The
United States has made more progress in authentic racial reconciliation than
any other nation. Has there ever been a
black head of state in Europe? How about
prominent business, political leaders, or church officials? How many whites are in power in South
Africa? How many Asians in Russia, or
Okinawans in Japan? That said, the
demonstrations and riots following the Zimmerman trial are articulate evidence
of the ongoing chasm between the races in America. We can say what we like about professional
race baiters and exploiters such as Al Sharpton, but they require raw material
to work with – and such there remains.
So how do we advance authentic reconciliation today?
In
my book, Living As Ambassadors of Relationships, I describe a three-point
process for seeking reconciliation.
Provided both sides are acting in good faith it goes like this. Let both sides present their view of the
issue with all their passion. This does
not include permission for name-calling or putdowns, but stepping lightly
around what we believe leads only to a watered down settlement that compromises
truth. The Son Who came to bring
reconciliation with His Father rebukes the negotiated settlement and calls on
all mankind to find truth in submission to Him as the embodiment of Truth.
Let
both parties listen to and respect the other guy’s view of events as they
demand respect for their own. Jesus
listened patiently to Pharisees, tax collectors and Roman invaders before
weighing in on controversy Himself – whether taxes, forgiveness of sins, or who
gets to live with Him forever and in what capacity.
The last and
most crucial part of the process is to let our Creator and Resurrector God
re-frame the discussion so Truth itself is revealed and accepted – not just one
or another view of it.
That
means people like me need to listen with respect when people like “they” claim
blacks cannot (and will never) get a fair shake in a majority white society and
the Trayvon Martin affair is just one more proof. We need to reflect on the feelings engendered
by the multitudes of blacks hunted down like animals for wanting to escape to
freedom before 1865 and the American courts – including the Supreme Court – who
had no problem defining them as sub-human.
We can add in the multitudes lynched under Jim Crow while Americans from
the grass roots to the White House in both parties said, “They want too much
too fast.” Tempted to cry out against
what we see as irrational attachment to feelings over facts in the Zimmerman
case, we can include incidents like the Rodney King beating and recognize
rampant racism wasn’t that long ago and time does not heal all wounds – or even
any.
But
it first means we address the facts – the truth I understand – of this
case. The facts are that George
Zimmerman followed a young man he believed intent on committing a crime. As a neighborhood watch volunteer – or
concerned citizen – he was doing a good thing, not a criminal thing. Zimmerman’s history includes a public
complaint against Sanford police for covering up the death of a young black man
by the son of a white policeman; there is no racism in him. He was armed, as his concealed-carry permit
authorizes him to be. When he was
attacked by someone much bigger than he; assaulted, bloodied, and told he would
die this night, he defended his life.
None of this is criminal; it is simply the exercise of the right of
every American to walk unmolested and to defend himself when attacked. Whether Zimmerman acted wisely; whether he
disregarded instructions from the police dispatcher, is irrelevant because it
is not criminal. In this case – and we
can consider only this case at this time – only Trayvon Martin committed
criminal acts – and he paid a terrible price for his behavior.
The
third and most important piece in the authentic reconciliation process – again
– is to let One who dies for all re-frame the conversation into what He
understands as truth. He understands
truth better than any of us because He is Truth.
How would Jesus
re-frame the discussion of the Zimmerman trial?
Let’s remember He said not one jot or tittle of the moral law was
abrogated by His death and resurrection.
That includes the part about not bearing false witness against your
neighbor. He also said we are to love
our neighbors as ourselves. That
includes times when loving is hard. It
never allows for a Neener-neener response to the other guy’s pain, even if we
think it deserved. I will explore this
in Part 2 of this post.
James A. Wilson is the author of Living
As Ambassadors of Relationships and The
Holy Spirit and the End Times – available at local bookstores or by
e-mailing him at
praynorthstate@charter.net
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