Conference lgp30::christian-perspective

Revival is going strong in many parts of Africa.

Revival is coming to America.

Looks like the African-American can hardly miss revival!

Collis

    My personal feeling Playtoe, is that the same apology made to the 
    Native peoples of North America in note 89 (?) applies to or should 
    apply to the Native peoples, the African-Americans, who were violently, 
    forcibly and inhumanely removed from their native lands and brought here.
    
    The numbers of lives lost in this travesty is another genocide which was 
    sanctioned by the general Christian morality consensus of the day.  
    Perhaps general is not an appropriate word here.  But it was certainly 
    sanctioned by the Christian powers-that-be in those days.
                                            
    Likewise, we have ALL suffered as a result of this degradation of
    human life and spirit, and we continue to suffer.  
    
    Karen 

    
    > African-Americans/Africans/Black People
    
    I hope that they all come to know Jesus of Nazareth.
    
    Jamey
    
    

    Re .2
    
    It was sanctioned by some Christian authorities and condemned by
    others.  The issue rent the church, just as other issues rend the
    church today.  The lines of split were more on economic and
    geo-political lines than on denominational or doctrinal ones.  (No
    surprise there, of course.)  Though some denominations did condemn
    slavery completely.
    
    Earl Wajenberg

    Re: 2
    
    Thank you...all African-Americans need to hear it.  It means a lot.
    
    Playtoe

    How many beautiful African spiritual systems -- like the American Indian
    spiritual systems -- as well as beautiful African ways of life were 
    ruined by Christian "missionaries" over the centuries?   Much of the
    missionary movement, and certainly the slave trade, resulted in and is
    testimony to what happens when high-minded people get a little too
    pro-active in their attempt to spread "God's will" to brothers/sisters
    all over the globe.  Today we can easily look back in hindsight and
    say, "Oh gee.  Slavery and the destruction of these cultures wasn't
    nice."   Or can we?  Religious oppression is still very much alive
    and well at the threshhold of the 21st century, in every continent.  
    It's not just a thing of the past.  It can happen again if we're not 
    careful.
     
    Paul

    Quakers have had a long history of supporting racial equality.  This
    included opposition to slavery.  In 1727, the London Yearly Meeting
    resolved "that the importing of Negroes from their native country is
    not a commendable or allowable practice, and is therefore censured by
    this meeting."  William Wistar Comfort, in his book "Just Among
    Friends", reports that "in 1758 Friends were warned to have nothing to
    do with the unrighteous profits arising from the slave-trade, and in
    1761 anyone persisting in the trade was to be disowned."

    Those who are interested in this subject may want to read the Journal
    of John Woolman.  Woolman was a Quaker who lived in the British
    colonies of North America the mid 1700s, just prior to independence. 
    His Journal documents his decision to actively oppose slavery, and he
    thus actively took up this cause wherever he went.  Thanks in part to
    his efforts, Quakers were among the leaders of the abolitionist
    movement in the United States.  D. Elton Trueblood writes, in his book
    "The People Called Quakers":

        Though Woolman did not carry on his crusade against slavery alone,
        his was undoubtedly the most influential single voice, and soon the
        voice was heard.  Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of 1758 made a
        notable step on the way to ultimate emancipation, partly because
        the simple tailor [Woolman] was able, by his appeal, to move the
        entire body to its depths....The outcome of this crucial encounter
        was that, so far as Quakers were concerned, the tide was turned
        against both the purchase and the continued ownership of slaves. 
        The next step in the strategy was that by which Woolman and others
        went directly to the slaveowners, in order to appeal to them
        personally, rather than to discharge propaganda artillery from a
        distance.  The effort was so remarkably effective that the
        ownership of slaves was made a disciplinary matter by Philadelphia
        Yearly Meeting in 1776.  The system was abolished by law in
        Pennsylvanian in 1780, and New Jersey in 1803.  What was even more
        remarkable was the effect of Woolman and others in the strong
        Quaker communities of the south, where slavery was more deeply
        entrenched and where it was seemingly a necessary element in the
        total economy.  The amazing fact is that, prior to the year 1800,
        more than sixty years before the Emancipation Proclamation, every
        Quaker of North Carolina had liberated slaves.

