Talking Points with Pastor Lucas: Critical Race Theory--Lutheran Clarity, Loving Care
This article first appeared in the Free to be Faithful newsletter of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. If you would like to stay informed on issues related to marriage, life, religious freedom or the establishment of the Lutheran Center for Religious Liberty, please send your name and address to freetobefaithful@lcms.org.
CRT is . . .
Critical Race Theory (CRT) is an academic and philosophical discipline now mainstreamed in multiple segments of American culture. Public schools and higher education, the broader American business world and marketplace, as well as progressive politics are all inundated by it. However, it’s also impacting the life of congregations and their members. As Christians, we want to know how to fight against the sin of racism, uphold biblical justice, and love our neighbor, all while not letting a dangerous ideology sabotage our trust in Jesus Christ and His Word of truth.
In short, CRT is made up of activists and scholars engaged in studying and transforming the relationship among race, racism, and power. It expresses the desire to fundamentally alter the control of power between majority and minority groups, particularly in favor of “antiracist” morals. To be antiracist means one must actively fight against racism, while also holding to the view that white people must admit their social privilege, their fragility in discussing issues of race, and that America itself was created by white supremacists who were intent on upholding white supremacy. Therefore, the theory holds that whole systems (and not just people) are racist and need dismantling.
The goal of CRT is to promote a social justice movement that deconstructs and upends power structures in favor of the oppressed and the promotion of equality. Note that CRT interprets “equality” not to mean equal opportunities, but equal outcomes. For instance, an Illinois school district declared that white students would not be allowed in the staggered return to post-COVID in-person classes until after all minority students were welcomed back first. Such discrimination is considered antiracist because it seeks to level a perceived unfair playing field. In other words, CRT claims racial discrimination can be a good thing even if it disadvantages some groups of people—as long as those people are not a minority. However, if a policy merely promotes equal opportunities, it is considered racist and must be eliminated in favor of equal outcomes.
CRT is concerning for Lutherans.
Most important for Christians to understand is that CRT is not just a theory; it is an ideology—an all-encompassing philosophy that directs thoughts, actions, and interactions with others. If that sounds like a religion, that’s because it is one. CRT has at its core a creed, one that does not interpret the world in terms of spiritual forces of sin and grace, but in terms of subtle material forces, such as systemic bigotry and diffuse omnipresent systems of power and privilege. Logic and facts play no inherent formal role and are useful only if they can support and intensify the emotion being expressed, as well as make the case for obtaining power to subvert all oppressive forces.
As Christians who believe in objective truth, right and wrong, and good and evil, we need to freely acknowledge the sin of racism, the horrors of slavery, and the evils of segregation and discrimination. We must not ignore how injustice, brutality, and years of mistreatment of black people have often resulted in a life of horrifying meaninglessness, hopelessness, and lovelessness. However, seeking true biblical justice cannot mean we embrace a dangerous ideology—CRT—as we defend our neighbor.
The ideology of CRT smacks up against biblical teaching. It fails to see that injustice is due to sin and that not all sin is due to racial bias. Biblically orthodox Christians are right to be concerned about CRT’s disavowal of objective truth and the cosmically created order. The fundamental biblical tenets that are displaced by the dogma of CRT are extensive and alarming. They include, but are not limited to,
Creation, original sin, and actual sin as understood according to the Ten Commandments
Objective truth, redemption, and salvation through Christ alone
Personal accountability and responsibility
Vocation and love for our neighbor
The role of repentance
The new baptismal life that comes from living with faith, hope, and love
Two-kingdom theology instead of CRT.
Lutherans have a clear alternative to this destructive ideology, one that not only prizes biblical justice but provides a clear ethic of faith and life. The Christian lives life at the intersection of two kingdoms: the spiritual kingdom and the temporal kingdom. Here, the object of faith is always Christ (spiritual kingdom) and the indirect object of faith in action is always the neighbor (temporal kingdom). At this intersection, Christians live within their daily vocations, which God designed for us to serve and care for others in our life. Therefore, when we couple the doctrine of vocation with the doctrine of the two kingdoms, we find a vibrant and practical alternative to the ideology of CRT.
Accordingly, there is certainly an ethic that the Church and her individual members are to undertake in the care and love of the neighbor, particularly in the face of social injustices and oppression. This two-kingdom ethic of love is subsequently employed in the daily vocations of every Christian. Those daily stations of life begin in one’s family and extend to their station as employer, worker, community member, church member, and citizen.
We have a robust theology of faith and love—we live always and only by faith in Christ and by love for the neighbor for His sake. Individually and corporately, we are called to the baptismal life, dying daily to sin and rising each day to newness of life in Jesus. As we confront racism and social injustices with God’s condemning law and reconciling grace, we believe, teach, and confess a living Lord Jesus Christ who is the light of the world—the light no darkness can overcome.
For further study of Critical Race Theory and sensitive pastoral application of biblical principles, President Woodford has published a two-part monograph that dives deeply into this issue. It is available at bit.ly/CRTstudy.
In the joy of Jesus,
Pastor Lucas
Rev. Dr. Lucas V. Woodford
President
Minnesota South District, LCMS
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