I’ve heard people bemoan the fact that the “definition of ‘white supremacy’ has been changed recently.” This can’t be further from the truth. In fact, “white supremacy,” both as a concept and as a term was likely coined by those who racialized themselves as White.
For example, John H. Van Evrie (1814–1896) frequently uses “white supremacy” to not only defend slavery but to also explain why he believed the U.S. was successful in comparison to other nations. In fact, his book “White Supremacy and Negro Subordination” (1868) provides many paternalistic reasons for the subjugation of Blacks, the supremacy of Whites…
Reformed and Evangelical Christians hold gay/same-sex attracted Christians to an untenable and unbiblical standard of sanctification. They place a yoke on gay/same-sex attracted Christians that they would not place on their own necks.
A History Lesson About Sanctification
Historically, the Reformation confessions of faith, while affirming the reality and necessity of progressive sanctification in the life of a Christian, were very careful not to place quantified values on the progress of sanctification.
In other words, in contrast to what was codified in the Council of Trent (see quote from Canon XI below), the Reformers did not schematize gradations of merit…
I remember years ago when a Christian friend confided in me that he struggled with same-sex attraction. He knew that his sexual orientation wasn’t going to magically disappear, but he was fully committed to living a celibate life as an expression of following Jesus.
I remember being completely in awe by his honest recognition of both himself and of the worth of following the Lord. This was a godly brother who was in every way a consistent disciple of Jesus, and this revelation about his same-sex attraction only made me look up to him more.
In 2010, I joined the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, excited that I had found a refuge from the crazy world of Evangelicalism. In 2017, I was seeking for refuge from the OPC and the spiritual abuse I experienced there.
There had been red flags along the way that I didn’t think twice about until after all of the spiritual abuse happened. But what really brought everything out to the light was in 2016 when my family became members of Providence OPC in Temecula, California.
“Trust the Process”
At the time, the church was without a pastor. The former pastor, Jesse Pirschel…
Years ago my family left the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) not only because of the existence of spiritual abuse, bullying, and racism, but because of what little those in power did to address those matters in their pews and in their pulpits.
The sins of commission were painful; the sins of omission and silent complicity were unbearable.
There are good saints still in the denomination, just like in any denomination. …
What can White Christians do in response to anti-Asian racism?
Here are a couple ideas:
1) Educate yourself about Asian American history. Understand the various stories of Asian American identity and the contributions we have made. The PBS documentary “Asian Americans” is a good place to start.
2) Acknowledge anti-Asian racism. This means believing Asian Americans and our stories of racism, pushing against the “model minority myth,” looking at the history of anti-Asian racism, and affirming the data of the recent surge of hate crimes against Asian Americans. Stop AAPI Hate is a good resource.
3) Check in and offer…
Story time. Pull up a chair.
In 2017, I was working for White Horse Inn as one of the leaders of the organization. At the time, I was optimistic that the organization was making strides toward racial justice.
After the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, I waited to see what our editorial team at Core Christianity and White Horse Inn would do to respond. The organization had written on topics related to racism and social justice before, so it was well within the orbit of the organization to respond to this event.
On March 16, 2021 at approximately 5:00 p.m., Robert Aaron Long shot and killed four people at an Atlanta-area spa. Less than an hour later, Long killed four more women at two other spas. Authorities confirmed that six of the victims were Asian women.
After Long was arrested, details began to emerge about his background. Long is an active member of Crabapple First Baptist Church. Up until the day of the shootings, the church’s Facebook page had a video of his testimony and baptism from 2018. He speaks in the video about how he had been baptized in his…
Fashioning Thick-Skinned into a Virtue
In various Evangelical and Reformed Christian circles, being “thick-skinned” is seen as being next in line to the cardinal virtues. To not be easily offended, hurt, or affected by the words and actions of others is placed next to godliness.
Many of us within these circles imbibe this idea and think that the fact that we are not affected by the pain, insults, and lies of others shows our maturity or strength. “I don’t let things really get to me” is a badge of honor many of us wear. “I don’t let them get under…
As an editor for a Christian publication and as someone who has served on the leadership of a Christian nonprofit that specializes in content production, I understand a bit about the backend process of what it takes for an article to go from submission to publication. I also am familiar with the post-publication process, which includes social media, engagement through comments, and, when necessary, editorial correction. In my current role, we do our best to be transparent about any editorial changes that happen after publication. …
Timothy Isaiah Cho
Associate Editor for Faithfully Magazine and advocate for Christian proactive justice. https://faithfullymagazine.com/author/timothy-i-cho/