    Currently, the largest number of Quakers worldwide are located in
    Africa (particularly Kenya).  The book of "Faith and Practice" for the
    Intermountain Yearly Meeting, Religious Society of Friends, has a
    section titled "Equality, a Racial Concern":

        Equality was the earliest Quaker testimony.  What began as an
        understanding that all were equal, and was first manifest in Quaker
        practice that denied class and social distinctions, was expanded
        over time to an early recognition of sexual equality as well.  John
        Woolman's long witness against slavery put Friends at the front of
        an ongoing effort against racial bigotry...

    However, this passage then continues to point out that the struggle
    against racism is continuing, and offers twelve "queries" on racial
    concerns.  These include "Are we aware of the way in which our social
    institutions contribute, and continue to contribute, to racism?" and
    "Have Friends directly or indirectly supported commercial organizations
    that thrive on racial exploration?"
    
    -- Mike

    RE: 6
    
    I was reluctant to bring that up, but since you have, I must say that
    that is a very serious question.
    
    I'm reading a book currently, entitled "Man's Most Dangerous Myth:  The
    Fallacy of Race" by Montagu.  In it he points out that in order to
    counter the Abolitionist's plea to stop slavery as it was not Christian
    to enslave any man, pro-slavery aristocrats and politicians, began to
    advance the belief that "blacks were not human, less than a
    person"...which is reflected in the American Constitution.
    
    The author points out that such a belief justified the enslavement of
    black people as it were.  To reverse such an opinion also would cause
    many Christians to feel guilty about African slavery.   As a result
    such a belief still undergirds the American Mind-set, if you will. 
    That many Americans feel no guilt for black slavery, because at the
    time it was "constitutionally and legally sanctioned".  But does that
    make it right in the sight of God?
    
    Also, I think the potential for a repeat of black slavery hinges upon
    that very belief...for in no other way could Christian Americans ever
    do such a thing again to black people, except that the black man be
    considered less than a person. 

    Not all christians believed in having slaves, in the Methodist church
    there was a division on this and as a result of this and other issues
    we broke away for the Methodist church and formed the Free Methodist 
    church. 
    
    It was not just the christians who were to blame for the slave trade 
    but the secular world as well.
    
    Other countrys are now sending missionaries to North America now.
    The number of christian in Africa are growing every day. There is
    now more christians in the third world country's than there is in
    North America. Praise the Lord, He is adding to His flock.
    
    God see's whats in a mans/peoples hearts. Not his color, only man see's
    the color.
    
    Peace,
    Bill

The story of how slavery became illegal in England is a very interesting
one.  Basically, a Christian member of Parliament felt strongly that this
was immoral.  Year after year he presented a motion to Parliament that
slavery be made illegal.  At first, he received just several votes.  Over
the course of time, his witness and his personal commitment to God were
such that he influenced enough others to that many (about 30?) years after
his first motion, Parliament passed the motion.

(Just thought we should look at the positive as well as the negative.)

Collis

    RE: 9
    
    By no means think that I say "Christians are to blame for slavery",
    because I don't believe that and it is not true.  But, Aristocrats and
    Politicians, Businesspersons involved in industries dependent upon
    slave labor are to blame...but then again not them either, but I
    believe that African slavery to the European/Gentiles was the Will of
    God...and scripture supports that.
    
    Christian missionary work in Africa, facilitated slavery, and
    domination, at first.  The assumption was that Africans did not know
    the true and living God.  
    

    
    Collis,
    
    It was Wilberforce who spent nearly 50 years of his life toward
    abolishing slavery in Britain.  The history is recounted in-depth in
    Charles Colson's "Kingdoms in Conflict" - an outstanding book.
    
    Playtoe,
    
    Are you black?  For some reason I get that impression ;)
    
    Will you answer some questions for me concerning the black church in
    America?  First of all, do you know what the tenets of the African
    Methodist Episcopal Church are?  Isn't this a very dominant
    denomination among blacks?  How did this come to be?  Are there AME
    seminaries?
    
