Yes, I'm embarrassed for Christianity | Joe Phelps
Gov. Matt Bevin’s plan to address violence was a low day for Christianity in Kentucky's Commonwealth.
Moments after his plan was unveiled I was asked for a reaction and responded that the governor’s tepid non-plan was an embarrassment to Christianity.
These harsh words were spoken in frustration in the heat of the moment. But upon reflection, I stand by them.
I’m embarrassed that non-Christians will assume the governor’s plan, couched exclusively in Christian jargon, represents our only response to violence.
It doesn’t.
Perhaps this is the extent of the governor’s understanding of Christian faith. Or perhaps this is the extent of his capacity to govern. Either way, I was embarrassed.
I’m embarrassed that the governor, in his role as governor, lured hundreds of clergy to Louisville’s Western Middle School to discuss his plan to end violence.
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We showed up because this is a worthy, unifying discussion topic. We all grieve urban violence, despair and disregard for life. West Louisville needs the help that a governor can uniquely provide. Governors hold enormous power. Their hands rest on levers that could combat directly and profoundly the root cause of violence: poverty.
Louisville maps displayed the hot spot for violence. It is no coincidence and comes as no surprise to anyone paying attention that the identified area — West Louisville— is the exact area devastated by decades of national, state, and local policies favoring white communities and leaving black West Louisville to fend for itself. Jim Crow laws. The G.I. Bill. Bank redlining. Social security. All designed for whites to prosper - but not blacks. Systemic, governmental racism. Christians can acknowledge these sins and, like Luke’s story of Zacheus the tax collector, make financial reparations.
With few or no resources, poverty grew in West Louisville.
The governor’s topic was violence. Violence is the child of poverty. Poverty is the child of systemic oppression, of which our city, state, and nation are guilty.
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Instead of discussion the governor’s invited clergy from many faiths heard a white conservative Christian worship, which is fine for Christian gatherings, but not for a public meeting convened by the governor in a public school building. Christianity doesn’t force itself on others. We make space for others, including other faiths.
The governor’s unscripted sermon contended that if we got on board with God we could walk through the red sea of human blood just like the children of Israel walked through the parted Red Sea. If only the governor had put the Exodus story in context: God told Pharaoh through Moses to set free the oppressed. Wouldn’t God tell leaders of every age in every nation to liberate the oppressed, even if it requires sacrificing power, as it did Pharaoh?
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As the hour concluded the governor presented his plan: Prayer walks. That is, white people in groups of 10 praying as they walk around poor black neighborhoods.
Yes, I’m embarrassed.
There is power and mystery in prayer, as every clergyperson in that school auditorium would attest. We pray often throughout every day and trust prayer’s sacred power to connect us in ways that allow harmony and healing to flow.
Mature Christianity is formed by prayer in order to advocate for justice for all. We cannot simply pray for problems to miraculously disappear. Christians, like Christ, embody God’s dream. We hear the cries of the poor and, like Moses before Pharaoh, we demand change.
The governor’s answer: more prayer.
As if the only tool at this Christian governor’s disposal was prayer. Talk about hiding the ball.
As if fervent prayers aren’t offered daily by the people in Louisville’s blighted, violent area.
As if a few hours of white prayers will tip the divine scale and resolve a multi-generational inequity that will take generations to undo.
As if transformation can happen without cost, as the governor claimed.
So yes, I am embarrassed. But I am also hopeful. Stemming urban violence will cost money, power, and privilege. In other words it will require sacrifice, a concept familiar to Christians.
Joe Phelps is Pastor of Highland Baptist Church and co-chair of EmpowerWest, a coalition of black and white clergy and churches.
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