The definition of racism: “the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics, abilities, or qualities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races” and the expression of such prejudice”

What this definition is ultimately talking about is “power and control,” the belief that somehow among humans there is a sense of superiority over other people because of skin color and culture and therefore the privilege to rule over another group of people.

Now there are lots of other -isms’s that could be brought up which are just as brutal, unfair and theologically incorrect. However, if we could just get to a place where we really understand what “racism” is and where it takes us, then it is a simply step to eradicating the other -ism’s because they all work the same way.

A few years ago, a good friend of mine, who also is a pastor, lamented to me that he wished the gay community would not be so “in your face” about its issues. We had a pretty loud conversation, fight and argument that ended with me stomping out of his office, slamming the door as I went.

I had ended this hot debate saying, I was actually screaming through my tears, that he, the straight guy, didn't have to spend his every waking moment justifying his very existence as an accepted child of God.

I was so angry that even this friend didn’t seem to get that the forces of the church were against us in such a way it was a fight every day to continue to see a reason to live. To be fair, he later came to my office opened the door and simply said, “I get your point” and we having been fighting this stupidity together ever since.