The forth Bible teaching that could be used in a discussion about racism is:
“Love your neighbour as yourself.” (Jesus).
This philosophy is found in the New Testament, it is the second greatest commandment to Christians which shows it is especially important. It is also famously displayed in Jesus’ parable, the ‘Parable of the Good Samaritan.’
In this teaching I would firstly like to explain that to a Christian a ‘Neighbour’ is anyone and everyone. The teaching teaches Christians that they should love anyone, no matter what race, sex or colour they are. It teaches Christians that they should treat everyone just how they would like to be treated no matter who they are. Obviously Christians and everyone would like to be treated with love and respect so this is how they should treat other people. ‘Love also means other things such as compassion, care, kindness and respect. This is how Christians should treat other people.
This teaching shows that racism is wrong because it states that people should treat other people how they would like to be treated. Obviously people don’t want to be racially discriminated, so they shouldn’t be racist to other people as well.
The fifth Bible teaching that could be used in a debate about racism is the Parable of the Good Samaritan. I have shown it as it was told by Jesus.
“A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he travelled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.”
This parable stresses the fact that Christians should care and love for anyone in the world, like the oppressed who can be seen as the beaten up man in the parable. It shows that Christians should not discriminate people on grounds of their race or colour, because this would not be right because everyone is equal no matter what race or colour, and this is not how they would like to be treated.
This parable states that racism is wrong, and Christians shouldn’t be racist. This is because it shows that people should not discriminate others because they are of another race or religion, because everyone is equal in the eyes of God.
The sixth Bible teaching that could be used in a debate about racism is:
“There is no difference between Jews and Gentiles, between men and women, you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (St Paul in N.T)
The above quote is from the New Testament.
Before I analyse this quote I will tell you who the ‘gentiles’ were. The gentiles were people who were strictly non-Jews. The teaching shows that there is no difference between different races of people, or people with different religions.
This teaching importantly states that it is ok to mix with people of different faiths, races, colours and sex because everyone is equal in the eyes of God.
This teaching can easily be applied to racism, because it teaches that there is no difference of people from different races, religions or colour. It shows we were all created by God, and are therefore all equal. It also shows that people from different races, colours and sexes are all united because we were all made by God. In the eyes of God, we are all the same; therefore we should all be treated in the same way with love, care and respect. It gives the message that Christians should not be racist.
The seventh Bible teaching that could be used in a discussion about racism is:
“Love your enemy.” (N.T. Jesus)
The above teaching is taken from the New Testament.
This teaching teaches Christians that there should not be any hatred or antagonism between people of different races, colours, or sexes. It states that even if someone does not like you, you should still love them as you would a friend or someone close to you.
This teaching can be linked to Agape love. Agape love is a Christians or God’s love. It extends to all people regardless of their race, religion, colour or sex. Agape love is unconditional, what this means is that the person that you love, may or may not love you. Agape love is based on respect and equal treatment for everyone no matter what race, religion, colour or sex.
This teaching applies to racism because it tells Christians that they should not discriminate or oppress people that are of different races or religion. It teaches Christians to not hate and antagonise these people in anyway including racially, but to love, care and respect for these other people.
Now I will now analyse two teachings that Christians are guided by through the Church. I will also explain what the implications of the teachings are towards the issue of racism, in a similar fashion to the Bible teachings.
The first Church teaching that could be used in a discussion about racism is:
In the 18th Century, when slavery was at its height, the Quakers refused to have slave owners or trades in their membership.
First of all I will tell you a bit of background information on the Quakers. The Quakers were Christians who believed that something of God (the seed of spirit), existed in all people, including your enemy. As a result of this belief they also believed that everyone was of value.
This Quaker teaching shows us that Quakers believed everyone was equal. This is because they didn’t accept any members who were slave owners or trades. The slaves that were owned by these slave owners were most likely of a different race, religion, colour or sex to the slave owner. By not accepting members who were slave owners the Quakers showed that they didn’t believe in racism. They set an example of no tolerance for racism for other Christians to follow.
This teaching teaches Christians that racism is wrong, and shows them that that all people are equal, this means that no human is inferior or superior to another. This teaching can be related back to the Bible teaching of “All humans are made in the image of God” because this teaching also shows that all humans are equal.
