Sermon : On Judging People by Their Actions, Not Their Skin Color
Relatives of my wife who live out of town asked her to rent out their house. After many weeks of calls and showing the house, we finally had a renter. After obtaining the house key, the person moved in and refused to pay the rent. The only legal way to get her out of the house is through a costly eviction, which may take up to six months.
The renter happens to be African American, a member of a group that has been at odds with Koreans, at least in certain urban settings. The point of me telling this story is: “Should this person’s action be judged?” I am sure my father-in-law would say yes and then some. After finding out that our church donated food to a black church after the riots, I heard him say, “So that they can regain strength to beat up more Koreans.”
I assure you that he is no racist but such sentiment did disturb me. My being disturbed did not stem from the fact that I failed to see the wrongness of the rioters. What bothered me the most about this comment was the tendency to judge an entire group based on the deviant acts of some people belonging to that group.
Simultaneously, I am just as disturbed by the societal tendency to excuse deviant behavior as the inevitable result of some environmental factors such as poverty, poor education, or discrimination. Neither way is an acceptable solution for people striving to live harmoniously in a multicultural region like ours.
By now everyone is quite familiar with the phrase multiculturalism . It is the philosophical base from which many public policies aimed at liberating the “oppressed minorities” have been legislated. As Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. pointed out in his book “Disuniting of America: Reflections on a Multicultural Society,” the philosophy has had some healthy consequences, including long-overdue recognition of the achievements of minorities.
However, some attempts to exalt the accomplishments of the “oppressed” while excoriating the “oppressors” have neutralized the ability of the “oppressed” to be self-critical of their own shortcomings. It has also unnerved some “contrite oppressors” from saying anything critical toward the “oppressed” lest they are labeled “intolerant,” “insensitive,” or “racists.”
The unfortunate outcome has been the development of a “permissive attitude toward the erring members of the community--particularly when they belong to racial . . . or economic groups less privileged than the general average,” as James Burnham wrote in his book “Suicide of the West: An Essay on the Meaning and Destiny of Liberalism.”
We should hold onto the transcendental values even if they were taught by oppressors who, to their shame, were hypocritically wrong on many accounts. For that reason, I judge the action of that phony renter who deceived my wife and her relatives: Skin color is irrelevant.
As Jesus put it in the Book of John: “Stop judging by mere appearances and make a right judgment.” We should not be afraid to judge those elements that are detrimental to the good of the society. But we shouldn’t judge to feel morally superior or destroy people, but judge as a necessary prelude to correct the perpetrators and to serve as a warning to others that some actions are inherently not good.
Finally, let us never forget that there are three prerequisites to having a harmonious society: an agreement by all citizens about what is acceptable and unacceptable; a discernment to judge the good from the bad; and, an inner conviction to live on the side of the good and acceptable.
Unfortunately, we generally look to the government to be our moral authority and arbiter--not a smart move. I hope instead that we can look to God and the Bible for guidance.
As for my family, we began to pray for this renter in the spirit of Christ who forgave us. We pray that this person may experience God’s love and, as a result, realize the wrongness of her action. We pray that justice may prevail.