    Also, do you believe that it is appropriate today for the black church
    to be the political center of the black community?  Are there any black
    churches that reject the behaviour of Jesse Jackson strictly on
    Biblical standards? 
    
    And finally, what would you say are the strengths and weaknesses of the
    black church today (from a Biblical point of view)?
    
    jeff

Thanks, Jeff.  I have read "Kingdoms in Conflict" so that is where I read
this story.  I agree, it is an excellent book.

Collis

    re: 12
    

>    Are you black?  For some reason I get that impression ;)
 
    Yes.
       
>    Will you answer some questions for me concerning the black church in
>    America?  
    
    Yes, I will do my best.
    
    >First of all, do you know what the tenets of the African
    >Methodist Episcopal Church are?  
    
    I can get that info for you, by Monday.
    
    >Isn't this a very dominant denomination among blacks?  
    
    Yes and No.  Although it carries a "strong" influence, I believe most
    blacks are baptist.
    
    >How did this come to be?  
    
    The AME church is the oldest black church in America.  It broke off
    from the Methodist church because blacks were tired of sitting in the
    balcony among other issues.  I'll give more elaborate info on Monday.
    
    >Are there AME seminaries?
    
    Not to my knowledge.  They do have a program of study and ministerial
    directives, which take about one year to complete, to become an AME
    minister...I started that program but have never finished.
    
>    Also, do you believe that it is appropriate today for the black church
>    to be the political center of the black community?  
    
    From the traditional African perspective, blacks have never separated
    Church from State.  I hear your question, but it is somewhat like "Have
    you stopped beating your wife", are you saying that this is true, and
    ask me is it appropriate, or are you being "hypothetical".  I don't
    believe the black church is the political center of the black
    community.  Of course, it is in the black church that politicians may
    find black people how vote and are concerned.  But I don't believe that
    political organizations in the black churches constitute the "center"
    of the black political community.  
    
    You may point to black leaders, and the black movements, of the past
    and present, and find a close affiliation between those movements and
    the church, but the black church acts, IMO, much like the Catholic
    church does in cases (i.e. sanctioning positions, pro-issue, but never
    pro-candidate).  Dr. MLK was a minister, and the churches supported
    him, but the movement did not begin, nor was it conceived in the
    church.  No movement has ever been conceived in the black church, to my
    knowledge, but began in the community and was afterwards sanctioned by
    the church, when compatible with the church.  I think black ministers
    are very strict about that...thus, to me, the church does not
    constitute a "center" for the political black community.
    
    I think, in terms of black leadership, black people "trust" men who
    come from the church.  Blacks have more faith in godly leadership than
    "radical/militant" leaders.  The Black Panther party for example, do
    not have great support from the church, because of principles.
    
    Now, the Black Muslim movement/church, has as its objective to "better
    the condition of black people", and they find it fitting to become
    involved in government, as we now witness that effort.  Black
    Christians, however, do not focus as intensely on the "condition of
    black people" but on their coming to Christ and Christianity (that is
    primary to black "Christian" churches; Evangelism.
    
    >Are there any black churches that reject the behaviour of Jesse 
    >Jackson strictly on Biblical standards? 
    
    Not that I know of.  In regards to Jesse Jackson, I feel he is
    respected highly for his "life long" efforts, his association with Dr.
    MLK, and blacks trust him alot.  Also, unless there were "clear"
    deviations on Jesse's part from biblical standards, most blacks will
    not question his behavior in that manner...he's a minister.
    
    
>    And finally, what would you say are the strengths and weaknesses of the
>    black church today (from a Biblical point of view)?
 
    The strengths of the black church from a biblical standpoint, lies in
    "afrocentricity", focusing on the on the upliftment and saving of black
    people from "their" particular sins, as well as those we incur as
    integral parts of American society; the "individual and collective"
    approach of religion.  It's weaknesses, lies in black ministers being
    able to deliver a message not influenced by fear and oppression.  The
    black church has often been accused of neglecting the black condition
    and struggle, (i.e. not feeding the hungry or housing the homeless, or
    contributing to the "real and present" problems blacks face.  The money
    collected by the church is mismanaged.

