March 1

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

The media is treating the Attorney General of the United States , Eric Holder's speech as controversial.  I read the entire speech.  http://www.usdoj.gov/ag/speeches/2009/ag-speech-090218.html?loc=interstitialskip    My first reaction was puzzlement - what was wrong with what he said?  He was telling “the truth” and he was telling “the facts.”  Why does the media claim that his speech was a controversial one? – They say that white people would be afraid to talk about the race relations in America , because they would be accused of being “racist” – this seemed to be the main reason.  But I think it is time for every American to acknowledge that we are in need of acknowledging that we are all racist. It is time for all of us to acknowledge that we all have some growing up to do! 

Eric Holder was right to say what he said.  We elected the first African American President, and most Americans are proud of this historical accomplishment and I believe that even those who did not vote for him feel the same way.  Most of us also know that just because we elected a black President, that does not mean that we have conquered racism.  I think that our work has just begun, and Eric Holder's speech was a timely reminder of the importance of race relations in America .  We just cannot ignore the reality of racism in America today.  I believe that the time to deal with this unfinished business of America is now more than ever.

As conscientious Christians, we need to respond to what the Attorney General has said in his speech, particularly as it relates to our race relations on Sundays.  The following is a portion of his speech:

“As a nation we have done a pretty good job in melding the races in the workplace. We work with one another, lunch together and, when the event is at the workplace during work hours or shortly thereafter, we socialize with one another fairly well, irrespective of race. And yet even this interaction operates within certain limitations. We know, by "American instinct" and by learned behavior, that certain subjects are off limits and that to explore them risks, at best embarrassment, and, at worst, the questioning of one's character. And outside the workplace the situation is even more bleak in that there is almost no significant interaction between us. On Saturdays and Sundays America in the year 2009 does not, in some ways, differ significantly from the country that existed some fifty years ago. This is truly sad. Given all that we as a nation went through during the civil rights struggle it is hard for me to accept that the result of those efforts was to create an America that is more prosperous, more positively race conscious and yet is voluntarily socially segregated.”

This is our challenge, isn't it?  Our country is getting more multi-cultural and multi-racial than ever.  But when it comes to socializing with one another after work and nurturing one's spiritual life on Sundays, we are very segregated.  There is Black Church ; White Church , Hispanic/Latino Church, Korean Church , Chinese Church , Japanese Church .  Even the multi-cultural, multi-racial churches which I served over the last twenty five years considered to be racially very “integrated congregations,” were, in fact, segregated – we are together in the same building; in the same sanctuary; but we are not really together.

On one recent Sunday morning during our black history moment, one high school junior shared her pain that she was told by her schoolmate that she did not belong in the school, because she was black.  The school was predominantly white. I was very moved by her speech, and I told her so.  But we, as a church, and I, as a pastor, did not go further.  I now feel responsible after reading Eric Holder's speech that our churches and our society need to start having a dialogue on race relations in America .  We not only need to hear the stories of black persons as well as other racial ethnic persons, but we also need to hear from white persons – their stories – so that we can truly be in dialogue with one another and we can truly be one in Christ.  How can we do that?

Blessing!

Taka