The second Church teaching that could be used in a debate about racism is:
“Whatever our skin colour or background we are one in our common humanity and one in Jesus Christ.”
All are equal before God. To judge anyone adversely solely on account of his or her membership of a racial group is to violate his or her status as a human being. (The Methodist Church.)
First of all I will tell you a bit of background information on the Methodists. The Methodists are a group of Christians; their Church is known as the Methodist Church.
The above teaching by the Methodist Church shows that no matter what a human’s skin colour, race, religion or background is, they are equal to any other human on this earth. The teaching shows that there is no difference between people of different races or religion because they are all made in the image of God. This means that everyone is equal and are all part of the family of God.
The teaching also demonstrates that racism is wrong because the teaching states that if someone is racist to another person, they are violating his or her rights as a human being. If someone violates someone’s status and value as a human being, they are also insulting God because God made us all equal with the same value and worth as a human being.
The teaching shows Christians that it is wrong to be racist because everyone is equal and deserves love, care and respect. The teaching can be related back to the Bible teaching of “There is no difference between Jews and Gentiles, between men and women, you are all one in Christ Jesus.” This is because this teaching also shows that every race and religion are equal and deserve equal treatment.
After analysing seven Bible teachings and two Church ones I have come up with the opinion that Christians should be fully against racism because their teachings are.
R.E Coursework
Racism – Section B
“Explain how Martin Luther King reflected these teachings in his fight against racism.”
One particular Christian who became famous for his work trying to oppose racism was the American Baptist Minister, Dr. Martin Luther King.
Martin Luther King was born in Atlanta, Georgia on the 15th January 1929 in the heart of the American south. In the 1950s and 1960s discrimination in these southern states was common. Racism against black people had been occurring for a long time, and the situation was in danger of becoming like the terrible situation in South Africa. From an early age Martin Luther King became very aware that black people in America were not treated as equals with the white people in America. Four million Africans had earlier been taken from their homes in Africa and shipped to America as slaves. Although slavery had been made abolished by Abraham Lincoln in 1869, most blacks in America still lived in poverty.
Martin Luther King, like many other blacks in the U.S.A faced racism and discrimination everyday. Some white people who formed a secret society called the Ku Klux Klan wanted slavery to be reintroduced, and used violence against black people. He became aware that black people in America only earned half of the white people’s wages. He also grew up knowing that he was not allowed to vote because he was black, and was not allowed full independence because of his skin colour. He found out that black people were segregated from white people in public places. For example, a black person might not have been able to go to the same restaurant or school as a white person.
Martin Luther King grew up with the aim of achieving equality for black people in America. He became a doctor of theology and in 1954 a Baptist minister in Montgomery, Alabama. He became the man that led what was known as the Civil Rights movement, which used non violent methods to accomplish its goal of finding equality for black people in America. Not all blacks agreed with his non violent and peaceful approach. The Black Power movement which was led by Malcolm X believed that the only way in which equality would be achieved was by using violence. Martin Luther King remained campaigning for equality for black people in America until he was assassinated in 1968. His leadership for the Civil Rights movement was essential to the movements success in providing equality for black people in parts of the U.S.A. Martin Luther King became famous for his movement for peace, and is still widely remembered today for what he achieved using non violence.
Martin Luther King believed in equality, this was one of his main beliefs. He wanted black people to have the same rights as white people. One of the most well known events that took place in order to gain the same rights for black people was the ‘bus boycott.’ In Montgomery black people could only sit at the back of the buses, the bus system was so racist that even the old had to give up their seat if a white person asked them to. On 1 December 1955, a tired black woman called Mrs. Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white person. For this ‘offence’ the woman was arrested. Martin Luther King then organized a ‘bus boycott,’ this meant that black people refused to use buses unless they were desegregated. A year later in 1956 the government passed a law making it illegal to segregate people on buses. This movement became known as the Civil Rights movement and in 1960 Martin Luther King became its leader.
A Christian teaching that Martin Luther King applied when campaigning for equality was “Love your neighbour.” This teaching is relevant to Martin Luther King and his actions because it implies that people should treat people how they would like to be treated, no matter what their race, religion or skin colour. It shows that white people should have treated black people like they themselves would have liked to be treated, with respect and love.
