Standing in true solidarity – Sanya Beharry
The Accra Confession was written ten years ago by men and women who were far more intelligent than me. They looked at the facts of the world and realized that the Church could not simply continue with business as usual when it came to our stance on systems of inequality and injustice which seemed to prevail in a way that trampled those who most needed support. Church needed to speak up, speak out and act in ways that assured life in abundance for all creation. And what more fitting location than Ghana at the sites of holding dungeons for enslaved persons to remind all of what happens when we distort Justice?
When we began discussions in Ocho Rios, March 2014 as the Caribbean and North America Area Council, it became evident quite early on that we have done a really poor job at living out these calls for justice. We cried “Never again!” at the inhumanity of slavery and its impact on the Caribbean and North America, yet there are INCREASING numbers of persons in human trafficking. So many still live in poverty. So many work for “dying wages” rather than “living wages”, deliberately done to help the rich get richer “with an endless flow of sacrifices form the poor”.
And for me, worst of all, is a statement at the very beginning of the Confession which stands as a premise for the Confession: “The Church stands in solidarity with those who are suffering or struggling”… From here on, I write strictly as a female young adult living in the Caribbean. I’m very much aware my views are not the views of my own denomination, country or region.
One of the most marginalised groups of people in the Caribbean are those belonging to the LGBT community. There is so much hate and discrimination that it pains me at the core of my being that we, as a people who have emerged out of systems of slavery – who should know better than most what it means to be treated as mere chattel rather than even human just because of the skin colour you were born with and the greed of others – that we have chosen to perpetuate the discrimination against persons who are inherently different. I’ve heard or read the arguments: it’s a sin in the Bible; it’s Adam and Eve not Adam and Steve; it’s unnatural or a lifestyle choice etc.
The argument that homosexuality is a sin and persons deserve to be treated as sinners who need to turn away from their sins first before they can be treated as one of the flock is irrelevant. If we want to live like that, apply the principle across the board. Don’t just stop at homosexuality. Why not discriminate against everyone who has had pre-marital or extra-marital sex? Why not kick out everyone who has a drug or alcohol problem until they’ve solved it? This legalistic interpretation of scripture lends itself to a denial of God’s call to life for all.
As for “unnatural” and “no Adam and Steve”, I will share a statement I have heard from several different persons, “If I could have chosen, why would I choose this life?” as they told heartbreaking stories of the fear, bullying, hostility, and physical, mental and emotional abuse at the hands of others. During our time in Jamaica, several of us were able to see firsthand the reality of LGBT youth forced to literally live in the gullies of New Kingston, having fled hostile families, landlords, neighbours and the police. By ignoring the realities or engaging in victim-blaming, we fail to answer Christ’s call for us to listen, rather than presume.
These “arguments” are just excuses. By using these arguments, especially the first one, the Church is guilty of being complicit agents of Empire.
We need to come better than that.
That’s what Accra calls us to do: to seek abundant life for ALL and restore broken relationships.
We believe that God calls us to stand with those who are victims of injustice. We know what the Lord requires of us: to do justice, love kindness, and walk in God’s way (Mic 6.8).
– Accra Confession, Pt 26
The justice we are called to stand for must take into account the greatest commandment of all – “Love your neighbor as you love yourself”. I used to roll my eyes whenever I heard someone preach about “Christian Love” – been there, heard that, blah blah blah – next please. But I’ve come to a new place of appreciation for that greatest commandment in knowing that it challenges me to show love for those who not only have been marginalised, but also to those who have caused the marginalisation as well. Things get tricky there, but which situation is ever black and white?
To stand in solidarity with those who are suffering and struggling means so much more than a superficial understanding of a situation but getting into the intimate pleasant and unpleasant details to truly stand side by side, in unity with our neighbours. There is no “us” and “them” but a oneness that must transcend the discrimination.
It’s time to restore these broken relationships and it can start with a simple confession or an honest desire to get to know someone else’s story. We’ve caused a lot of hurt but we can have this life in abundance as the marginalised, marginaliser and everything in-between.
I know I’m an idealist, and logically this probably won’t happen in the near future, but I believe that there is always HOPE. I have hope that we can be the ones to speak out against the hate and discrimination. I have hope that we will be the ones to embrace in love. I have hope that we can protect, nurture, empower and ally with our neighbours. I have hope that we will confess our faith and stand in true solidarity.
Sanya Beharry is the current Caribbean Young Adult Representative with the Caribbean and North America Council for Mission (CANACOM). She is passionate about issues of justice, understanding cultures and cute dogs.