Why Being “Color Blind” Isn’t The Answer to Racial or Cultural Unity
When talking about racial issues, I’ve heard many well meaning parents say “I teach my children to be color blind.” “They don’t notice the color of someone else’s skin.”
In my mind, I’m thinking “you seriously need to get them checked out”.
I know what they mean when they say it. They want their children to treat others based on character and not color. I love that. But color is beautiful!
Being “color blind” isn’t the key to racial or cultural unity.
I want you to see my color. I want you to appreciate my culture.
I just don’t want you to make assumptions about me and treat me a certain way based on those things. Unity is not erasing the differences between us. It’s embracing the differences while understanding that there is one common ground (foundation) that we all stand on.
Unity requires a common thread that brings us all together. Everyone has to agree on this common thread. Using “love” or “peace” as rallying points haven’t worked so far…and probably won’t work. Everyone has a different interpretation of what those words even mean. And if humankind can’t even agree on what a human is, then we probably aren’t the ones who are capable of creating the foundation for unity. The common ground must be pure, trusted, objective and absolute. It must withstand the test of time, especially in an age of moral relativism.
The gospel is the key. The family of God is a made up of a diverse group of people who have been made one by the blood of Jesus and have all decided that they will live by the dictates of God’s Word…which is inerrant and able to explain itself. One body. One faith, one Lord, one baptism.
Do you see why there’s such an attack on the purity of scripture? There’s an attack on whether or not the bible is trustworthy. There are arguments raised about how objective the bible can really be. And of course there’s the age old argument that “what is true for one isn’t true for all”.
But where else can the foundation for unity come from? Unity requires standards. Standards require morals. If there are no moral absolutes, then no one should seek unity because real unity would be a myth. There must be a “constitution” that everyone lives by.
Unity doesn’t happen because we’re all holding hands and closing our eyes. It happens because we are all focused on the One who holds us all together.
Check out the 3rd verse of this song. It starts at 2:10. If you want it, just click the download button (downward arrow at the top right of the player). It’s free.
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