The lecture was about Racism in America. Dr. West was incredibly charismatic, and I really appreciated his historical approach. He explained race problems in a way I never understood before. I've only seen the symptoms of the racial problems in the U.S., but he made it clear why things are the way they are. More impressive is that his concern is not limited to African Americans. He is passionate about the American ideal of "Justice for all". Much of what he said is exactly how I feel - the elite in America are not held accountable, people pretend that justice exists but the rich are often treated differently, no one knows what politicians really think.
Dr. West appealed to every person in the room, and I would guess there were at least 5 or 6 nationalities represented if not more. While I suspect I might disagree with his politics, I don' t know because he did not talk about politics in any explicit way. Justice and equal treatment to each person was at the heart of the lecture.
Two things concerned me about this lecture. Over and over Dr. West referred to himself as a Christian, cited the Gospels as evidence for the need to value people, and mentioned church a lot. One thing that concerned me is when he was talking about his meeting with Louis Farrakon, and said that before he came to AUC, he and Farrakon prayed together, to God or Allah, it is all the same god. Whenever someone says something like that, it makes me think they don't really understand what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. When Jesus said, "There is not other name under Heaven by which men might be saved," he really meant it! We are not saved by the name of God, we are saved by the name of Jesus.
Secondly, it seemed like Dr. West has replaced Jesus as the Savior of mankind with the idea that equal justice will save humanity. He is so passionate about justice, but where is the role of Jesus in forming that passion? He hardly touched on it. Is it possible for people to treat others with absolute justice without the Holy Spirit? "Justice is what love looks like in public, and Democracy is what justice looks like in practice," according to Dr. West. But what allows us to love? "We love because he first loved us" is the answer given in 1 John 4:19.
While Dr. West was inspiring and challenging, his message seemed to be hollow, missing the only thing that can change a person's heart, the transforming power of Jesus Christ.
I'll put some video up when I have a chance. And I had a chance:
Thursday, November 08, 2007
An Interesting Lecture
Last night I attended a lecture given by Dr. Cornel West of Princeton University. The lecture was held in Oreintal Hall, named in honor of Edward Said. The room is beautiful, but the lighting is poor. Here's a picture of the ceiling detail:
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I'm sure you were disappointed with that, but the other thing that America values is diversity and inclusiveness, so it's not all that surprising that this speaker tied Allah and Jesus together... Saying that Jesus is the only way is viewed as intolerant, as you probably know.
ReplyDeleteSarah,
ReplyDeleteYour comments are exactly what came to mind when I began reading your blog. Jesus IS the only way mankind will get true justice. Man, apart from God can only do what he thinks best in light of the view point of those in power and the social norms of the day. Your observations were spot on.
As Christians we need to recognize how God loves all mankind and is willing to pardon us when we accept Jesus and his sacrifice on the cross on our behalf. As Christians we are to imitate Jesus' example and treat others like he does,loving, forgiving and holding men accountable. I do agree that people with power or money anywhere in the world receive a different type of justice than the poor or average person which is a reality we have lived with since mankind began, not just here in America.