    

    
    Thank you Playtoe!  I'll be anxious for any other comments you would
    like to make about Christianity and African-Americans.  
    
    If I gave you some of my impressions (and if they were not all
    positive) would you be offended?
    
    jeff

Newsgroups: clari.news.religion,clari.news.group.blacks,clari.news.interest.history,clari.news.top
Subject: Exhumation of potential saint begins
Date: 1 Nov 90 19:17:36 GMT
 
	NEW YORK (UPI) -- The exhumation of the 137-year-old remains of a
former slave began in a Manhattan graveyard Thursday in what the
archbishop of New York described as a step towards the possible
canonization of Pierre Toussaint.
	If canonized, Toussaint, a native of what is now Haiti who died in
1853 after a life dedicated to caring for the sick and poor, including
his former owners, would be the first black American saint.
	The exhumation began in a graveyard adjacent to Old St. Patrick's
Church in lower Manhattan's Little Italy following a prayer ceremony
attended by neighborhood parishioners, reporters and church officials.
	``This could be a great day for the city of New York, not just for
the church,'' said Cardinal John O'Connor, the head of the archdiocese
of New York. ``It would be magnificent if he was eventually declared a
saint.''
	O'Connor said the exhumation begins the process of investigating
Toussaint's life to determine whether the archidiocese will recommend
that he be canonized, but the digging up of the remains does not
guarantee that he will become a saint.
	Toussaint's name can be translated as ``all saints'' in French, and
even though the exhumation began on All Saints Day, O'Connor said it was
a coincidence not planned.
	``We're not trying to preempt anything,'' the cardinal said.
	Church officials did not know how long the canonization process would
take.
	``The church is never in a hurry to do this, because the Church does
not try to create saints,'' O'Connor said.
	Doctors who have volunteered to supervise the exhumation process said
they did not know what to expect once the grave was completely
excavated. They said they would attempt to identify Toussaint's remains
and those of his adopted daughter and wife, believed to be buried with
him.
	``We could find nothing, bones or an entire body,'' said Dr. Victor
Tchertkoff, of the New York Medical College.
	``I've been involved in exhumations before, but nothing this old.
This is unique,'' said Dr. Millard Hyland, chief medical examiner for
Westchester County.
	``We might just find trinkets, like a cross,'' Hyland said.
	Joseph Zwilling, spokesman for the archdiocese, said, ``There's a
remote possibility that we will find his body preserved, and then we'd
have to examine whether that was because of the way he was embalmed, the
soil he was buried in, or some other reason.''
	After the exhumation, Toussaint's remains will be kept temporarily at
a crypt at Old St. Patrick's Church, before being moved to St. Patrick's
Cathedral on Fifth Avenue for re-internment.
	Toussaint was born a slave in Haiti in 1766 to a wealthy plantation
owner who later moved the family to New York. When his owner lost his
fortune in the French Revolution, Toussaint, who attended mass daily,
supported the family by working as a hairdresser for wealthy New
Yorkers. He won his freedom in 1804.
	Toussaint became known for caring for the sick, especially in
sections of the city ravaged by the yellow fever and cholera plagues,
and for his explanations of the Catholic faith.
	Church officials credit Toussaint with lifting some of the religious
and racial prejudice that existed in New York at the time.
	Raphael Grullon, a custodian at Old St. Patrick's for 20 years and a
resident of the neighborhood, said he was proud that his church might
have a saint buried in its graveyard.
	``I say he's a saint, but nobody knows for sure,'' Grullon said.
	``Only God knows.''

    "African American prisoners serve 20 percent longer sentences than
    Whites for similar crimes.  If time served by African Americans
    prisoners were reduced to parity with Whites, the federal system
    would need three thousand fewer cells."
    
