{"id":36465,"date":"2024-03-07T20:04:06","date_gmt":"2024-03-08T04:04:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=36465"},"modified":"2024-03-09T12:21:28","modified_gmt":"2024-03-09T20:21:28","slug":"now-i-see","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/now-i-see\/","title":{"rendered":"Now I See"},"content":{"rendered":"

When doing some research for undergraduate assignments I \u2018discovered\u2019 that my home state has incredibly deep racist roots.\u00a0 In 1857 Oregon voted for statehood and adopted a constitution which explicitly said that no free negro or mulatto could legally move into Oregon, own property, or make contracts.\u00a0 Further, the state would make laws to punish and remove any who tried to do so.[1]<\/a> \u00a0This \u2018discovery\u2019 led to the realization that racism was still alive and well in Oregon even though I had not recognized it because of my limited understanding of what constituted racism. I say \u2018discover\u2019 because I found these truths on my own, 15 years ago. Today, the message of ongoing injustice based on bias against race is everywhere, but the important illumination of this reality can be clouded, or even drowned, when incorporated into the full agenda of those who have turned toward redescribing the world using identity categories, such as race, gender, or sexual orientation as the most important lens.[2]<\/a><\/p>\n

In The Identity Trap, <\/em>Yascha Mounk meticulously traces the development of the forceful agenda promoted by proponents of identity synthesis, a term Mounk coined to describe the converging streams of thought resulting in the current normalization of attacks on universal values and neutral rules. The fundamentals of identity synthesis include complete skepticism of objective truth and deep-seated pessimism over western society. It is an ironic trap because the societies which have been most successful at providing all members opportunity for creating their own future are \u201cguided by philosophically liberal emphasis on individual freedom and collective self-government.\u201d[3]<\/a><\/p>\n

When I initially \u2018discovered\u2019 how people I knew were still experiencing outcomes of the hidden racist history in my own backyard, I was ashamed of my ignorance. Initially, I began to share what I had learned and found a receptive audience at every turn. It seemed people who share the belief that \u2018all people are created equal,\u2019 are open to making changes when confronted with new information and evidence that people are experiencing the contrary. 15 years later, conversations like these, related to the experience of any marginalized groups have become more contentious, even impossible.<\/p>\n

God\u2019s people have always been assigned to care for the marginalized and they have always fallen short. But we are not to give up. Then why can it be so difficult to engage in civil discourse, even with Jesus-followers who have been further taught by Jesus\u2019 example how to love and care for neighbors? We claim to believe that every human bears the image of God and that the natural outflow of our love relationship with God is love for others.<\/p>\n

Now I see<\/u> that the reason for resistance is backlash against the forceful agenda being promoted and resentment over being backed into a corner. When one is told that their well-meaning best is merely a smoke screen to cover their desire to maintain power and control, conversation ceases. Another conversation stopper stems from advocates of identity synthesis insisting on the adoption of a complete intersectional framework, including LGBTQ agenda. I encounter many Christians who, because of theological disagreement over this issue, distance themselves from justice work to avoid aligning with liberal theology. My own denomination is becoming increasingly divided.[4]<\/a><\/p>\n

By eliminating universal truth and making group identity the primary factor through which to view the world, group competition ultimately rules. In the radical remaking desired by proponents of identity synthesis, scarcity mindset reigns. When identity in a specific group is more important than identity in the human race, \u201cdifferent communities will always be mired in zero-sum competition.\u201d[5]<\/a> \u00a0\u2018All are created equal\u2019 or \u2018all are created in the image of God\u2019 are examples of universal values that get thrown out when one is more concerned with \u201cmy truth.\u201d<\/p>\n

But I believe in the abundant human capacity for love when sourced by the Spirit of God. Remaking broken systems remains the work of broken individuals who have themselves been remade and I hope to lead others to stay in the work. Principles of universal truth as understood in orthodox Christianity, not identity synthesis, can be our guide. A summary of Mounk\u2019s prescription for working against the identity trap fits right into a Christian playbook.<\/p>\n

First, speak from a position of calm confidence while claiming the moral high ground and avoid being reactionary. This sounds like the perfect opportunity to practice being non-anxious like Jesus and standing on truth. Be humble in disagreement. Jesus taught us to be humble in all things. Play the long game \u2013 the new Heaven and new Earth will come! Finally, no matter what it feels like from the simplistic distillations of media, American society is not a matter of woke vs. MAGA, the middle majority lives on! [6]<\/a> For Jesus-followers, it is not donkey vs. elephant, but the middle way of the Lamb.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language,\u00a0standing before the throne\u00a0and before the Lamb.\u201d<\/em> (Rev. 7:9) Identity synthesis would paint this scene with separate, defined groups. I imagine it with the all the people groups in a joyous profusion of celebration, not only of the Lamb, but of the delights of one another, united as one family with many expressions.<\/p>\n

[1]<\/a> https:\/\/www.oregonhistoryproject.org\/articles\/historical-records\/draft-of-oregon-state-constitution\/<\/a><\/p>\n

[2]<\/a> Yascha Mounk. The Identity Trap: A Story of Ideas and Power in Our Time<\/em>. (London: Allen Lane an imprint of Penguin Books, 2023), 66.<\/p>\n

[3]<\/a> Yascha Mounk. The Identity Trap<\/em>, 23, 255.<\/p>\n

[4]<\/a> Thomas Jay Oord and Alexa Oord, eds. Why the Church of the Nazarene Should Be Fully LGBTQ+ Affirming. <\/em>(SacraSage Press, 2023.)<\/p>\n

[5]<\/a> Yascha Mounk. The Identity Trap<\/em>, 262.<\/p>\n

[6]<\/a> Yascha Mounk. The Identity Trap<\/em>, 272-280.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When doing some research for undergraduate assignments I \u2018discovered\u2019 that my home state has incredibly deep racist roots.\u00a0 In 1857 Oregon voted for statehood and adopted a constitution which explicitly said that no free negro or mulatto could legally move into Oregon, own property, or make contracts.\u00a0 Further, the state would make laws to punish […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":207,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2957,2967],"class_list":["post-36465","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-mounk","tag-dlgp03","cohort-dlgp03"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36465","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/207"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36465"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36465\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36536,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36465\/revisions\/36536"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36465"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36465"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36465"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}