Gettin' All Up in God's Face

The Reverend Jeremiah Wright, Barack Obama's pastor for twenty years, preaches "black liberation theology." That isn't merely a belief that Jesus was black, and that blacks are the true "chosen race." Most Americans wouldn't have a problem with that kind of faith tradition, whether or not they shared the beliefs. It's the hateful, racist aspects that stick in the craw.

Here, the pseudonymous AsiaTimes writer "Spengler" examines the beliefs of one of Wright's mentors:

Either God must do what we want him to do, or we must reject him, Cone maintains:

Black theology refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people, then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him. The task of black theology is to kill Gods who do not belong to the black community ... Black theology will accept only the love of God which participates in the destruction of the white enemy. What we need is the divine love as expressed in Black Power, which is the power of black people to destroy their oppressors here and now by any means at their disposal. Unless God is participating in this holy activity, we must reject his love. [1]

In the black liberation theology taught by Wright, Cone and Hopkins, Jesus Christ is not for all men, but only for the oppressed:

In the New Testament, Jesus is not for all, but for the oppressed, the poor and unwanted of society, and against oppressors ... Either God is for black people in their fight for liberation and against the white oppressors, or he is not [Cone].

I think prudence dictates a less confrontational approach than the black liberation theologists take toward the Almighty, but that's just me.

Hat tip: larwyn