    			- Friends Committee on National Legislation

Article          575
From: clarinews@clarinet.com (NED KILKELLY)
Newsgroups: clari.news.religion,clari.news.group.blacks,clari.news.interest.history,clari.news.top
Subject: Exhumation of potential black saint completed
Date: 15 Nov 90 19:26:42 GMT
 
 
	NEW YORK (UPI) -- A forensic anthropologist assisting the exhumation
of a possible saint in a lower Manhattan graveyard said Thursday he was
``encouraged but cautious'' that the remains the former slave have been
unearthed.
	For two weeks, workers have been digging up the grave believed to be
the burial site of Pierre Toussaint, a native of what is now Haiti who
died in 1853 after a life dedicated to caring for the sick and poor,
including his former owners.
	The exhumation, which began Nov. 1, on All Saints Day, in the
graveyard adjacent to Old St. Patrick's Church in Little Italy, was
described by church officials as a step towards the possible
canonization of Toussaint.
	If canonized, Toussaint would be the first black American saint.
	James Taylor, director of the Metropolitan Forensics Anthropology
team at Lehman College in the Bronx, said the remains of an elderly
black man were discovered and removed Tuesday, and a day later, the
skull believed to be that of an elderly black woman was found underneath
the male's remains.
	``We've found a black male who was tall for that period of time who
appears to be elderly, so we're encouraged but cautious,'' Taylor said.
``We feel we might have found Pierre Toussaint but we'll continue to
test to find out.''
	The female skull found was believed to have been that of Toussaint's
wife, who reportedly was buried with him and the couple's adopted
daughter.
	Joseph Zwilling, spokesman for the New York Archdiocese, which
initiated the exhumation, said the fact that such a discovery was made
where Toussaint was believed to have been buried was an ``encouraging
sign.''
	``They have no reason to believe it is not Pierre Toussaint,''
Zwilling said. ``The body was found in the proper place, in one of two
grave sites that we believe might have contained his body.''
	Taylor said he and several other forensic experts were asked by
Westchester County Medical Examiner Millard Hyland to supervise testing
of skeletal remains found during the exhumation process.
	``We're mostly called in at the start of homicide investigations when
there are skeletal remains of unknown persons,'' Taylor said, adding
that his team tests for age, cause of death, race, sex, body height and
weight, and other individual traits, such as a history of disease or
injury.
	``We're doing the same thing here,'' he said.
	Taylor said he and a forensic dentist were set to examine this week's
findings on Friday to determine the ages of the male and female when
they died.
	A complete report on the exhumation's findings was to be delivered to
the Archdiocese, probably sometime next week, Taylor said, to assist
church officials in deciding whether to recommend that Toussaint be
canonized.
	Archdiocese officials have stressed that the digging up of the
remains does not guarantee that Toussaint will be become a saint.

Article          585
From: clarinews@clarinet.com
Newsgroups: clari.news.religion,clari.news.group.blacks,clari.news.interest.history
Subject: Remains of Haiti-born sainthood candidate identified
Date: 18 Nov 90 05:27:34 GMT
 
 
	NEW YORK (UPI) -- The remains of Pierre Toussaint, a candidate for
sainthood who was brought to the United States in the 19th century as a
slave, have been positively identified, said a church spokesman
Saturday.
	``We have been able to identify the remains of Pierre Toussaint at
the cemetery at Old St. Patrick's Cathedral,'' said Joseph Zwilling, a
spokesman for the Archdiocese of New York. ``His remains will be moved,
at some future point ... to the crypt below the main altar of St.
Patrick's on Fifth Avenue.''
	For two weeks, workers had been painstakingly digging up the area
around Toussaint's grave and forensic experts examining the remains.
	Toussaint died in 1853 after a life dedicated to caring for the sick
and poor, including his former owners.
	The exhumation, which began Nov. 1, on All Saints' Day, was described
by church officials as a step toward the possible canonization of
Toussaint.
	If canonized, Toussaint would be the first black American saint.
	James Taylor, director of the Metropolitan Forensics Anthropology
team at Lehman College in the Bronx, said the remains of an elderly back
man were discovered and removed Tuesday. A day later, the skull believed
to be that of an elderly black woman was found underneath the male's
remains.
	The female skull was believed to be that of Toussaint's wife, who
reportedly was buried with him and the couple's adopted daughter.
	Taylor said he and several other forensic experts were asked by
Westchester County Medical Examiner Millard Hyland to supervise testing
of skeletal remains found during the exhumation process, initiated by
the archdiocese.
	Archdiocesan officials have stressed that just having identified the
remains does not guarantee that Toussaint will become a saint.

