Progressive Euroamerican churches claim to seek to build Martin Luther King’s “Beloved Community.” The question for them becomes how to attract people of color to their congregation. Unfortunately, the hope of diversification is more about political correctness than about desegregating the 11 a.m. hour on Sundays.
While I appreciate the overtures made to include people of color into your fold, I must ask: Why do you assume I would even want to worship at your church? After centuries of exclusion, why should I come running now that you think it makes your church look progressive by having a Black or Brown face in the pew?
It is difficult for me to pray while sitting next to the banker charging me an extra point of interest because my last name is Latino. I find it problematic to shout praises to the Lord while being stared at by the police officer who gave me a ticket for driving while under the influence of being Latino. It is challenging to proclaim the mercies of my God while knowing that sitting across the aisle is a parishioner refusing to show mercy toward the undocumented.
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