... I'm in church, (disclaimer: I'm a Christian). We are ringing praise and worshipping God as we do every week , and as we have been led to do for a very long time. Then the worship leader puts up a song slide, and the pictorial on the slide is disconcerting to me - it's a black God in clouds looking down with his muscular arms and black flowing beard. His splendid red garment flows with majesty and he looks really 'God-like'. Problem is, I'm snapped out of my worship mode... I can't seem to worship anymore, but look at the picture!? I soon enough realise the reason- the God in my head and my imaginations is different from the one the picture is presenting to me, and somehow my subconscious is taking notice- cognitive dissonance or something of the sort - the God I've been led to worship and praise; the God I see everywhere and everyday - in books, Bibles, movies, stories as a child etc, is White! More particularly, White-caucasian, not middle eastern or northern African! No, just white!
SoP - February 2015.
Do this small experiment with me; close your eyes... Now think of God the father - not Jesus. Who do u see? Now try imagining him in a different hue. Not much luck I guess .
I've always known and felt this influence of white over black all around me in the signs and symbols used everywhere - purity in white over black sin , black devil and white-light God and angels. I understand how that has coloured a lot of our worlds' ( and my) perception of blackness. I just never realized how it had affected me even in the most intimate and decidedly personal moments like worshipping God.
I don't know what to do with this anymore. I find myself trying to imagine a black or brown God now, every time I try to worship . This is getting quite distracting.,. I wish for the days gone by when I was less conflicted ; when I could worship my God the white man without second guessing which image of him is appropriate and why I couldn't imagine him black or brown. I'm conflicted. I know it shouldn't matter what colour God is, and His presence is all encompassing, and the only thing I need, but I have an active imagination!.
I'm not throwing any blame at history - it is what it is; I'm worried this same thing might be happening to many other people and limiting their experience of God. I'm worried new Christians and younger minds will get to where I am and be unable to manage the conflict between God imagery that look more like like Bob Marley than Micheal Bolton.
I hope it doesn't make them question their faith- I'm not questioning my mine either; I'm just afraid that other people will react differently to this than I do.
I pray your worship stays even if your images conflict .
I have come to realise that my issue is not even the fact that my God is white ; it is that every other imagination of him in a different colour feels inappropriate.!
I need suggestions ... I want my worship back.
SoP - February 2015.
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ReplyDeleteI can understand with you as far as this topic of having the great imagination of Jesus as a white is concern. I have the following reasons to put forward as to why such a stigma is still buried in the minds of most Africans and others.
ReplyDeleteFirst, as an African , my forefathers were tormented, tortured, killed , raped and forced to accept this truth by the missionaries who moved to preach Christianity in Africa. Back in those days Christianity was preached with picture Bibles bearing a white Jesus and often put on walls in churches and homes as a picture of Jesus Christ and God. My grand parents had no choice but to believe this religion and the image that was used to preached it by the white man . This explains why it was later passed upon us and other generations in Africa as Jesus being white.
Secondly, whites were colonizing Africa and so the picture of Jesus was used to illustrate the superiority of the white man and connection to the Almighty God. The pope also was always white and most priests and missionaries as well. Slaves were blacks and most African countries under the white race as well. We as Africans had no knowledge that Christianity started a while ago and was promoted by mostly the white race and didn't present itself as a white-man religion.
In fact those whose who stood up projecting African culture , religion and physical values were killed, severely punished and looked low by the society at that time. Africans were forced to believe all about their new leaders and masters and so believe in their images and that of Jesus to this date. African traditional customs, written texts, kingdoms and religion was destroyed and completely wiped-out . This went on to influence our ways of dressing, bleaching our skin, hair and all to look similar to the white race and so getting to be "christ-like" and civilized.
The Bible says "the truth shall search you free" and even Bob Marley gives us beautiful words such as "if you know your history, you will know where you are coming from", and "emancipate yourself". I rest my beliefs on God and Christ and all He inspired to inspire us and teach us the truth. I presently, have my hair like Bob Marley and not intend to be him but be in love with my self my hair, my race, who God made me to be and have a closer step to what a true negro(African) looks like .
Peter in our Bibles tells us: “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3). In other words, Christ has called us to a life of glory and moral excellence, both here on this earth and in heaven. So we are to live pure and righteous lives for His glory and not the glory of images made by man to represent God. It is His glory and goodness that attracts man to seek life and godliness in Him. It has absolutely nothing to do with the way He looks or the color of His skin.
Paul echoes this in his letter to the churches in Galatia: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). The color of our Savior’s skin has no bearing on our sharing the gospel. Nor should our neighbor’s skin color have any bearing on our imparting the gospel message to him (Romans 1:16).
I stay as a child of God who is beautifully made and will adapt the cultures of my forefathers and not forsake Christ or judge others but stay true and love all. I will never let color or looks of what they world portray as Christ-like to affect my fidelity to the law of Christ.
Chris Muz( Christopher Muzih)
I understand alot of what you said,and some of those possibly are the reasons why my God imagination is what it is. My hope is that however I want to imagine God, it shouldnt jolt me out of my worship , only because of a change in skin colour.
ReplyDelete