The Black Church Should NOT Be Owned By The Dems Or The Republicans
Democrats are the best hope for the Black Church. Republicans are the best hope for the Black Church. If either of these statements are true, where does that leave Jesus?
The political “game” requires stealth, strategy, and in many cases, unscrupulousness. To win the “game,”politicians need to figure out how to form a motivated coalition out of people from various ethnicities, socioeconomic statuses, religions, ages, and backgrounds. To achieve such diversity, competing promises are made, double-speak occurs, and the ambition of the politician becomes greater than his/her concern for the people. These aren’t standard operating procedures for ALL politicians, but a general distillation of what many politicians do during election season.
Dr. King left us a shinning example. He refused to kowtow to any politician or political party. He kept his foot on the gas. After the passing of the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act, much to the consternation of President Lyndon Johnson, Dr. King openly opposed the war in Vietnam. Dr. King could’ve easily aligned himself with Johnson and refused to publicly oppose him, but King’s allegiance was to justice, not to a politician or political party.
Admittedly, being politically independent seems to be naively unassertive given the current governmental crisis our country is in. America has lurched towards fascism and dictatorial rule. Overtly racist policies are being enacted, such as granting asylum to white Afrikaners, while there is an ACTUAL genocide in Sudan. Undocumented immigrants are being treated inhumanely. The US military is being weaponized against US citizens. Gaslighting and lying has become a celebrated political strategy.
Yes, the Church MUST speak out and oppose such wickedness. Yes, the Church must advocate for righteousness, justice and truth. However, what we can’t do is blindly pledge allegiance to the opposition party, simply because they’re the opposition. Remember, if/when the opposition party assumes power, the Church will have to speak prophetically to them, and oppose their corruption and overreach as well.
I had a discussion about this with the president of the AND Campaign, Justin Giboney. Check out the discussion here.