Thursday, October 11, 2007

From todays reading of "Everything Must Change"

"When the misionaries came to Africa they had the Bible and we had the land. They said, Let us pray. We closed our eyes. When we opened them we had the Bible and they had the land." (the first Kenyan president, Jomo Kenyatta)
I have been told that during the apartheid years, Archbishop Tutu, when speaking to white Christian leaders, would then hold up the Bible and say, "Now, my brothers, based on this Bible you have given us, I call you to give us back our land!"
At that moment, truth and justice would come together: if the truth is that God doesn't play favorites, if the truth is that God is not a racist, if the truth is that land theft and slave labor are wrong even (especially!) when done by people who call themselves Christians, if the truth is that all human beings are created in the image of God and deserve to be treated with equal dignity, even sanctity-then we must face the injustices of our past and seek justice for everybody everywhere. That is the only way that the world of tomorrow will be a better place, and it is the only way to live by the truth. (page 45)
Thoughts...

2 comments:

Kara said...

This is powerful. I want to read this book now!

Matt Brown said...

Is McLaren willing to give up his land & home to the first Native American he meets? Doubtful.