Leap Of Faith

Sunday I had the pleasure of taking a giant leap of faith diving into the stratosphere of Racism. It was a daunting task and responsibility sharing a message on "One New Humanity" for an all Caucasian fellowship especially as an African American male. Race seems to be the avenue in which doors are opening for me to share my story and passion for Gods longing for reconciliation amongst humanity. The message availed our current conditions in relationships with ethnic, class and gender divisiveness rather than living from the heart of Gods intention for human beings. Gods intention being "One New Humanity". The good book says the heart is deceitfully wicked and knows no righteousness apart from God and Godly instruction. The area where we falter greatly is how we see one another and as a direct correlation represents how we see God. God is often viewed as a mystical, creator and far away task master over his creation of humans. That is if you believe a God exist at all. But God is defined by himself as being loving, compassionate and patient wanting all to come to the saving knowledge of a personal relationship with Him and His Son Jesus Christ. This love admonished through a sacrificial desire to offer mankind a way of escaping the consequences for their unwillingness to believe in God. Not just believing He exist but actual belief in Him and His instruction manual for life. Our life now and eternal life with Him in the afterlife.

One such request declares if we truly love God, we are to love one another with an everlasting love. Love God and love thy neighbor as you love yourself. If I am not loving my neighbor it is a reflection of loving God and myself. If I am truly loving myself it is clearly delineated by my exhibition of love for God and my neighbor.

In America there are age old divides along race that have clearly left our society in a quandary and despair. One of the greatest divides is the black and white divide. Hereafter mentioned as African Americans and Caucasians who have not reconciled centuries of oppression and domestic terrorism. I shared a host of examples over 4 centuries of systemic racism and its current operation via a seamless thread woven throughout our infamous existence as a nation of immigrants. You could have heard a pen drop all throughout. I shared how Dr. Mahazarin Banaji of Harvard University and her work and book "Blind Spot" capture humans dysfunction with implicit biases. We discussed our need to accept and identify our own in order to begin a healing process for others to follow. Admitting and accepting we all have biases is the first step. The next step requires we have empathy with others not like us especially along the fracture of the African American and Caucasian experience in America. Without empathy there is no understanding nor acceptance of the heinous nature of our past atrocities against humanity. With empathy we can break down the barriers of trauma for both ethnic groups as we heal and relate with open minds and willing hearts for the future. Only then can we heal what divides us and bring reconciliation to our communities.