Article          660
From: clarinews@clarinet.com (DAVID E. ANDERSON, UPI Religion Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.news.religion,clari.news.group.blacks,clari.news.issues.civil_rights,clari.news.gov.usa
Subject: United Church of Christ to issue pastoral condemning racism
Date: 17 Jan 91 18:07:38 GMT
 
 
	WASHINGTON (UPI) -- The 1.7 million-member United Church of Christ
will release the first-of-its-kind pastoral letter, condemning what it
calls the sin of systematic racism and decrying an increase in racially
motivated violence.
	``We call upon every member and local church of the United Church of
Christ to renew our faith in the unity God intends and to increase our
commitment to stem the resurgent tide of racism in our increasingly
multiracial and multicultural society,'' the pastoral letter said.
	The letter, signed by the church president, the Rev. Paul Sherry, and
all other top officers of the denomination is to be formally released in
St. Louis on Friday.
	It will be read from the pulpits of the United Church of Christ's 6,
000 congregations on Sunday, Jan. 20, as the denomination marks the
birthday of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., the slain civil rights
leader.
	More than two years in the drafting, the statement sets forth a host
of soci-economic data showing sharp disparities between whites and non-
whites in education, income, employment status, health care, housing,
crime rates, infant mortality and drug addiction.
	``As a result of this systematic racial discrimination, there are
quiet riots all across the United States in the form of unemployment,
poverty, social disorganization, family disinegration, homelessness,
school deterioration and crime,'' the pastoral said.
	It noted that while racial minorities make up less than 30 percent of
the population, they compose 65 percent of the homeless in America's 30
largest cities and 58 percent of all children living below the poverty
level.
	It also said that reports of racially motivated assaults against
minorities have risen 1,000 percent since 1980.
	The Rev. Ben Chavis, head of the denomination's Commission for Racial
Justice, which played a key role in drafting the pastoral, said the
pastoral is ``a significant statment from a predominantly white church.
A major denomination is sounding an alarm.''
	``If racism is not challenged as a national priority, our society
could explode from within,'' Chavis said in an interview with United
Press International.
	Chavis said the studies documenting racial disparities suggest the
nation is moving toward a ``de facto American form of apartheid'' but he
added that ``the issue today is not not limited to black and white. ...
Rather than two societies (as suggested by the Kerner Commission report
in 1968), there are multiple societies, all separate and unequal.''
	The pastoral letter called on church members to ``affirm that the God
of creation has called all of humanity equally into being without
limitation or discrimination based on race or ethnicity,'' but also to 
``acknowledge the ways in which many of us have benefitted and continue
to benefit from the racial exclusion and exploitation of others in our
political and economic systems.''
	While acknowledging that progress has been made, it said that
nevertheless, ``our church, society and world are polarized today
becasue of the pervasive and destructive sin of racism.''

The following are selected portions from an article in the September-October
issue of The Other Side magazine by Renita J. Weems:

Decades later, as her grandson Howard read to her,...he felt he had to know
the answer to the question that frequently troubled him.  "Why is it that
you do not let me read any of Paul's letters to you?"

She answered without apology.  "During the days of slavery, the master's
minister would occasionally hold services for the slaves.  Old Man Mcghee
was so mean that he would not let a Negro minister preach to his slaves."
This practice was common among slaveholders because they feared rebellion.
"Always the white minister used as his text something from Paul.  At least
three of four times a year he used as a text: 'Slaves, be obediant to your
master...., as unto Christ.'  Then he would show how it was God's will that
we were slaves and how, if we were good and happy slaves, God would bless
us.  I promised my Maker that if I ever learned to read and if freedom
ever came, I would not read that part of the Bible."

