Christian churches all agree and reprove any discrimination on other people. The Methodist church says ‘whatever out skin colour or background we are one in our common humanity and one in Christ. Christians are called to work against racism by becoming aware of it in themselves and campaigning against it wherever they see it in communities. ‘We affirm that racism is a direct contradiction of the gospel of Jesus’.
Christians would say that, if there is no distinction between Jews and Gentiles, slaves and free men, men and women, there is no distinction either between black and white!
Jesus often taught that God’s kingdom was open to everybody. It did not matter whether or not you were Jewish. What mattered was how you responded to Jesus´ request to God’s kingdom. Christians would apply this teaching to whether a person was black or white. They believe that everyone is equal!
Jesus teaches that everyone is your neighbour. In the bible it says, “Love your neighbour as you love yourself ” for Love knows no boundaries. The story of the Samaritan’s compassion is a model for everybody. Racial origins did not matter in this passage; the test was which one loved his neighbour as himself.
Black people have been treated differently to white people, with little respect all through history and racism can be traced back to the 1800´s, where black Africans were sold as slaves to the wealthy Americans. They were bought to replace and to fill the job vacancies that were made when men were killed in the war. Many people today complain that black people have ‘stolen´ the good jobs, when in fact they bought them into the country to fill the job vacancies. Racial prejudice even lead to the starting of the Holocaust and ‘ethnic cleansing´. In the 1960´s black people gained the same rights as white people. This was brilliant news to black people, to finally have the freedom after many years of suffering with unfair employment, housing and education. Then in 1979 a race relation’s act was introduced to ensure equal opportunities for all races.
Explain how Christians may put these teachings into practice.
Racism is very apparent in society today, but there are many teachings in the Bible that suggest that this is very wrong, and should not be happening(see article 3). The Bible is the inspired word of God, and from the Bible we can see that God showed agape love to all of his followers, no matter what race. There are mainly two different ways by which Christians respond to racism. Violent and non-violent. There are a number of well-known Christian pacifists, such as Martin Luther King, Desmond Tutu and Trevor Huddleston. ‘A pacifist is a person who believes that all forms of violence are wrong´. They believe that anything which causes physical pain and suffering is bad, and that there are always other ways of solving the problem.
In the Southern states of America in the 1950´s and 1960´s discrimination and prejudice against black people was very common. People in the black community feared that the situation was going to increase and become like that of South Africa where black people’s earnings were only about half of those of whites. Many blacks did not have the right to vote and certain public places were said to be for "whites only" Martin Luther King was a Christian; he campaigned continually for equal treatments of blacks and whites. He refused to support the idea that white people were all evil, as some black radicals believed. Instead, he taught that Christian love was the way forward. “Love,” he said, is the only strength capable of changing an enemy into a friend. Jesus was Martin’s inspiration; King supported non-violent protests and said that it was the way forward. Martin Luther King was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on January 15, 1929, the eldest son of Martin Luther King, Sr. Martin Luther King Jr. was an American clergyman he became one of the leaders of the American civil rights movement and had the use of non-violent protest to racial oppression. He became a Baptist minister at the age of 18. In 1955 Martin Luther King, who had just received his Ph.D. degree, was asked to lead a bus boycott in Montgomery. The boycott was to protest against racial segregation in public transport after the arrest of Rosa Parks. During the boycott Martin Luther King was arrested and sent to jail, his home was bombed, and many threats were made to him. The boycott ended in 1956. King ensured that non-violence, although not all blacks wanted this, remained the way of protest. He led the historic March in Washington, August 28, 1963, where he said his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. ‘I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today!’ In 1964 King was given the Nobel Peace Prize. By early 1967, King had become part of the anti-war movement and its national white leadership. In 1968 a white man called James Earl Ray shot Martin Luther King dead in Memphis, he was only 39.
Modern day Artists have come up with a campaign that is called Artists Against Racism or AAR. Some famous musicians include Aerosmith, Celine Dion, Lenny Kravitz, Rusty, Mike Myers, Ralph Fiennes, Ricki Lake and Mike Mills. Artists Against Racism is dedicated to all those who are influences in peoples' lives, and to those who have been terribly touched by racism. AAR is a registered, Canadian-based, non-profit organization that produces national and International educational projects for youth. AAR does not represent any one particular religion, ethnicity or race. Any person can be prejudiced, regardless of the 'group' they come from. Nobody is born a racist; racism is learned from family or peers, and then perpetuated.
The example of Martin Luther King is a colour issue because as you have read above, black people were treated very badly and were discriminated against in a very bad way just because they have a different colour of skin. You could compare the black people who were treated badly to leprosy sufferers in the time of Jesus. In the bible it says how the lepers were sent away and left on there own in an isolated area where they were cut off from the rest of the world and were treated badly. Jesus went to the leprosy sufferer’s houses and healed them and this suggests to me that Jesus treated everyone the same and thought as everyone whether a different colour, race or gender completely equal.
God´s people including Christians have a special responsibility to treat people of other races or colour in the right way, for in the bible it says
“Do not ill-treat foreigners who are living in your land. Treat them as you would a fellow-Israelite, and love them as you love yourselves. Remember that you were once foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God”
“Every one is equal and must be treated exactly the same.”
Do you agree?
David’s answer – No because everyone is not equal because they have different capabilities, but every one still has the right for equal opportunities. All people are created equally in the eyes of God and have the right to be treated with dignity and respect, but equality will never exist because of who their parents are.
Sara’s answer – this is something I can’t answer yes or no. it depends on circumstances yes everyone is equal. Every one is equal in the eyes of god and should be in our eyes
Rick’s answer – yes because at the end of the day we’re all humans with different abilities.
Conclusion
In conclusion I think that prejudice in any form whether it is racial, gender or colour is wrong. No person in the world should be discriminated against. The effect to overcome racism has become widely spread in the human conscience. All discrimination must be stopped. The Church is completely opposed to prejudice and discrimination and wants to change the hearts of people and offer the Church as a place of understanding