A further Christian teaching that Martin Luther King applied when campaigning for equality was “There is no difference between Jews and Gentiles, between man and women, you are all one in Christ”. This teaching is relevant to King’s actions because it means that all humans should be treated the same, no matter what race, religion or skin colour they are. It shows again that the white people should have treated the black people as equals to themselves.
Martin Luther King campaigned endlessly. In 1957 he spoke to a crowd of 40,000 in Washington at a ‘freedom speech.’ He organised various forms of peaceful process. When he and his followers made these protests police often reacted with violence. In 1960 he led a march of a quarter of a million people in Washington demanding that black people were given the right to vote. His peaceful protests were successful and in 1965 black people were given the right to vote.
In 1962 King met President Kennedy and had talks with him asking for a greater understanding of black people. The following year in 1963 he led a march of a quarter of a million blacks and whites, on the capital of Washington. The march was aimed to ease the situation of black people and because it was in favour of the new Civil Rights Bill. The bill became law and showed that his peaceful forms of protest were very effective. In 1965, Martin Luther King met President Johnson and asked for further reforms to remove the remaining obstacles for racial equality. These talks and others like it were successful because laws were brought in that helped to achieve racial equality.
A Christian teaching that Martin Luther King applied when trying to get equal rights for the black people was “All humans are made in the image of God.” This teaching is relevant to King’s actions because it states that all humans are equal no matter what race, religion, gender or skin colour. It suggests that all humans should be treated equally, justly and have the same rights. It shows that the black people should have had the vote, and other rights because the white people did, because all humans are equal, no race is superior to another.
Martin Luther King was a ‘pacifist’ and refused to use violence in any way, shape or form. Throughout his life he was confronted by racism, verbal abuse and physical abuse. King’s home was bombed, he was even stabbed and his family received daily death threats from racist people around the country. To Martin Luther King’s credit he stuck by his beliefs that violence and hatred could only be conquered by love and forgiveness. In 1964 he was even awarded with the prestigious award of Nobel Peace Prize.
A Christian teaching that Martin Luther King applied that made him have has non violent and peaceful beliefs is “Turn the other cheek.” This teaching told Martin Luther King that if people acted hostile and violent towards him, he should never retaliate because that is the wrong thing to do. It shows that if you retaliate you are just as bad as the ones that are violent to you in the first place, and nothing will get solved.
In 1967 America became involved in the Vietnam War. Over 400,000 Americans were fighting in the war and thousand of Vietnamese civilians died during the bloody war. In a Christmas Eve speech made in 1967, Martin Luther King said that humankind “is a child of God made in his image…until men see this everywhere…we will be fighting wars.”
Martin Luther King tried to persuade others that his views were correct by using non-violent methods like marches and speeches. I have given some example of marches earlier in this section. Martin Luther King was also a powerful speaker and used speeches to try and turn his racist enemies away from ignorance and prejudice. He grew up with the dream of uniting all races, religions and colours together in one big family.
King’s most famous speech that is still remembered today is ‘I have a dream.’ Here is part of it:
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin, but by the sort of persons they are. I have a dream that one day…all God’s children, black, white, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the black people’s old song, Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty, we are free at last!”
We can see just from this short extract from his speech that he was a very powerful and passionate speaker who really wanted everyone to be united in love.
A Christian teaching that motivated King to use these loving speeches is “Love your enemy.” This teaching suggests that you should love your enemies, and respect them. If you do this hopefully they will learn to love you as well. This was because he tried to change his enemies’ attitudes rather than force them to give in to his beliefs. He wanted to change his enemies into friends.
Martin Luther King felt that the white people should have treated black people as equals, not inferior second class citizens. King felt that they should have treated black people with love, care and respect, as one of their ‘own.’ A Christian teaching that made Martin Luther King come up with this opinion was “Love the foreigner, for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.” This teaching could be applied to the situation of blacks in America because the black people could be seen as the foreigners from another country. The white people should have loved the black people because their ancestors the Jews were once slaves in Egypt. So the white people should have known how it felt to be discriminated against, so they should have not wanted it to happen to black people like it happened to them. However, it seems that the white people forgot about this teaching because most still insisted on racially abusing the black people.
