for no reason.  I grieve that while raising children these days is no easy feat for anyone, for parents with children of color there is this extra layer of teaching that must happen - how to deal with law enforcement, where not to go, how to be aware of your surroundings at all times...and I'm sure the list goes on and on.  

I thought about the sacred moments of ministry I have experienced being present with parents whose child is dying.  The times when I have been present as a young mom is told her baby is not viable, or the hours spent holding someone's hand as they painstakingly await the news of their children's cancer diagnosis.  I thought about the joy in a new mom's eyes as she sees her beautiful baby for the first time, and the elation of grandparents in hospital waiting rooms as they get the good news.  

I thought about the love I have for some of my former Wesley House students.  I hear the pain in their voices as they, African Americans, wonder if they can still jog safely, or if their younger siblings will be the next name on the list of persons killed because of hatred.  

And I realize again, that not saying anything....is actually speaking loudly.  As a white woman I have a privilege that I did not have to earn, it came with my birth in the right family of the right color in the right nation.  As a pastor in a predominantly caucasian community I could really say nothing and get away with it, because pointing out the fact that white privilege and racism are real things that destroy humanity makes everyone pretty uncomfortable.  

Our nation has become a place where hatred is acceptable, even defended in such a way that oppressing certain groups of people goes unnoticed.  Often the Christian community fails to even recognize it and sometimes, with some really horrible scriptural interpretation, Christians actually perpetuate or enhance the divide.  I am so weary of being represented by this voice, and it is often the loudest one in the political and social landscape.  

This pandemic has put a spotlight on the truth that greed and selfishness are the lenses through which many people and systems operate. This spirit of self-gain at the expense of others is really contrary to the Gospel.  

Jesus was pretty clear about this, in Matthew 25:34-46 

 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?  And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.  For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,  I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’  Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ 

Paul is also clear that prejudice and racist motives have no place in Christ in his letter to the Galatians:

As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise.(3:27-29)

Friends, it is easy to gloss over these things that make us uncomfortable. It is easy to turn our eyes elsewhere or just focus on what we need in this moment.  But getting uncomfortable leads to change, it leads to recognition that as Christians our voices should be the loudest for equality and justice.  God is a God of liberation, he always heard the cry of the oppressed (think enslaved Israelites in Exodus) and he leads them out, offering freedom.  Our voices and motives matter too. It is important that we recognize the inherent privilege we have and that we use it to be a voice for the voiceless. After all, saying nothing....really is saying something.   

Pastor Devon