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What is Racism According to the Bible?
Accusations of racism and racist behavior are commonplace in the news today. Many view racism as on the rise in America. Poll data from Gallup indicates that at least some Americans view race relations between whites and blacks at a current low point over a 20 year span. Because racism is a subject prevalent in the public eye, we need to discuss what racism actually is (biblically speaking), and how Christians should think about it. First, let’s talk about how the culture defines racism. According to Merrian-Webster, racism is defined as follows: 1: a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race 2a: a doctrine or political program based on the assumption of racism and designed to execute its principles 2b: a political or social system founded on racism 3: racial prejudice or discrimination…
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Why Everyone Should Discriminate
“We never discriminate!” “Discrimination is evil!” Such cries are part of the culture today, yet I challenge the sanity of such claims. First of all, what exactly is discrimination? Meriam-Webster’s dictionary defines the verb “discriminate” as follows: As transitive verb: • to mark or perceive the distinguishing or peculiar features of • to distinguish, differentiate • to distinguish by discerning or exposing differences: to recognize or identify as separate and distinct As intransitive verb: • To make a distinction • To make a difference in treatment or favor on a basis other than individual merit Can we all agree on one obvious observation? None of these definitions are inherently negative. In fact, the core idea of discrimination comes from the Latin word discriminare, which simply means to divide or separate. In other words, discrimination is simply, in the words of Webster, “making a distinction.” Imagine the nonsensical idea of someone…
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Biblical Thoughts on the Transgender Issue
Over the last few months I have been following the cultural push for transgender equality. One of the biggest arguments for those arguing for transgender rights is that these individuals have the right to declare what gender they really are on the inside. However, is gender a choice, or is it something inherent to each individual’s identity? The Bible is clear on the matter. God created them male and female (Gen 1:26-28). God is intimately involved with the creation process of each individual (Ps 139:13-16). Hence, each human being is endowed by God with their gender, and they ought to accept it as part of the Creator-creature relationship. According to the Bible then, if a child is struggling with their sexual identity, they should not undergo some kind of sexual reassignment surgery. Rather, they should be patient and be allowed to continue to develop. Interestingly, on June 12th, Paul McHugh…