Black Church White Theology

“Black Church/White Theology: How White Evangelicalism Controls the Black Church” by Theron Williams

By Rev. John E. Jackson

In the sacred texts of the Gospel of Matthew are recorded these words: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits.”

There is a political/religious group in this nation, which identifies itself as “Christian Nationalist.” This very term of identification is a betrayal of the religion of Jesus.

No prophet in the Bible ever ranked his social affiliation with any government as equal to, or greater than, the religious allegiance to Yahweh. Prophets spoke truth to power of the governments of which they were citizens.

The term “Christian nationalist” is nothing more than a political ploy to use the religion of Jesus to gain power over other people.

A person’s citizenship to a country is not to be confused or conflated with one’s theological and spiritual connection. They are not synonymous, and they are not the same.

People who identify themselves as Christian Nationalist are in reality people who want the power of the state to control other people’s lives and these people also believe that one race is superior to all other races.

Author of the book, “The Founding Myth, Why Christian Nationalism is Un-American,” Andrew L. Seidel says, “Christian nationalists want to be protected by the law but not bound by the law, while they want everybody else bound by the law but not protected by the law.”

These are “wolves in sheep’s clothing,” and you can identify them by the fruit they bear, like hate speech, violent mindsets and a disrespect for the humanity of people different from them.

That is why it is more important than ever for people of good conscience who truly believe in the Gospel of Jesus The Christ to understand what they truly believe theologically, and why.

There is far too much of what the late theologian Walter Wink called “The Domination System,” which has crept into the Church, and in particular into the Black church.

Wink defines the Domination system as “a social system characterized by hierarchical power relations, economic inequality, oppressive politics, patriarchy, ranking, aristocracy, taxation, standing armies, and war. Violence becomes the preferred means for adjudicating disputes and getting and holding power.” (From Walter Wink, “When the Powers Fall”).

If one has been paying attention to the political landscape, one might note a landscape littered with audacious attempts. People operating out of a domination system mindset seek to legislate a woman’s womb, deny health care to the most vulnerable, and suppress voting rights to Black and brown people. Further, they deny living wages to the working poor, demonize migrants from the southern border but open the floodgates to migrants from the north and east, and seek to ban books they don’t like or in many instances have never read. If one takes note of these attempts you will recognize the trademarks of this domination system on full display.

That is the domination system in this nation on steroids.

It is extremely important for Black people, and all people of compassion and commitment to Jesus of Nazareth, to recognize they have been impacted in their beliefs by this domination system that masks itself as biblical literacy.

It is essential to remember that the Jesus of the gospels healed people without a precondition and without cost. Think about that when insurance companies and pharmaceutical corporations charge exorbitant prices for medical care because politicians are eager to gain profit at the expense of the health of people.

This same Jesus gave the litmus test for entry into Heaven in Matthew 25 with these words, “As often as you did it to the least of these, like feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, and visiting the sick, then you have done it unto me.”

And this same Jesus denounced and sentenced those to hell who did not take care of the least of these.

This same Jesus gave the principles of his ministry as a path for his followers to follow when he quoted from the prophet Isaiah by saying, “The spirit of the Lord is on me because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

It is of the utmost importance for people of faith and in particular Black people to do an inventory of their theological beliefs to see where and how Christian nationalism has seeped into their religious framework.

For instance, I grew up in church singing the hymn, “Onward Christian Soldiers.” When one reads the lyrics carefully, you begin to feel the nationalistic and militaristic mood of the hymn that reflects the domination system spirit of nineteenth century Europe. The hymn was written by Englishman Sabine Baring-Gould in 1871.

I don’t sing this hymn anymore because of its non-Christ-like theme of militarism.

What stands out among so many other things of the nineteenth century was the Berlin Conference of European nations and the United States of America. The participants came together to carve up African nations for their colonization mandate that was to use people as property for natural resources and profit.

That is why I suggest reading the important work of Theron Williams, titled “Black Church/White Theology: How White Evangelicalism Controls the Black Church.”

(My church will use this book this month for Bible study)

It is an important book!

Be encouraged and may you have a glorious New Year in 2024.

Rev. Dr. John E. Jackson, Sr. is the Senior Pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ-Gary, 1276 W. 20th Ave. in Gary. “We are not just another church but we are a culturally conscious, Christ-centered church, committed to the community; we are unashamedly Black and unapologetically Christian.” Contact the church by email at [email protected] or by phone at 219-944-0500.