There is a Problem with Critical Race Theory - Josh Grover
There is a Problem with Critical Race Theory - Josh Grover
“…but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.” Jeremiah 9:24
Tools are useful if used correctly. Will you imagine a construction site? What do you see? A hammer? Nails? Wooden boards? A crane? Would you expect to find a worker using a beautiful violin to help properly measure how far someone should drill into the ground? Of course not. The violin is not a tool for measuring a hole in the ground.
On the other hand, imagine that you had the opportunity to experience a concert done by the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Now what do you see? Suddenly you could imagine beautiful violins being played, creating incredible, emotional, and pleasing music. But you would not expect see a construction worker drilling a jackhammer into concrete on stage while the orchestra plays one of Beethoven’s symphonies. Why? Because that tool doesn’t belong there.
If you wanted to build a building, you would hire a construction company and expect them to use tools that would help erect that building. If you wanted to hear beautiful, timeless, classical music, you would purchase tickets to hear professional musicians play music together.
Now think of a thriving, healthy society. What do you see? Do you see leadership exercising sound and wise justice? Do you see neighbors helping and caring for each other? Do you see people pursuing what is true, good, and beautiful? How do we know that these tools (proper justice, love for neighbor, and the pursuit of the true, good, and beautiful) are the right ones? Because we look to the architect and conductor of society, and that Being is none other than God Himself. God has laid out for humanity through the Bible how societies are to function (Psalm 67:4; Proverbs 8:15-16; Roman 13:4, etc.,).
Well, what is true justice? True justice is the punishment of those who fail to meet a moral standard and rewarding those who do achieve that moral standard (I Peter 1:13-16). Why do we have prisons? Because someone failed to meet the standard of a law. Why aren’t you in prison? Well, because you, in the eyes of the American justice system, have met those standards. Thus, the exercise of true justice keeps people from breaking the law and detains those who break it. True societal justice allows humanity to flourish by rewarding the good and punishing the evil based on a proper moral standard.
Now think of the Gospel. The Gospel depends on a proper sense of justice. Humanity has failed to meet God’s moral standard. Therefore, humanity deserves to be punished by God. Yet God, who has met His moral standard, offers to us His righteousness through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Hence, a proper understanding of justice is necessary for the flourishing of a society and for the proper understanding and belief in the Gospel.
Consequently, any system of though which denies a proper sense of justice is a threat to both a healthy society and properly understanding the Gospel because such a philosophy seeks to throw away the tool of justice and replace it with a wrong one. Such is Critical Race Theory. Critical Race Theory asserts that people are morally wrong not for anything that they have done, but rather that they have certain nonmoral characteristics. CRT states that in America, people who are Caucasian (the majority ethnicity), or wealthy, or educated, etc. are oppressing those who part of minority groups, or are poor, or not as educated, etc. CRT replaces the standard of justice with nonmoral rather than moral characteristics. CRT fails to use the moral standard established by God, who is Architect of society and the Gospel, by rejecting the moral standards seen through God’s revealed Word. Therefore, CRT is a threat, an eroding, acid, and a looming enemy to the hope of establishing proper societies and more importantly, a threat to the hope of properly understanding and believing the Gospel. With the assertions of CRT, you cannot build a thriving society or preach the true Gospel any more than you can start a fire by using ice cubes. It is a tool that simply does not belong.
There is a Problem with Critical Race Theory - Josh Grover
There is a Problem with Critical Race Theory - Josh Grover
“…but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.” Jeremiah 9:24
Tools are useful if used correctly. Will you imagine a construction site? What do you see? A hammer? Nails? Wooden boards? A crane? Would you expect to find a worker using a beautiful violin to help properly measure how far someone should drill into the ground? Of course not. The violin is not a tool for measuring a hole in the ground.
On the other hand, imagine that you had the opportunity to experience a concert done by the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Now what do you see? Suddenly you could imagine beautiful violins being played, creating incredible, emotional, and pleasing music. But you would not expect see a construction worker drilling a jackhammer into concrete on stage while the orchestra plays one of Beethoven’s symphonies. Why? Because that tool doesn’t belong there.
If you wanted to build a building, you would hire a construction company and expect them to use tools that would help erect that building. If you wanted to hear beautiful, timeless, classical music, you would purchase tickets to hear professional musicians play music together.
Now think of a thriving, healthy society. What do you see? Do you see leadership exercising sound and wise justice? Do you see neighbors helping and caring for each other? Do you see people pursuing what is true, good, and beautiful? How do we know that these tools (proper justice, love for neighbor, and the pursuit of the true, good, and beautiful) are the right ones? Because we look to the architect and conductor of society, and that Being is none other than God Himself. God has laid out for humanity through the Bible how societies are to function (Psalm 67:4; Proverbs 8:15-16; Roman 13:4, etc.,).
Well, what is true justice? True justice is the punishment of those who fail to meet a moral standard and rewarding those who do achieve that moral standard (I Peter 1:13-16). Why do we have prisons? Because someone failed to meet the standard of a law. Why aren’t you in prison? Well, because you, in the eyes of the American justice system, have met those standards. Thus, the exercise of true justice keeps people from breaking the law and detains those who break it. True societal justice allows humanity to flourish by rewarding the good and punishing the evil based on a proper moral standard.
Now think of the Gospel. The Gospel depends on a proper sense of justice. Humanity has failed to meet God’s moral standard. Therefore, humanity deserves to be punished by God. Yet God, who has met His moral standard, offers to us His righteousness through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Hence, a proper understanding of justice is necessary for the flourishing of a society and for the proper understanding and belief in the Gospel.
Consequently, any system of though which denies a proper sense of justice is a threat to both a healthy society and properly understanding the Gospel because such a philosophy seeks to throw away the tool of justice and replace it with a wrong one. Such is Critical Race Theory. Critical Race Theory asserts that people are morally wrong not for anything that they have done, but rather that they have certain nonmoral characteristics. CRT states that in America, people who are Caucasian (the majority ethnicity), or wealthy, or educated, etc. are oppressing those who part of minority groups, or are poor, or not as educated, etc. CRT replaces the standard of justice with nonmoral rather than moral characteristics. CRT fails to use the moral standard established by God, who is Architect of society and the Gospel, by rejecting the moral standards seen through God’s revealed Word. Therefore, CRT is a threat, an eroding, acid, and a looming enemy to the hope of establishing proper societies and more importantly, a threat to the hope of properly understanding and believing the Gospel. With the assertions of CRT, you cannot build a thriving society or preach the true Gospel any more than you can start a fire by using ice cubes. It is a tool that simply does not belong.