Ethnic and racial unity may be God’s vision for the church but achieving it takes commitment and understanding, says guest ELS speaker Osoba Otaigbe (pictured above).
God created one race
First and foremost, we need to remind ourselves that God created one race rather than many, with different unique features – our skin, eyes, tribes and so on – and what we have in common is far more than our differences.
If we go back to the Bible, that’s very clear. It uses names like ‘Moabite’ and ‘Egyptian’ rather than describing people by skin colour.
With that in mind, I am trying to avoid using the terms ‘black’ and ‘white’. Racism is a sociological construct to justify slavery and colonialism that views certain people as superior or inferior, and if we continue to use terms like this then building unity can be difficult. Instead, I prefer terms like ‘African American’, ‘Caribbean British’ or ‘Caucasian’, ‘Asian’ and ‘African’ to describe people or ethnicity.
Be culturally intelligent
Another initial step is acknowledging, understanding and respecting differences and unique traditions, beliefs and practices of different communities.
To do that, church leaders need to be culturally intelligent, curious and adaptable, developing a good knowledge of one’s culture and those of others.
That’s important if we want to work together. If you come from a community that’s very individualistic, for instance, and you try to build kingdom community with people from a collectivist culture, you’re going to experience culture shocks and issues if you don’t have that capability. It’s also important in terms of cross-cultural mission and sharing the gospel. We need to connect with those we’re trying to reach – not just inside church but in our local areas too. The Great Commission tells us to make disciples of all nations. To do that you need to understand who is in your community; their history, culture, traditions and struggles.
Make way for God’s vision
One big mistake some churches make is not allowing God’s vision to lead them. Instead, most get caught up in human-driven visions.
God’s vision for unity is set out clearly in the Bible. Revelation 7:9, for example, describes “A great multitude that no-one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.”
This shows us how to shape a kingdom community. Let’s not lose God’s vision for our churches and communities.
Get motivated
When God told Jonah to go to Nineveh, he wanted to save its people from their sin, but in Jonah’s mind there was no motivation to do that and initially he refused to go.
Yet the Great Commandment talks about loving God with all your heart and soul and loving your neighbour as yourself.
Loving God is the easy part. We’re also good at loving those who are like us and at helping people who live far away. It can be a huge challenge, however, when people who are different to us are right on our doorsteps. But we can’t love God and not create kingdom unity.
As leaders, we need to connect with and allow God’s vision in the Great Command-ment and Revelation 7:9 to motivate us to build kingdom communities.
Unmute the muted
We need to create an environment which promotes diversity and inclusivity and here I use the term ‘unmute the muted’.
Within church there are groups who are muted. This could be because of power and leadership dynamics, which are often not diverse, or language barriers. People from other ethnicities often speak two, three or four languages and we have to look for ways to involve them in leadership.
Adapt and welcome
Research featured by CNN said the biggest challenge to Christianity’s future in America is not declining numbers but its ability to adapt to migration.
That’s relevant in the UK too. Many cultures and ethnicities are migrating here, but many people step into local churches and are not welcomed.
Churches need to adapt to this migration. In the community in Manchester where I live there are lots of African and Asian families and the Hong Kong community is also growing. Think how good it will be if we can welcome them.
• Osoba Otaigbe is an author and speaker. He works for the Bible Society and Gather Movement and was a Baptist minister in London for 15 years.
