Stop Racism Right in its Tracks!!

I am long past being tired of hearing the "racist" complaint being used to justify violence and social disruption. Mostly people who talk about racism are the ones who are racist, and yet they dare to blame others. The more you stir the chamber pot, the worse it smells. If you can't stand to ignore it, carry it outside and use it for fertilizer. It's an idea which deserves to be forgotten, unlike the history that retains the lessons that we should have learned by now, but we have failed to teach the whole story.

Let me digress, for an abbreviated lesson:

Slavery was an unjust social system that failed to recognize the value and dignity of every individual. Nonetheless, it was not the same everywhere, nor at all times in history. Indeed, its origins go far beyond ancient, and it is generally wrong to place the blame for it on any people. Christians did not invent it, but were often slaves themselves. The good news of the Christ was deliberately spread among the poor and oppressed in the Roman Empire. Yet, they were told to submit and accept being others' servants, to wait patiently for God to fulfill the time, which they expected to be short. Therefore, they were sometimes trusted, and allowed to earn their freedom.

The Jews remembered having once been slaves in Egypt, and they had rules to keep slaves from being abused, and limited the time they could be held. A man became a slave either by war or economics. A war captive might have been allowed to earn his price and buy his way to freedom. If another became a slave because of failed debt or extreme poverty, he bartered seven years of his life to pay his debts and earn his keep, and that of his family if necessary. At the end of those seven years, he was to be set free, unless he chose to stay with a beloved master. A permanent slave would have a gold ring to pierce his ear. And in time, all debt slaves, as well as all leased and/or mortgaged properties, were to be set free and clear in the year of Jubilee, so that families could start over with a fair chance of success.

In Islam, the oppression of slavery took a really bad turn. No one ever willingly sold himself to a Muslim as a slave, as it was well known how badly they were treated. Muslims were allowed to beat slaves without mercy, or to have sexual relations with their female captives. And they had a habit of castrating male slaves "to protect the virtue of their wives and daughters." Muhammad kept many slaves, and traded them all his life. And he had a favorite, Mary, a Coptic Christian, who was his regular partner, even though he had plenty of wives. Further, the only way to get out of being a slave in Islam is to become a Muslim, which only one of Muhammad's slaves ever did. As it turned out, it was the Muslims who kept the slave markets on the west coast of Africa. They were the source where the Americans bought their slaves, who were captives taken in war, and then brought them to work in both North and South America.

The legacy of slavery in America is far from forgotten. The slaves brought here were often treated as no more than work horses or mules, and were bred and sold like cattle. Many were abused without mercy. And here, it somehow came to be a curse passed on to later generations, as few would believe that a black man was freed. No one should try to make excuses for the institution of slavery in America. But not all slave owners were cruel, and some continued to care for their former servants after slavery was legally and finally abolished, because "their coloreds" chose to stay nearby. And when they could make it on their own, they were wished well as they departed, often with a debt of gratitude for having been appreciated on both sides.

But it's a cruel world out there, and we seem to have a way of making it harder for ourselves. "Jim Crow" was one of those ways, breeding resentment and hatred. Rather, there should have been efforts to uplift those who needed only a fair education, and the respect that goes to any who would try to make something of themselves. But instead, racism has been perpetuated far past its supposed expiration date.

Your patience has been appreciated.

They often say that "a black child has to work twice as hard as a white child in order to achieve the same success." Maybe so, but that is excellent fertilizer. Today, it is often the children of the poor, struggling to get by, who try harder and achieve success and respect. The better your achievements, the more respect you deserve, and your worthy contributions will eventually overcome the prejudice. Stop whining about racism. It only serves to provoke hatred. Get up and work on improving your character. Perhaps some day soon, God willing, a man will be fairly judged by the content of his character, and not by the color of his skin.

If we complain that having to work twice as hard is not fair, that's only a matter of perception. Life is difficult for most people, and always has been. Diligence and struggle, and the pursuit of knowledge and wisdom, have been the real keys to success for thousands of years. This does not come easy for anyone. If another person has wealth, they have worked hard and been blessed, or they have other problems that strike at their peace of mind. Lots of folks, whites included, don't work very hard on their character, and as a result, they are turning out "plenty ornery." It's a great disappointment for the people who care about them. Don't you let your Grandma down, "Act Christian, for Jesus' sake!"

As for the perception that blacks have to "give in, in order to get along" and they have to compromise the values they care about ... that's just whining. All I have to say about that is, "welcome to the real world." This is not an issue unique to your race, nor common only among those who are oppressed and downtrodden. It's just ordinary life for all in a civilized society. Everyone has to give a little, just to get by from day to day. And our values are so valuable precisely because we have to struggle to maintain and rebuild them when they are eroded by the powers and social pressures that we all face in dealing with our civil institutions.

The only directly effective way to deal with racism in our daily lives is to suppress its impulses within ourselves. Every time those thoughts and feelings arise, stop, and take a deep breath. Don't act on them.  And don't teach these sentiments to your children. Don't justify your anger. God knows when we suffer, but He only asks us to pray for those who persecute us. Your enemies may not know that they are perpetuating cruelty. They probably just think it's the usual way of the world, and that only one person can do little to fix it. If that person really is bad inside, God will handle it, and your resistance will only aggravate the situation.

Why do you think that there are people who withdraw from society, to pray for the salvation of the world? Monks and hermits have been aware for thousands of years that life in society demands compromises that are painful to one's conscience. But when they withdraw, it is not to a life of leisure, but to work for their living. They take it for granted that they have to work twice as hard as people in the towns, just to get by every day. And they do that, just so they can spend enough time in prayer, not for their personal salvation, but for the transformation of the world into one that works for justice and peace, and cares for all of its citizens fairly.

And they don't protest even one word about how racism is an unjust and oppressive system. Rather they take the world's woes to God in prayer. And they examine their own lives and consciences to see how much they may be adding to those problems. Confession is good for the soul. Indeed! And repentance is as good for the world as it is for those who stop sinning. Look at yourself, and see the man in the mirror. How much do you need to change?