Irreparably Damaged or Fatally Flawed?

Are our black ghettos "irreparably damaged" (Tozer) or are America's white churches "fatally flawed' (Noble)?  Is spirituality without justice cultic Christianity?  Is love without justice cultic Christianity?

A.W. Tozer was a well known spiritual giant of the past century who would spend hours in prayer and worship before his Almighty God.  But Tozer, his church, his gospel failed a crucial test and he and his church fled the scene, in fear and failure.

Tozer and his church were located on the south side of Chicago.  Poor blacks moved in.  Tozer and his church saw these blacks as "irreparably damaged."  So Tozer and his church moved out into the safer spiritual suburbs.

In my opinion, Tozer and his Americanized gospel was fatally flawed, incapable of releasing the oppressed poor, incapable of rebuilding poor communities, unwilling to repent and restitute, incapable of doing kingdom justice.  Tozer's gospel was spirituality without justice, a cultic Christianity.

The three "f'"s---fear, flee, and failure---characterized his white American gospel.  Dozens, hundreds, thousands of times the above pattern has repeated itself in American church history.  White church flight.  According to a Lutheran church pastor (Arthur Simon, Faces of Poverty), over a 40 year period, 40 out of 44 Lutheran churches fled Detroit.

John Perkins has a more biblical gospel that doesn't flee, but instead engages; it is a spirituality with justice, love combined with justice.  It is based on relocation in the community of need--- poor oppressed ethnic communities, reconciliation between black and white, rich and poor, also redistribution of resources or Jubilee justice.

Over the years many whites, including my wife and I, have relocated, reconciled and redistributed to help repair and rebuild poor communities.  Google CCDA for more  information on Christian Community Development; then read John Perkins latest book Dream With Me for a more excellent way, a more biblical way than fleeing in order to maintain white privilege.

Opposing, exposing hate groups is the right thing to do, but it is only a beginning.  The white church must release, restitute and rebuild; tokenism is not enough.

The American church is skilled at putting on bandaids (charity), but not surgery (justice).  Surgery requires people with training, skills, dedication.  Christian colleges and seminaries are not training community development surgeons, only amateurs.