How a group interprets the Bible is largely influenced by that group's social
and political class.  It is not a matter of whose interpretation is accurate,
but whose reading is enforced by the dominant culture.  Slaves were taught
that if they remained slaves, the Scriptures favored them, but if they sought
freedom, they were condemned.

Bob,

I don't suppose you could edit this to make it more readable...

				-- Bob

re Note 90.23 by PROTO2::MESSENGER:

> I don't suppose you could edit this to make it more readable...

        I will, since it is a good article.

        But first, I'm going to play around a little with OCR and
        scanner settings (I have found settings that make it WORSE!
        :-{ ).

        Bob

Steven,

	Have you ever been to Africa?  How much time have you actually spent
among the people of Kenya or Sierra Leon or Mozambique or Zaire or Libya?

	See, the reason I ask is you claim:

>    It's
>    clear you don't understand Africanity and don't accept their
>    ideas...not that you have any better ones, and you don't.  But the
>    "rightness of whiteness" makes you arrogantly think so!

	See, from the little you've shared with us, I suspect that you
haven't spent much time in Africa yourself and that all you claim to speak
so sweepingly about has been acquired vicariously.  How far off am I?

Peace,
Richard

    Playtoe,

   I do embrace the idea that there is a common cultural thread throughout
   Africa.  I do not accept the idea that every culture within Africa is
   identical in every respect.  

   Allison

    I think that cultural diversity can be quite interesting.  I am very
    much a part of my own culture, and would not desire to leave it.  As
    much as I may, from time to time, criticize political or social norms
    in the United States, this is the society I know; it is mine, it is a
    part of me even more than my Christian upbringing is a part of me.  I
    certainly don't believe that any culture is perfect, but my culture is
    a part of me.

    The population of North America is predominantly of European descent,
    and its political and cultural institutions reflect a great deal of
    European culture; in that sense, it probably resembles European culture
    more than it does African culture, although the large numbers of
    Americans of African descent have also had an inescapable influence on
    U.S. society.  In the last two centuries, the U.S. has developed its
    own characteristics, unique to itself, that distinguish itself from
    European cultures (note that European cultures exhibit differences
    among themselves as well.)  The U.S. is thus not a European society; it
    is a North American society.  Were I to move to Europe, I would have to
    adjust to a new set of cultural norms, many of the subtle or
    insignificant, but they would exist nonetheless.  In fact, it has been
    something of a cultural transition for me just to move from Colorado to
    Massachusetts.

    It is good to be proud of one's culture, particularly if one's culture
    has been subjected to oppression or discrimination in some sense. 
    However, I also believe that no culture is beyond criticism, that no
    culture can claim the right to be immune from moral examination.  I
    believe, in fact, that to dogmatically contend that one culture is
    essentially beyond reproach, and that all other cultures are
    necessarily flawed in comparison, it seems to me, is to flirt
    dangerously with racism.  The distinction between honest pride and
    ethnocentrism and racism is often subtle, and often not so subtle.  But
    I also think it can be sinful.

    We as fellow humans can and should exercise tolerance for other
    cultures, and appreciate the distinctions between them that are
    innocuous and often quite fascinating.  We can and should also express
    our opposition to oppression and suffering anywhere in the world, and
    should not justify atrocities by claiming that they are simply a
    cultural norm.  At the same time, we should not be afraid to criticize
    our own native culture when it is in the wrong.  And yet this must be
    juggled with a healthy *tolerance* for diversity.  How do we draw the
    line between legitimate diversity and real problems that merit
    criticism?  Is it difficult, or is it rather clear cut most of the
    time?

    I believe, or at least hope, that once we move beyond a simple us
    versus them mentality, we can look towards working with all people
    throughout the world to make the world a more just place, and not take
    offense at the suggestion that one culture or another is not perfect. 
    We can then work together for a common goal of justice *and* tolerance
    for diversity.

    -- Mike

    Re: .28
    
    Nice Mike!  Very nice.....
    
    Marc H.