If you'd like to see for yourself, go here: http://www.tucc.org/, some quotes from their website:
"We are a congregation which is Unashamedly Black and Unapologetically Christian", "We are an African people, and remain "true to our native land," the mother continent, the cradle of civilization."
"Black theology is one of the many theologies in the Americas that became popular during the liberation theology movement. They include Hispanic theology, Native American theology, Asian theology and Womanist theology."
First of all, let me begin by stating that all of us (Americans) ought to be rightly proud of our distinct and varied heritages. I come from, and approach Christianity from, a distinctly Irish background, a people I might add that have been oppressed since the Norman invasion of 1169.
Now we are all familiar with the various 'Christian' theologies, be they Catholic, Protestant, Lutheran, Baptist, etc., theologies divided over theological matters. Should we be practicing 'Christian' theologies that are divided over race? country of origin?
Think long and hard on the connotations of 'White Church', 'White Christian', 'White Theology'.
Now, contemplate labelling yourself as such. Should we have a different reaction to the terms white theology and black theology? Should we be more tolerant of a black theology than a white theology? Don't get me wrong, I am not implying that they are equivalent terms. White theology is indisputably racist, but how racist is a church that identifies itself as "Unashamedly Black"? Is it any less than a church that identifies itself as 'unashamedly white'?
Then imagine hearing the following: "We are a European people, and remain "true to our native land," the mother continent, the cradle of civilization."
It is human nature to form into groups, we tend to group and associate with those 'just like us'. It is why we have Italian neighborhoods, Irish neighborhoods, Chinatowns, and the like. But, is this separatism what we should be striving for? Or should we be embracing a more cosmopolitan philosophy?
Separatism and grouping lend political and social power to our endeavors, a unified group is much more powerful than a collection of individuals. The question then becomes, along what lines should we be grouping? Seen any 'white business councils' lately? If so, what did you think?
In the infancy of our great nation we were Pennsylvanians, Virginians, New Englanders... and this, our founding fathers recognized, was the greatest threat to the new republic. How many people do you know today that identify themselves as a Virginian? Perhaps as a small and insignificant label connotating pride of origin, but not with much meaning attached. If overseas, and asked, you will undoubtedly label yourself an American... why not at home.
Should we not be striving towards unification as opposed to polarization?
The American melting pot seems to be forming layers, do we not need a good politician who can stir the pot.
~Finntann~
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2 comments:
Russian Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Keralite, Mormon, Southern Baptist... there are any number of Christian churches traditionally organized by nationality or culture.
There is no doubt an added charge on anything that looks to segregate black and white people in the US. It's a byproduct of our history. But perspectives of theology ought to be valued for what they can offer rather than efforted into common thought.
I'm not in favor of hate speech in any form. But it is disingenuous to suggest that any terms of white or black have equal meaning in this country. As much as we might wish (or pretend) our histories were the same, we can't fit both into the same mold. And if the heritage you are so willing for all of us to be proud of happens to be African instead of Irish, what exactly is the problem in saying so out loud?
The Russian and Greek Orthodox churches are part of what is known as the Eastern Orthodox Church, regionally defined under the seat of the patriach which governs them. Thus all churches that organizationally fall under the Patriach of Moscow are considered 'Russian Orthodox' be they Russian or not. Likewise Roman Catholic is not a regional or racial distinction but a historical reference to the See of Rome, ie. the Pope, the Bishop of Rome. Irish Catholics are Roman Catholic even though Ireland was never under the civil or military authority of Rome. Mormon, Southern Baptist... none of these churches are regional, racial, or national. There are Mormon Temples and Southern Baptist Churches all over the world.
I have attended services in the Greek Orthodox and Russian Orthodox Church, they preach the theology of Christ...not Greece, that is the difference. I have been in 'Irish' Roman Catholic, 'Italian' Roman Catholic, and 'Hispanic' Roman Catholic Churches... they all preach the same message, they do not preach Irish, Italian, and Hispanic theologies. It is disingenuos to suggest that someone preaching that the US government is directly responsible for the AIDS epidemic as a means of racial genocide is preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ, and is simply doing so, in celebration of their heritage.
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