Living in Two Americas

It was never easy being a Hebrew prophet. Once we let go of the notion that the main task of the Biblical prophets was to predict the future (i.e., the End Times) or the coming of Jesus (the first time), we will then begin to appreciate them for their main mission: 

To remind Israel of her covenant relationship with Yahweh with a keen focus on justice and peace.

This was no easy task and certainly required an enormously high degree of courage to withstand the criticism of the citizenry and the vitriol of the political elites. Men like Amos, Jeremiah, Isaiah, and Hosea were not feeble and meek preachers, but rather men animated by the Spirit of Yahweh to speak truth to power. 

Today we need such prophets in America, more now than ever. We need brave souls, men and women alike, to remind us that we aren't quite the “City on a Hill” we think we are.

Author Suzy Hansen does just that by reminding us of a hard truth in a recent article published in the Washington Post:

The Pakistani novelist Kamila Shamsie once observed that there are “two Americas” — one at home and one abroad. The first is the America of Hollywood, work-in-progress democracy, civil rights movements and Ellis Island. The second is the America of coups and occupations, military dictators and CIA plots, economic meddling and contempt for foreign cultures. The rest of the world knows both Americas. But as Shamsie has written, Americans don’t seem aware of the second one at all (italics added).

It’s this first America that I love and is mostly admired by all those living outside our borders. Yet it is the second America that many Americans can’t see and non-Americans living abroad do see and dislike, and perhaps for good reason.

In fact, Suzy Hansen lives and works in Istanbul and certainly has a clearer perspective of what this second America really looks like to those living outside the borders of the “City on a Hill.”

The Hebrew prophets spoke truth to power and many were persecuted for being so honestly forthcoming. They interpreted the signs of the times rather than merely predicting the future. They were deemed unpatriotic and haters of their country. Some suffered extreme hardship for speaking truth to power (e.g., Jeremiah). 

Such modern day prophets as the Russian Alexander Solzhenitsyn, the American Martin Luther King, Jr., the South African Nelson Mandela, and many others understood the dangers of speaking truth to power and each paid a horrible price. 

Both Jesus and John the Baptist spoke truth to power and it did not end well for them. It rarely does for prophets, both ancient and modern.

I love America and because I love her I do not hesitate to critique her whenever I believe it is appropriate to do so. I believe anyone who truly loves America would do the same thing. I’m not talking about mindless complaining or partisan bickering, but rather a hope filled critique whose primary goal is to speak truth to power.

Jesus did warn us however: 

“A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family.”

Like all other nations America is deeply flawed. She falls way short of perfection.  She has skeletons hidden deep in her closet; skeletons that need to be exposed to the light of day. 

These are not easy words to hear. History may offend but it doesn’t lie. I well remember the first time I became aware of my country’s dark underbelly and once the proverbial toothpaste is out of the tube it is impossible to put it back. Once you see it you can’t unsee it.

Kamila Shamsie reminds us of what we Americans fail to see and are simply unable to critique in healthy ways.

Yes I love the first America as anyone should. I love the first America of generosity and open hospitality. I love the first America of freedom of expression. I love the America that the Statue of Liberty invites all to experience. I love the first America of apple pie, baseball, 4th of July celebrations, and the rich tapestry of so much cultural diversity.

I love the first America of medical and scientific innovation. I love the first America in which the ideal is liberty and justice for all, even though we are still working on that wonderful vision.

Yet I am not fond of the second America; the one that is often hidden and not allowed to be seen in public; the one that Americans have such a difficult time seeing, let alone acknowledging. 

I wonder, if the Hebrew prophet Amos were alive today would he speak truth to power? Would he call out the second America and force her to expose herself to an unaware citizenry? Would he challenge the first America to empty ther dirty laundry of the second America in order to promote justice and peace for all?

I happen to think that he would do just that and he probably would be labeled unAmerican and unpatriotic.

The Gospel and Race!

I would like to offer a brief word on the subject of racism in America. Now I have attempted to do this before and failed miserably. I failed because I attempted to discuss racism within the already divisive political environment of today.

In the words of author Michael Eric Dyson, “I was trying to make the message fit the form, when it was the form itself that was the problem.” If I was going to be at least marginally successful in this discussion on American racism I needed to shift my argument from Political/Philosophical platform to Faith/Theological platform. 

So let’s ask ourselves some tough questions:

What would racism look like if it were to bump up against the message of the Gospel?

What could we presume Jesus would say about White Supremacy, Neo-Nazis and other hate groups if he were living today?

What should be my position on the issue of racism as a Christian rather than just an American?

These are not easy questions but deserve an honest answer. In summary the answer to all three questions is:

Racism is antithetical to the Christian faith . . . period! 

By antithetical I mean by its very nature racism is incompatible with the core values of the Gospel. Racism is more of a human issue than a tribal one; more of a theological/moral issue than a political/philosophical one, although there are political implications involved when it is measured against the Christian Gospel. 

Again, in the words of Dyson, my goal in this short essay is to “bear witness to the truth I see and the reality I know” as the result Christ’s claim on my life.

The core teachings of Jesus, as well as other sources within the Christian tradition, have informed me and helped shape my views on such things as racial equality, economic and justice issues, honoring history without idolizing it, and respecting the point of view of those who are not like me (e.g., African Americans or Hispanics or Asians, or even Muslims).

These values provide me a solid framework from which to personally critique and evaluate my own views on racism. 

When I debate the issues of racism from a political, philosophical or even historical perspective I feel like a mouse on a spinning wheel running hopelessly nowhere. When I mix in the ignorance of others, along with my own acknowledged ignorance of the history of racism in this country, I realize just how limiting my views on race can be.

So here are some foundational Christian values that have shaped my views on racism:

God created every human being in his wonderful image. I cannot dismiss another human being solely based on social status, skin color, economic status or religious affiliation, or nationality. I cannot diminish the value of another human being simply because that person is from another tribe or religion or whose skin color isn’t white. I must remind myself that we share something incredibly valuable with one another: We all are wonderfully made in God’s image (Psalm 139:14).

God loves the whole world, not just my particular tribe or nation. I haven’t the authority to suspend God’s love for everyone simply because they look different from me or because they may be an enemy of my nation. I cannot not love those I am told aren't worthy of my love. 

Jesus valued those whom the mainstreamers in his society devalued: women, prostitutes, tax collectors, lepers, the poor, Samaritans, those of other tribes, etc. There were sharp boundaries erected by the Jewish authorities (religious leaders) between themselves and others not like them. The Parable of the Good Samaritan is not as much about being nice to your neighbor (as it is often understood) but rather about how to be a good neighbor to those on the other side of those humanly constructed boundaries, to those unlike ourselves, to our natural enemies.

Jesus didn’t blame the poor for being lazy but rather he reached out to them with compassion and understanding and in so doing extended to them the respect and dignity the Gospel affords them. He certainly did not judge them nor their poverty according to flawed human justice. He actually delivered “Good News” to them (Luke 4: 18).

So that there would be no misunderstanding or equivocation, he told us that the poor would always be with us. So it’s an issue of how to treat them rather than dismiss them as being of no real value.

There is indeed much more to my Christian faith than these few points. But they are enough to provide me a solid foundation or a framework to engage anyone on the topic of racism in America. 

The Gospel is my starting point. 

This is my platform. 

Others may use guns and hurtful slogans to push their views onto others; others may misuse the cross as a symbol for white supremacy or even Nazi ideology, but I prefer to use the symbol of the cross for what it was intended to be: 

The revelation of God’s self-giving love for the whole world—which includes everyone!