Integration and Advocacy
November 13, 2009
Yesterday I had the privilege of meeting with a group of youth workers and other pastoral leaders from South Africa. As we shared together about several topics, including engaging youth in concern and action against injustice, one of the group members said something that hit close to home.
Talking about racial integration—obviously a tough topic for South Africa—he said, “Our inability to integrate the church cuts off our hands to be able to do justice because the community and the government don’t trust us.”
When schools have integrated and churches haven’t, it silences the church’s voice about injustice. I shared that here in the U.S., the church’s glaring inability to integrate has similarly disabled our role in advocacy and action (and it also doesn’t help that in some communities white Christians have abandoned entire “integrated” school systems).
The good news is that we all have the opportunity to prove public opinion wrong—whatever our color or background. But gaining that voice back might mean facing ourselves and our fears first.
©2009 Fuller Youth Institute