The Christian White Identity

Within Christian circles, most pastors and theologians do not think it appropriate to have a racial or ethnic identity because the idea is that the Christian’s identity in Christ is supreme and any other identity will diminish our union with our Lord. These Christians leaders will accommodate people having some ethnic identity but only to a small degree and usually not within the church setting. Of course due to current societal pressures, these leaders usually make exceptions for some minority groups. However for white European people, the idea of ethnic solidarity is dismissed immediately. These accommodations to minority groups but not to white people highlight the contradictory thinking of these leaders. These internal inconsistencies usually result from fear of criticism and even ostracism. Many Christian leaders lack the internal strength of character when it comes to these matters. The viewpoint of this posting is that this rejection of ethnic identity is an error.

The error of rejecting ethnic or racial identity comes from an erroneous view of identity as a “zero-sum game”. That is, the idea is that a person with a strong racial identity will necessarily have a diminished Christian identity. This is false. As we move through life we have many identities; some we are born with and some we acquire. These many identities do not compete with each other but rather add together to form a complete person. For example a Christian may also have an identity as a husband and also a father. In addition we also can have a national identity and have a connection to the nation in which we live. One can also have an identity that relates to our job and profession. These identities work in conjunction with each other to define both our relationship to Christ as well as our relationship to and our roles within the family and society. God’s revelation in the Bible does not mandate that we shed ourselves of our various identities. The Apostles of Christ have that identity. The Apostle Paul had a Jewish identity as well as an identity from the tribe of Benjamin (Ro 11:1). We can sense the passion within Paul as he speaks of his Jewish identity.

“I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race, the people of Israel. (Romans 9:2-4)

Certainly Paul’s racial identity did not diminish his identity in Christ.

So for the white person of European descent, our racial identity does not detract from our Christian faith but rather enriches it. We have a rich history of artistic expression in music, art and literature. The hymns and spiritual songs that speak to us have also enriched the church. The art and architectural achievements are beautiful and have added to the Christian religion. These artistic expression come from within us and from within our spirits and are coupled to our racial identity. But it is more than just art. The way we communicate such as gestures, tone of voice, facial expressions, body language, displaying emotions, these come from our racial and ethnic identity. We have concepts of time, roles within the family, modesty, cleanliness, politeness and a myriad of other notions which emerge from our spirit within us. All these add to our complete expression of our faith. This expression in congruent to our nature and it is within these expressions where we can best grow in maturity of our faith.

Finally I will suggest that our racial and ethnic identity is immutable. This is how God created us and it is so intrinsically connected to our minds, hearts and souls that to take away our identity, and our expressions of it, cannot even be conceived. So rather than suppress who we are, embrace it. Let us come together as a people and glorify God in the unique ways that are natural to us.