“George Mason, senior pastor of Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas, addresses the killing of Botham Jean and the problem of white churches not speaking up alongside black churches for justice.

“What is God calling you to risk — of your own life, of your own relationships — for the gospel of Jesus Christ?”

“If we want to call ourselves by the name of Jesus, we have to stop defending things he would condemn.”

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I wrote this post two years ago (September 23, 2016) at the height of Police brutality, black deaths in our streets, and white supremacist protests in this wounded nation:

What puzzles me the most is the “intentional silence” of most White Christians and White Evangelical Churches!

1. In the time of slavery and slave trades, most white churches and white Christians in America were silent.

2. In the era of black lynching, most white churches and white Christians in America were silent.

3. In the period of racial segregation, most white churches and white Christians in America were again silent.

4. In contemporary times of Police brutality and black death, American Evangelical White Christians and White Churches still maintain their silence.

When will White Evangelical Churches and White Christians call evil evil?

When will White Evangelical Churches and White Christians call injustice injustice?

When will White Evangelical Churches and White Christians call wrong wrong?

What good are White Evangelical Christianity and White churches in America in this time of national crisis and black death!

“Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of falsehood,
who draw sin as with cart ropes,
who say: “Let him be quick,
let him speed his work
that we may see it;
…Woe to those who call evil good
and good evil,
who put darkness for light
and light for darkness,
who put bitter for sweet
and sweet for bitter!
Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes,
and shrewd in their own sight!
Woe to those who acquit the guilty for a bribe,
and deprive the innocent of his right!”—Isaiah 5:18-23

I reacted to a question in this manner:

Moreover, this pivotal issue has a lot to do with faith; religion is an important human phenomenon in shaping people’s ethical choices and decisions, worldviews, and social interactions in the world. In particular, I’m addressing “White Evangelical Churches and White Christians” because Christians in general are supposed to be “the light and salt of the world,” according to the Bible. In addition, the greatest commandment besides loving God is to love one’s neighbor, and the call to practice justice, to do good, and walk in solidarity with the weak, the poor, the oppressed, and the disheartened and defend their rights is a central message of the Bible. Finally, I’m speaking both as a human being and christian to my white christian brothers and sisters. Christians are called to live to a higher ethic and an alternative lifestyle in this world.

What do black and brown Christians want from their white (Evangelical) Christians:

We want our white christian brothers and sisters to

1. Fight for social justice–on our behalf;

2. As your brothers and sisters in Christ, we want you to be concerned about our welfare and happiness in this country;

3. Do not ignore us when we’re trying to get your attention about issues that bring suffering, pain, oppression, and death in our lives;

4. Be empathetic and sympathetic toward our pain and suffering;

5. Let the Gospel of grace and love of God be the compass to guide your moral choices and ethical choices, and not your political ideologies and cultural preferences;

6. Do not be in solidarity with white people on the basis of the shared skin color; christian solidarity is grounded on our common faith as Christians and common confession that Jesus is our Lord and Savior.

If the Gospel is not good news to radically transform the social, economic, and political order of the day, then it is not a complete Gospel.

God’s vision for the world is not simply his moving action toward the radical transformation of the human heart and the renewing of the mind; his idea of the new creation encompasses everything, including all the wrong doings and oppressive systems and structures free (human) agents have created in this world, through the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ. God’s redemptive plan does not simply disrupt spiritual darkness; it interrupts all spheres of life–especially the material world.

The Gospel is a holistic effective story for the global world, for the global people, and for the global order of things. This is what makes the Gospel the good news!

In closing words,