As I said earlier King used speeches and marches to try and turn his racist enemies away from prejudice and ignorance. Martin Luther King also ultimately believed that Christian ‘Love’ was the only way forward. He refused to support the idea that some radical blacks had, that all white people were evil. Love was the supreme moral form. He believed that Love was the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend. Martin Luther King came up with this idea ultimately from Jesus, because he also did not believe in violence. King tried to model himself on Jesus, so equal rights could be achieved. He also got his beliefs from Gandhi, the great Indian leader who through his protests using non violence, got the British to leave India.
A Christian teaching that supports Martin Luther King’s beliefs on non violence and love for everyone is “Love your neighbour.” This teaching is relevant to Martin Luther King and his actions because it implies that people should treat people how they would like to be treated, no matter what their race, religion or skin colour. It shows black people and white people should have got along, by loving each other and respecting each other.
Another Christian teaching that supports Martin Luther King’s beliefs on non violence and love for everyone is “Love your enemy.” This teaching suggests that you should love your enemies, and respect them. If you do this hopefully they will learn to love you as well. This was because he tried to change his enemies’ attitudes rather than force them to give in to his beliefs. He wanted to change his enemies, the white people, into friends.
Martin Luther King was a great man because we was a man that would not be silent in the face of racism and discrimination, and he put his beliefs into action. He did these things even though that by doing them he suffered great personal cost to himself, and ultimately the loss of his own life. He just wanted everyone to be united. Martin Luther King was shot dead in 1968 by a man called James Earl Ray in Memphis. The world was stunned at his death because he was such a great person. King was only 39 when he died, but during those 39 years of his life, he achieved more than any person could have dreamed of achieving in 100 years.
A Christian teaching that supports Martin Luther on his ideas about not being silent about racism and equal rights for everyone is “Remove the chains of oppression and the yoke of injustice, let the oppressed go free.” This teaching suggests that racism is wrong because it means by being racist, you are oppressing someone because you take away their rights. By taking away their rights, you are also abusing God’s creation because he made everyone equal, in the image of God.
A Christian teaching that supports King in his view that he should help to achieve equality, even though he would have great personal cost to himself is “The Parable of the Good Samaritan.” This teaching supports King because the Samaritan also helped despite cost and risk to himself.
After studying Martin Luther King’s life and achievements I feel he should be remembered as one of the most influential people that united people of the earth in one common cause. He raised the profile of racism, and made sure that people took notice of it and did something about it.
R.E Coursework
Racism – Section C
“All the people in the world are equal and should be treated the same.”
Before I agree or disagree with the statement I want to state that I will be splitting the statement into two parts. The first part which I will agree or disagree with is “All the people in the world are equal.” The second part which I will agree or disagree with is “Everyone should be treated the same.”
“All the people in the world are equal.”
I mainly agree with this statement for many reasons. The main reason for agreeing with the statement is that by being humans everyone is equal and deserve certain basic human rights. Some of these basic rights that I believe that all humans should have are clean water, food, shelter and clothing. This is not always the case though because some unfortunate people do not have these things we take for granted. Another right that all humans should have is to have a life free from discrimination; they should also have the right to freedom and the right to live. There are also some other basic human rights that I have not mentioned.
Another reason why I agree with the statement is that I believe that “All Humans were made in the image of God.” This is a Christian teaching, and although I am not a Christian I believe in this teaching. ‘Image of God’ does not mean that all humans look physically like God. This is because God is not physical being and cannot look like all the humans, because we are all different. However, humans share certain characteristics with God such as freedom, reason and eternal life. This means that all humans are equal, so no-one is inferior or superior to any other humans. This means that all humans deserve the same rights as each other, no matter what race or colour they are from. All humans have the same value and worth because we are all made by God. Although all humans are not the same in physical appearance, all the races of human beings are united because they are all linked mentally and spiritually, and are part of one family.
I also agree with this statement because I believe in the Christian teaching that states all Christian believers are the ‘body of Christ.’ This is a teaching that is present in the New Testament that Paul taught in the Church.
