Decolonizing Christianity (Miguel De La Torre) -- A Review
I will confess upfront that Miguel De La Torre's latest
book made me uncomfortable. That probably means I’m not a “Badass Believer,”
but I’m willing to listen. Listening isn’t easy if you are, like me, a white
male straight highly educated reasonably well-off Christian. The discomfort one
feels reading the book is rooted in De La Torre’s unrelenting critique (that is
to put it nicely) of white Christianity, which presumably includes me. This
word about “decolonizing Christianity” pushes buttons, but here’s the thing, De
La Torre isn't really speaking to me, at least not directly. That is, he knows
I'm listening in, but his true audience, the badass believers, are Christians
of color. In this book, De La Torre invites them to speak their minds, and not
hold back (understanding that white Christians are there in the audience).
DecolonizingChristianity is a follow-up book to De La Torre’s earlier book: Burying White Privilege: Resurrecting a Badass Christianity. I didn’t read the
book, but according to the author, the earlier book received mixed reviews. Some
readers appreciated the candor, but others pushed back. Some critics even
demonized the author. As I said, I didn't read it, so I can't speak to its
contents. But for those of us who enjoy white privilege reading a book that
seeks to bury it might lead to pushback.
Though
I didn’t read the earlier book, I did read the sequel. Whatever the earlier criticism of the book, that
doesn’t stop him from reiterating the message. So, here he does his best to hold
the feet of white supremacy to the fire. Now, De La Torre, who is professor of
social ethics and Latinx studies at Iliff School of Theology and author of a
number of books, knows that white Christians are not monolithic. But that's not
the point. By painting in broad strokes, he can make clear the
concerns/complaints of persons of color who have suffered under white
supremacy. He doesn't feel any compulsion to let us off the hook or offer us a
solution. That's for us to discover. Thus, what we have here is a strongly
worded prophetic statement calling for Christians of color to decolonize their
minds, that is, set themselves free from the message drummed into them by white
supremacist Christianity.
Written
in late spring of 2020 when COVID was in its early stages—little did he know
that the pandemic would be showing no signs of going away as we begin the year
2022. When the book was written, the nation was early in an election season
that has turned the country upside down. Thus, when the book was written De La
Torre didn't know whether Donald Trump would win reelection or if a Democrat won,
who that person might be. While Trump lost, Trumpism continues to stand at the
center of the national conversation. The fact is, an overwhelming number of
white Christians, even mainline Christians, voted for Trump. We're still living
with the aftermath as he won't go away, and white Christianity continues to
degenerate as a result.
Having
laid out why he wrote the book in answer to his critics, he writes in chapter 2
about "the day of judgment." Here he calls white Christianity to
account. That is, he takes white Christianity to court to examine how white
Christianity helped erect and undergird a system in which white Christianity is
deemed superior to all others. A belief system that has led to the oppression
of those who are not white. Part of this conversation deals with revealing the
fear among many white Christians that they are losing power and even heading
toward becoming a minority. In other words, they fear a reversal of fortunes.
That is why Trump has been hailed as a hedge against this threat symbolized by
the election and reelection of a black President.
Having
laid out the charges against white supremacist Christianity that is epitomized
by Donald Trump, in chapter 3, which is titled “Accompanying the Least of
These,” De La Torre asks questions about the relationship of white Christians,
especially white liberals, with those who have been marginalized. He explores
biblical texts dealing with the "least of these" and proposed
solutions, including "color-blindness." As you might expect he calls
these solutions into question. He reminds us that racism isn’t individualized
prejudice or even ethnic discrimination. No, it is “the institutionalization of
uneven power relationships based on ethnicity or skin pigmentation” (p. 104). As
we’re seeing, there is a lot of unease in the white community about raising
questions of systems. We may be well-meaning in our personal relationships but
are we complicit in the systems? The truth is, we are. So, De La Torre, who
confesses his own privilege as a straight male (the reality here of sexism), needs to make use of our
privilege to dismantle these structures.
All of
this leads to a more apocalyptic conversation in chapter 4. By that De La Torre
speaks of the future and how we deal with the fear and hatred running rampant
in the nation. He asks us to consider how healing can take place if we continue
to ignore the realities of our day. Thus, "the tenets of nationalist
Christianity need to be slain." The form this has taken is embodied by the
proclamation that Donald Trump is a modern-day King Cyrus, anointed by God, to
defend and liberate oppressed white Christians. He notes that the reason
Christians have hailed him as King Cyrus is that this gives them the rationale
to overlook Trump's lack of Christian virtues. While De La Torre does not
believe that a literal Antichrist is set to emerge, as many apocalypticists
would suggest, signaling the end of days, Donald Trump does fit with the
description of the antichrist found in Revelation 13:1-10. I must say, this
section was fascinating, and an important use of this imagery. While this is
unsettling, there is in its midst a word of hope. For that is the purpose of apocalyptic
visions!
De La
Torre concludes the book with a chapter titled "Badass Prophets." Here
he makes use of Jonah as the protagonist. While many of us have used Jonah’s
attitude and God’s grace as a signal that some in the Jewish community sought
to move away from a narrow ethnocentric religion, a move that is epitomized by
God's forgiveness of the Assyrians. De La Torre takes the image of Jonah in a
very different direction. While many of us have envisioned Jonah's sullen
reaction negatively, De La Torre suggests that Jonah has a point. He suggests
that "Jonah's God demands that the disinherited go to the very thieves who
stole their basic human rights and dignity to tell them they should seek out
salvation." (p. 160). Shouldn't there be justice along the way? Should
these folks who will conquer eventually conquer Israel be required not only to repent
but change their way of living in the world? In other words, Jonah is right in
not being ready for reconciliation just yet. So, work must be done, and De La
Torre isn't ready to let us off the hook (by us I mean white Christians,
including me). Though he holds the feet of white Christians to the fire, he
acknowledges that while he might be a person of color, he is also male,
cisgender, and straight. Thus, he has his own realities to deal with. The
question is, how will we respond, for we are at a crossroads? Will we follow a
path that leads to liberation or retrench, protecting our privileges?
As I
said, the Decolonizing Christianity left me uncomfortable, but then that
was its purpose. May we heed the call of the prophets to act justly. If we do
so, then Miguel De La Torre will be one of the voices calling us to account.
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