Race Relations
Published on September 28, 2014
Comments 23

Equality

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I am at Starbucks the other day, and as I sipped my White Chocolate Mocha, this woman and her husband walked in and sat on the couch just in front of me.

I wasn’t eve dropping or anything, neither was trying to be intrusive. Everyone could hear her. She was a that loud.

Very casually, she said to her friend, on the phone – “I rear-ended a car this morning. The guy in the other car was a dwarf. So he stepped out of his car, walked over to mine, and said, ‘Mame, I am not happy.'”

She said she looked “DOWN’ at him and said, “well, I am not sure which one are you?”

Giggles.. giggles… giggles…

After laughing a few seconds with her friend, she looked at me, kind of surprised that I was not laughing at her joke, and said, “hey, would you like to take a look at the bug that invaded my pomegranate tree? They are bizarre.”

I didn’t want her to hear me say, “no Mame, you are bizarre.” So I kept my thoughts to myself and took a look.

I was upset about of the fact that she rear-ended a car, could had hurt or killed the man, and walked away cracking jokes about his height.

Why do we take pleasure in belittling others? Why do we think of ourselves better than others? What is it, within our nature, that seek to humiliate others?

Tribalism
Cast System
Racism – discrimination and prejudice
Stereotypes
Profiling
Bullying
Are all geared toward making others less than who they are – human beings, made in the very image of God.

What is it, that makes us think we are any better than others?

I’ve come to realize that this a disease of the soul that only God can cure. Sometimes we expect too much from people blinded by demons of racism and hate. We fail to realize that only a true conversion, repentance, and redemption can heal a heart of bigotry.

Having said that, I also think each of us need to make conscious efforts to improve our relationship with people who are different from us.

I know what it means to be the only black family in my town. I know what it means to be the only black family in my predominantly white church – the one I pastor. It is amazing to see what God can do when you make the effort to get to know others. You soon find out that your story is not different from their story at all. You begin to see OTHERS clearly.

With just a little effort, Shelby Steel says, a relentless, everyday, earnest and practical sacrifice, we can bridge the ever-widening gap between the races, by an adherence to the principles of fairness and equality.

These principles, “even when somewhat ambiguous, have the power to assign responsibility and knowledge” to help us act wisely and treat others with dignity and respect.

No matter how different we are, we can learn to love one another and see each other clearly. If we can begin to treat each other properly and see each other as equals, in fact, more than that – as the bible says it – “see others as better than ourselves” – we would be on the way to curing the disease of belittling others.

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There are three things I think about every moment of everyday... they consume me deeply. How to: 1. Refine my theological understanding 2. sharpen my ethical rigor 3. and heighten my devotional intensity. These are the things I write about. Welcome you to my blog... Join me on this incredible journey of exploration and discovery of all the things God has in store for His children. Join by following or subscribing. I appreciate your thoughts, comments and friendship. Walter

23 Comments

  1. Lionel Sneed says

    I had to read this again. Thank you for sharing this powerful testimony. It is obvious to me why Jesus teaches that we must love one another.

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  2. Charlena Smith-Dixon says

    During Bible study a point was made that whatever is in us,comes out meaning what we see and hear alter who we are in the inside and what comes out of our mouths (you are what you eat). People who do these degrading things may be acting out what they are surrounded by. People with this problem need to surround themselves around godly people so that they can experience unconditional love,fellowship,and respect. So we Christians need to be bold and speak up in similar situations because if they don’t know any different, they can’t do any different. Awesome post Walter Bright!

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  4. branchl77 says

    This is a human problem from day one and only Jesus (the last Adam) was able to provide an answer to the problem. But sadly religion which is human missed this point of view and keeps the problem alive. Every human wants to be the child of promise. Every human wants to be God’s favorite.

    God who is Father loves all every human equally and until each human can see from God’s point of view there will never be equality. Jesus was sent by God and died for all humans. That is the truth and religion misses that point and that is why the world is in the state it is in. Religion is suppose to be the keeper of truth.

    No-thing can separate us from God’s LOVE. However form a human point of view we can believe we are separated. “Who said you were naked?”.

    Great observation great post!

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    • walter bright says

      I enjoyed reading your comment. Thanks for every line. I hope we could all see others Through the eyes of Jesus. It’s a prayer that I would say many amens to.

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  5. Diane Walter says

    Walter, what you said in this post is the center of my thoughts, always. “… I also think each of us need to make conscious efforts to improve our relationship with people who are different from us.” My tribe-mates of different demographics are wonderful – we expand each other. My difficulty is with the bigots, judges and shamers in my own extended family. I need to be better at gracefully countering while protecting my own heart.

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    • walter bright says

      I understand…
      Those closest to us have the potential to hurt us the most. I know why, but that’s how it is.
      But like you said, we need to learn to be more gracious, as well as protect our heart.

      Thanks for your wonderful thoughts

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  6. Alex the Less says

    She did not really bump a car from the rear (if she did then she probably wouldn’t be making jokes as in most states of U.S. it is automatic fault). This is an old joke (and an offensive one) just being recirculated.

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    • walter bright says

      Hey Alex, thanks for the comment. You are probably right about it being an old joke and a very offensive one too. I don’t think she was lying about rear-ending the other car, though. If she was, than she is a really good liar.

      Stay blessed brother!

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  7. carolynrice says

    I was told about this book by a pastor, it’s called leadership and self deception. She said it wasn’t a Christian book, but it was so a Christian book (her words exactly). It talks about getting out of the box of minimizing others. It kind of goes with your post today. God Bless!

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