A Word from Pastor Lisa: Four Questions for White Christians on the Chauvin Verdict
[God] has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
– Micah 6:8 (NRSV)
On April 29, 1992, I was eating lunch in my middle school cafeteria when I heard a roar from the corner where the black students sat. I saw teachers and administrators rush over to console. The Rodney King verdicts had just been announced. Three of the officers involved in his videotaped beating were acquitted, and the jury failed to reach a verdict on the fourth. One of my clergy friends was serving a church in L.A. at the time, and she remembers vividly the city erupting in riots for six days, resulting in 63 deaths and more than 2,000 injuries.
Fast forward almost 30 years, and we were braced for a similar outcome in Minneapolis as Derek Chauvin stood trial for the killing of George Floyd. With our country’s history, I was shocked that Chauvin was found guilty on all three counts. In our culture of instantaneous communication, individuals and organizations rushed to release statements on the verdict. I invite us to take time to pause, pray, reflect, and act as people of faith with these questions to guide us:
1. What is the difference between accountability and justice? Accountability means holding an individual or community responsible for their actions. Justice means transformation into beloved community, where we treat one another as created in the image of God. From Isaiah to Micah to Jesus, Scripture calls us to “do justice” and to “let the oppressed go free” (Micah 6:8; Isaiah 1:17; Luke 4:18-19). Both Isaiah and Revelation cast a vision of a new heaven and a new earth, where there is no more weeping or mourning, where we “no longer hurt or destroy” on God’s holy mountain (Isaiah 65; Revelation 21). The Chauvin verdict is an act of accountability, but George Floyd’s family still grieves his tragic death. We have a long way to go before justice flows down like the waters for our black and brown siblings (Amos 5:24).
2. How do we transform our blame? It’s easy to demonize Derek Chauvin and to make him a scapegoat for police brutality. Jesus asks, “Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3). As white people, we need to wrestle with our own role in upholding an unjust policing system grounded in the white supremacy of Jim Crow. That doesn’t mean we dismiss all law enforcement officers. I have retired law enforcement in my family, and I know how they put their lives on the line to protect our communities. We can still support officers while calling for massive police reform, such as banning chokeholds, ending qualified immunity, stopping no-knock warrants, and combatting racial profiling and police misconduct. Click here to read more about the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. Click here to take action as a United Methodist.
3. How do we let go of guilt and shame? Guilt says, “I’ve done something bad,” and shame says, “I am bad.” There is no place for guilt or shame in our walk with Jesus. John the Baptist doesn’t say, “Feel guilty about what you’ve done.” He says, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near” (Matthew 3:1). Repentance doesn’t mean languishing in guilt or shame. It means turning around or turning back to God. We don’t confess our sin of racism or light the candle of peace, hope, and justice in order to heap on guilt and shame, which are immobilizing. We confess and pray in order to get our hearts right with God, that we might act in ways that bring about the kingdom of heaven on earth. Click here for some suggestions for concrete, anti-racist actions.
4. Why should our church proclaim that Black Lives Matter? In the ancient world of Jesus, there was no social construct of skin color determining race like we have today. There were, however, people who were ostracized because of their religious or ethnic background. Time and again, we find Jesus hanging out with Samaritans, Canaanites, Gentiles, and many others who were excluded and oppressed. Jesus always sided with the marginalized, which is where I believe he still sides today. Methodist founder John Wesley believed in both personal and social holiness, which is why he encouraged Methodists to serve and advocate for those who are poor and oppressed. A crucial part of our advocacy as 21st century United Methodists is around racism and white privilege. That’s why we hung a Black Lives Matter banner on our church fence last year. It was not popular externally and got slashed by someone(s) in the community. It also faced a handful of internal resistance. I hope we will be able to hang it again as an outward sign of the inward work that continues for us. We have a lot of learning and listening to do to become better allies and advocates for people of color. We have taken small steps like studies and speakers, but there is still much work ahead of us. If you are interested in being part of an anti-racism task force, please contact Pastor Lisa here.
As we sit with the news this week, I invite you to join me in both prayer and action to dismantle racism. May we do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with God as we shape beloved community in downtown Bloomington and beyond.