How Then Shall We Live? - Simpson Lecture Guest Post

This week I invited (OK, "assigned" is a better word...) our Mentored Ministry student, Erica Corbin, to contribute a post based on taking in the Simpson Lectures from Acadia Divinity College last week, where local pastors and community leaders spoke about racism and opportunities to move forward as the people God has called us to be. Here are her reflections:

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Acadia Divinity College hosted its annual Simpson lectures titled "How then shall we live? Racism & The Church" with Rev. Dr. Rhonda Y. Britton and Rev. Dr. Lennett J. Anderson this past week. These lectures were divided into three areas or calls for the church. A call to awareness, a call to accountability and finally, a call to action.

A Call to Awareness

Dr. Britton started the series of lectures with a call to awareness. Beginning her talk with "church, we have a problem!" a problem that should and needs to be a concern for all those who claim to follow Christ and be his disciples. During this first talk, Dr. Britton highlighted many statistics that show the pattern of racism. African Nova Scotians are 6x more likely to be stopped by police in Halifax and 30% more likely to be charged for a crime. They are underserved by the health system with longer wait times and more dismissive attitudes. She also brought up the environmental racism that happened in Africville, ending with people being coerced out of their homes and their community church being bulldozed in the middle of the night. As well she shared some of her personal experiences of racism.

The church has been a part of these racist ideas as well. The African United Baptist association was founded because of the racism and segregation that was happening in white churches. Black members were required to sit in designated areas. They could not hold offices or mingle with the rest of the congregants. Dr. Britton spoke on the fact that the church is supposed to be different, it should be a place where all are embraced, but the problem is that we are shaped by our life experience. We are shaped by the context we live in, and whether we realize it or not, we take that context and experience into the church.

“None of us created the institution of slavery, but we have all been impacted by that history and its lingering effects today."

A Call to Accountability

On night number two, Dr. Britton returned with her lecture "A Call to Accountability." Racist ideas, biases, stereotypes have been ingrained in us for generations. The tricky part is that it takes a long time to get it out of our systems, so we can't afford to avoid the issue. We can't afford not to look at ourselves and see how we have contributed to racial problems in society and our churches. Dr. Britton spoke about how we assess people, which isn't always negative. Still, it seems to be a reflex, and it’s always there, and a lot of the time, those assessments are rooted in bias and stereotypes. Our ideas about race are influenced by these things that often come from media, society, etc. The first thing we need to do is acknowledge our own biases and address that.

Two big ideas that Dr. Britton talked about in this lecture were that the opposite of racist is not “not racists” but instead anti-racist. Meaning that there is not an in-between safe place. Because just simply stating that you are not racist is not enough, "Neutrality is a mask for racism.” To be anti-racist is to stand up for racial equity and equality and confront racial inequity. We cannot stand in the background and not address these things.

The second idea that she touched on that I think is essential is white privilege. I have often seen people get defensive about the term "white privilege," and a big thing about this lecture that I appreciated is that she noted white privilege is not a negative. It is not something to make white people feel guilty, but it is a fact, and we need to be aware of it. White privilege is the treatment we do not receive because of the colour of our skin. White privilege is being given the benefit of the doubt when others are not. A clear example of white privilege is looking at the trucker convoy and how they were treated compared to the peaceful protestors in the Black Lives Matter marches, which were met with violence.

Going back to the church, Dr. Britton used this quote in her talk. "While most white Christians think of themselves as people who hold warm feelings toward African Americans, holding racist views is nonetheless positively and independently associated with white Christian identity," I think this quote should upset us. Clearly there is a problem, and it needs to be addressed now.

A Call to Action

The final lecture of the series came from Dr. Anderson, and it is the final step we are called to action! The calls to awareness and accountability lead to this call of action. All the information we gain leads to transformation. The whole idea of anti-racism is about action. Inaction is an act itself and is not a good one. "Indifference to oppression perpetuates oppression.”

As followers of Christ, we must be advocates for justice. The scriptures that we read about Jesus’ life show that Jesus went against the social norms, He sought out those who were marginalized and sought out justice, and we are called to model him. We are called to do the same. What would Jesus do? “He would disrupt everything that breaks the heart of the father.”

Dr. Anderson lists 7 action steps that we need to take.

1. Assume the posture of humility: We need to listen and understand the depth of racism throughout history and how it is still happening today

2. Embrace the ARC (Awareness, relationships, commitments) Principles: head, heart, and hands.

3. Teach and preach about the image of God: ALL people are made in the image of God, and racism is an insult to this teaching

4. Have discussions with those in your circle: not just a one-time thing, but the ongoing dialogue about this issue

5. Confront and condemn: Again, there is no room for inaction. We need to take action for social justice

6. Move from charity to justice: Understanding the root causes and addressing it "why address the fruit and not the root."

7. Let's get in trouble and make some noise: God is calling you to break the silence and make some noise

“Good trouble is when you speak truth to power. Good trouble is when you decide to break the silence and address the violence. Good trouble is when you leave the 99 and go rescue and support the one. Good trouble is when you refuse to compromise but seek to strategize and fight the good fight of faith. Faith without action is dead, our faith is worthless if it does not call us to act.”

This year's Simpson lectures were a great series and one that is incredibly important for us to hear today. If you have not watched all these lectures, I would highly encourage you to look at them here: https://acadiadiv.ca/event/simpson-2022/ you can find all three lectures as well as Dr. Anderson's chapel sermon and a red sofa conversation between Dr. Anna Robbins, Dr. Britton and Dr. Anderson.