Christians in Black & White and Color- Discrimination

 


He was sickened by the sight of white people freely associating with black and Latino believers and engaging in what he saw as “crude negroisms.” Parham left the revival, insisting that most of those claiming the Holy Spirit’s baptism, merely, were subject to “animal spiritism.” He called the famous “heavenly choir”—the singing in tongues about which many raved—a form of “Negro chanting,” declaring it had nothing to do with Pentecostal Spirit baptism.

           —Estrelda Alexander (2020)


I wrote a chapter on discrimination and abuse within churches in June 2020. That was shortly after Mr. George Floyd died beneath the knee of a white police officer in Minneapolis, MN on May 25th. 


My purpose in this post is to increase the sensitivity of White American Christians involved in healthcare and consulting relationships with Black Christians.


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My wife and I watched the funeral service for Mr. Floyd on TV, which was held at Northcentral University. Soon after that service, I noticed comments about it on my social media accounts. Some appreciated the fact that the school hosted the service. It was indeed a display of friendly Black-White relationships as the White administrators at the school welcomed the largely Black guests.


However, many who identified with the same group of Christians were openly critical of the school and the Black Lives Matter movement. Hateful comments worsened when the riots became national news.


The opening quote by Estrelda Alexander reveals a long history of discrimination and abusive language of Whites toward Blacks since the rise of US Pentecostalism in the early 1900s. Jemar Tisby offers a longer history of discrimination and abuse perpetrated by the White church since the founding of America. 


The bottom line for consultants, clinicians, and service providers is to recognize that the language and policies of White Christians have created barriers to positive working relationships important to consulting, supervising, and caring relationships. 


The emotional abuse continues as evident in the Christian response to the George Floyd service and other examples below.


A few more examples of White-Black insensitivity and abuse


In chapter 7 of Counseling and Psychotherapy with Pentecostal and Charismatic Christians, I included additional examples of racism. See below:


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A Black administrator at a Pentecostal university recalls chairing a meeting and being ignored by the White guest who appeared to unconsciously direct her attention to the others who were White. 

“Slaveboy” was the phrase Black pastor, Dr. Dan Morrison, heard at his church along with the obnoxious, “You only got this job because you are Black” (D. Morrison, personal communication, August 24, 2020).

A reminder that racism continues within Christian cultures, can be seen in the story of a clergyman who risked speaking out against racism in 2020. Bishop Scott Volland was ousted from his church because of his public stance against racial injustice on June 18, 2020 (Mouser, 2020). The pastor’s pain is reflected in what he told the news.

“It has deeply hurt us because this is people that we’ve poured three and half years of our lives into, people that we’ve been with through weddings, weddings of their children, baptisms,” Volland told WCBI News. “They said that what I was doing was shedding a negative light on the church, and I was told my views didn’t reflect many of the views in that church, that they in fact did not only disagree with me being involved, but in many cases disagreed with what I was saying.”

From pages 138-139. 

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Andre Henry reported in an RNS opinion article:

"I was told by former classmates, mentors and friends in the evangelical world — most of them white — that my advocacy for black lives was hateful, heretical and a distraction for Christians. One former classmate, now a senior pastor, looked me in the face and told me, straight up, “racism is not a priority to God.” He was one of many telling me that God would not come to the aid of black people in our fight against racism."

Religious-Political Abuse and Care Concerns

Like the rest of America, Christians were divided in their politics during and after the 2020 election (Gallup). White Christians ought to know that White and Black evangelicals supported different political parties thus, any social media posts have the potential to improve or worsen White-Black relationships. I suggest this is awareness is especially important for chaplains, mental health care workers, general health care workers, educators, and consultants who rely on a position of trust to effectively serve People of Color.


Progress is Real but Slow

 As Tisby has pointed out in his broad look at American Christianity, many Christian groups failed to denounce slavery and, following the end of slavery, too many Christians failed to work against racist laws and policies. 

I know that many Pentecostal leaders and other evangelicals have worked hard to integrate their associations, churches, and schools in recent decades. The point is not to ignore the reality of the progress but rather to highlight the fact that the experiences of People of Color may still include emotional, spiritual, and economic abuse by White Christians.

What to do

As church leaders continue to work toward racial reconciliation and against racism, White Christians involved in healthcare, education, and related human services would do well to review their language and social media posts if they wish to overcome any damage done by insensitive verbal abuse and demonstrate their capacity to provide services to People of Color.

References

Alexander, E. (2020). The other Pentecostalism: Alternative themes in contemporary renewal spirituality. Lanham, MD: Seymour Press. On AMAZON


Mouser, J. (2020, June 26). Pastor Forced to Leave MS Church for Speaking Out on Racial Issues. Church Leaders. https://churchleaders.com/news/377951-heights-church-racial-issues.html 


Sutton, G.W. (2021). Counseling and Psychotherapy with Pentecostal and Charismatic Christians: Culture & Research | Assessment & Practice. Springfield, MO: Sunflower Press.

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