Rev. Mark Crear, Ph.D., has recently published a book based on promoting racial reconciliation and racial unity among our communities. In the book, Peace Be Still 978-1-950088-90-4, Crear provides knowledge and information that he has acquired during his work experience, presenting readers with statistical facts, real-life experiences, and valuable tools that can help promote and foster racial reconciliation in our society. With the current situation of the country and high racial tensions, it is time that we normalize discussions about reconciliation and unity. Black Americans have suffered generational trauma, oppression, and racism, from every side of our country. It is time to put a stop to all the injustices carried out against them.
Crear discusses the important roles that our churches can play in fostering and promoting racial reconciliation and unity. The Word of God is absolute and the Gospel tells us that God created us, all humans, in His image. But why are we treated so differently? Why are we judged by the color of our skin or the texture of our hair? The Barna Group, who have carried out several kinds of research with different groups, provide their findings to help us understand race and the church:
Christians Disagree on the Problem & the Solution
A previous Barna study showed a gap between ethnic groups on whether racism is a problem of the past; 59 percent of black U.S. adults and 39 percent of white adults strongly disagreed. There was also confusion on whether the Church specifically contributed to that problem. Overall, six in 10 U.S. adults somewhat or strongly disagreed (62%)—black Americans, however, were more likely than white Americans to view Christian churches as complicit (17% vs. 9%).
The current study for Where Do We Go from Here? went a step further, asking respondents how the Church should respond in light of our nation’s 400-year history of injustices against black people. Though responses were fairly distributed, and multiple responses were allowed, 28 percent say “there’s nothing the Church should do.” A full third of white practicing Christians (33%) selects this option, double the percentage of black practicing Christians who feel this way (15%). Instead, the plurality of black respondents (33%) has a clear next step in mind: repairing the damage.
Answers such as repentance (16%), restitution (12%), and lament (8%) are less popular. A surprising number of respondents—across demographics—says they “don’t know” how the Church should respond to the historical mistreatment of black Americans (26% overall). This could represent confusion over the specific options provided, which range from the symbolic to the material, or it could simply be a way of saying respondents are unsure what should—or even what can—be done by churches to help with racial reconciliation.
Data show that older practicing Christians are more likely to say nothing is required of the Church in racial reconciliation (34% Elders, 33% Boomers vs. 27% Gen X, 20% Millennials), while younger generations see a path toward repairing the damage (35% Millennials, 28% Gen X vs. 20% Boomers, 17% Elders) and repenting (23% Millennials, 19% Gen X vs. 11% Boomers, 10% Elders). The younger the Christian, the more they want the Church to do.
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