Fighting Hatred: A Christian Response to Racismनमुना

Day 2: Racism Is Everywhere

It’s easy to look at the issue of racism and just react emotionally to it. When we see people treated unfairly, hurt, or even killed, we could bang our hands down and say, “Injustice must end in the world, and we all have to do something.” We could to do that, or post something on Instagram, adding #BlackLivesMatter, and then pat ourselves on the back because we actually did something about this issue.

But the truth runs a bit deeper than that. Our church is in Canada, and there is a danger for us to look at racial injustice, to see protests happening after a racist incident in the United States, and to point to them and say things like, "Well, thankfully, it's not that bad here in Canada." You might say that, too. “Well, it’s not like that in my city, or my neighbourhood.”

But the truth is that racism is everywhere. Racism is in your country, it’s in your city or town, it’s likely even right in your church, and it is probably right in your own heart. One of our church members immigrated to Canada, and they said, "In Canada, racists, they're really nice. They're polite. They're generous. They're kind. They're generally very good people.” Another member of our church said that they didn't know they were black until they came to our province, Nova Scotia. The problem with that is that it means in our community, racism can be harder to spot, harder to put our fingers on, and harder to call out. We can be blind to it in our lives.

The truth is that racism is all around us. It doesn't always look like a black man dying on the street. Sometimes it comes wearing a suit, it’s in institutions of higher learning, it’s found in our homes, it’s disguised behind humour, it masquerades in politics. But that kind of discrimination is everywhere, including our own hearts.

Prayer:

Lord, we come before you with broken hearts. We are sorry for the ways that we have not heard the cries of your children hurting in our world, and for the ways that we may have contributed to that hurt, by the things that we've said, or by our actions. Lord, we ask that you would change our hearts and open our eyes. Amen.

Reflect:

1. How does it make you feel to consider that there is racism in your community right now?
2. Does your reaction to local racism make it harder or easier for you to understand and respond to it?
3. How can you challenge yourself to find and confront the subtle forms of racism that exist society, your friends, and even within your own heart?