This teaching explains that all believers are equally loved and accepted by God, therefore are all united and equal. This teaching backs up my belief that everyone is equal because it shows that we are all equal.
I also agree with the statement because of another Christian teaching that I believe in. This teaching is one that Jesus taught which was to “Love your neighbour as you love yourself.”
This teaching teaches Christians and whoever else who wants to believe it that they should love anyone, no matter what race, sex or colour they are. This is because a ‘neighbour’ is anyone and everyone. It shows that everyone is equal.
While I mainly agree with the statement I also believe that some people’s actions cause them to not be equal with everyone else. Some people that I don’t consider to be equal are people that are racist, people who murder and commit crimes and people that discriminate. There are also some more types of people who I don’t consider to be equal because of their actions. I will come to this in more detail when I answer the second part of the question, “Everyone should be treated the same.”
There are some people that may choose to disagree with the statement that all people in this world are equal. There are not many reasons for this but one reason is that some people are racist. This means that those racist people believe that one race (most probably their own) is superior to others. They also act badly to people of other races.
Another reason why people may disagree with the statement is that they might say that although we are born equal, we have different opportunities and chances based on family and education etc. For example a child growing up in poor areas of Bangladesh would not have the same chances as a child growing up in most areas of Britain. This is because the Bangladeshi child would have a poorer family that probably couldn’t afford to send him or her to school. The child in Britain would have the right to education by law up until they were 16 years of age, so would be much more educated.
People may also disagree because they might say that ‘positive discrimination’ is sometimes necessary to redress the issue of racism and sexism in the past.
Another reason why people may disagree is the reason I stated earlier. This is that some people’s actions in life cause them not to be equal with everyone else. An example of this is someone who has murdered, they cannot be equal as people who have not murdered because murdering is a huge sin, and is unforgivable in many people’s views.
A Christian’s view on whether ‘All people in this world are equal’ is the same as the view I gave earlier for myself. This is because I believe in all the Christian teachings that affect what Christians believe on this topic. This means a Christian would agree with the statement that ‘All people in the world are equal.’
Now I will say whether I agree or disagree with the second part of the statement.
“Everyone should be treated the same.”
I mainly agree with this statement for a couple of reasons. The main reason being as I said before that I believe that all people in this world are equal in most cases. Therefore if they are equal it is only right that they should also be treated the same.
I believe the Christian teachings “All humans are made in the image of God,” Christian believers are in the ‘body of Christ,’ and “Love you neighbour as you love yourself.” All of these teachings show that everyone is equal and therefore should be treated the same. As I believe in these teachings it means that I also think that everyone is equal and should be treated equally as well.
Although I mainly agree with the statement I also have some reasons for disagreeing with it.
The main reason why I disagree with the statement is that although all humans are equal, some humans also need more help than others and so need to be treated differently. These humans include people who are disabled and people who have learning difficulties. Although they are equal in value and worth as any one of us, it is only fair that these people get more help because they find things harder to do than us ‘normal’ people.
Fair treatment is not the same as equal treatment because the fair treatment for a disabled person is to give them more help, but this is not equal treatment because they are getting more help than others.
Another reason in which I disagree with the statement is that I believe that certain types of people lose their right to equal treatment. These types of people are criminals, and generally bad people who commit a lot of sins. These people are equal, but their actions mean that they should be treated differently to the rest of us. These people do bad things and should be punished for their bad deeds, for example they can be put in a prison. This is different treatment but in this case it is ok because these people have to pay for what they have done.
There are people who will disagree with the statement. Reasons why they might disagree might be the same as the reasons why I disagree with some of the statement. These reasons have been discussed above.
Another reason why people may disagree with the statement is they might say that we may be equal, but we are not the same so we should be treated differently because we all have individual needs.
A Christian would have the same view as me because I believe in all the Christian teachings that affect whether they agree or disagree with the statement. This means that Christians would mainly agree with the statement that “Everybody should be treated the same.”
However, I believe that Christians would also disagree with the statement in the ways in which I disagree with it. These reasons include treating disabled people and criminals differently, by giving more help to disabled people and punishing criminals. (Done in more detail before.)
