Journey For Justice

Church is complex. The same word used for the place where Christians worship, is used for a local congregation, for a denomination and for the universal body of Christ. One word, many meanings. A comprehensive demographic study of more than 200 countries finds that there are 2.18 billion Christians of all ages around the world, representing nearly a third of the estimated 2010 global population of 6.9 billion. Christians make up the largest religious group globally.

There are many who are members of congregations around the globe and those who are church adjacent without membership who would name themselves as Christians – people who believe in Jesus Christ and follow his teachings. Christian identity in this case is tied to commitments, to faith and values, and to adhering to tenets of the faith that guide and inform their daily living. And yet, while all of that is true, being Christian is subjective, with many placing value on interpretations of text and supremacist thoughts and ideologies. Christians are not uniform in their beliefs and have never been that.

A 2016 Pew Research Study on Religion in Daily Life“asked U.S. adults whether each of a series of 16 beliefs and behaviors is “essential,” “important but not essential,” or “not important” to what their religion means to them, personally.” The study found 86% of those surveyed saying belief in God is “essential” to their Christian identity. Lack of agreement is present even on what is essential to the Christian faith. Why then are so many surprised, frustrated, and challenged by the past and current transgressions of those who name themselves as Christians, noting the self-naming and the differences in beliefs and adherence to a set of common values?

Christian Nationalism is one of many ways in which confusion persists (for some) about what it means to be Christian. The identification of the United States as a Christian country, founded on Christian values and one that should be run by a government of Christians invites the questions of whose Christian values and what Christian beliefs are being utilized. And even within the challenges presented by the oxymoronic moniker, Christian nationalism itself is not Christian, while it attempts to weaponize and use Christian scriptures and values as a base for its ideology. It’s anti-immigrant, anti-rights, anti-gender agenda is consistent with the global anti-guts movement which has roots in the global anti-gender or anti-rights movement: “Anti-gender movements are connected to the political shifts witnessed around the globe, away from liberal democracy and towards right-wing populism.”

The League of Women Voters noted: “The global “anti-gender movement” is a well-funded, coordinated, decades-long movement against gender equality and democracy. We can learn how to resist it by studying the tactics it uses to strip people of their human rights and promote authoritarianism.” While Christian Nationalism and nationalistic movements around the globe have manifested with many names, shrouds and ways of spewing fear and hatred, these are by-products of ideologies that persist in eroding democratic values, Christian tenets that cater to love of neighbor and the diversity that is present in countries, communities and values.

Being a Christian is a lived experience, one that centers love over fear and hatred. Identifying as Christian is about following the teachings of Jesus who was himself a Jew, and whose teachings and life pushed back against oppression and the co-opting of religion to support the political will of his day. Being Christian is also about justice, justice that attends to the needs of those who continue to be rendered invisible and marginalized in societies, placing value on the worth, right and dignity of every life. Christian voices should be loudly pushing back against these movements of fear which are evolving from the anti-gender and anti-rights movements.

The complexities of the church are a gift, a place from which unity blossoms and grows. The church as a part of civil society can operate from a place of love, grace and mercy bringing voice and advocacy on behalf of millions targeted by a movement that threatens to destroy the freedoms inherent in the pursuit of human rights and the exercise of democracy. Christian identity should be synonymous with freedom, justice and love rather than supremacist ideologies, fear and hatred.

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