By Noel Bruyns
The WCC should
take seriously the theology of black people if it wants to address racism,
says a statement by six European church officials involved in black-white
Christian relations.
They say the council has acknowledged the "shift in tghe centre of Christianity from
the one-third to the two-thirds world" but now this has to become
"incarnational" in church life.
"How can the WCC give voice and visibility to the theologising from the two-thirds
world? How does the WCC’s decision making and consultative process reflkect a resolve
to take the contribution of black people seriously?" they ask.
They point to the need for adequate resources for the Program to Combat Racism and the
work of black theologians across the world.
Black theology as a theology of liberation came to prominence over 30 years ago. From its
initial appearance in the United States, it has spread, and is in evidence noticeably in
South Africa, the Caribbean and most recently in the United Kingdom and The Netherlands.
"Theology refers to what is articulated about God. Black Theology refers to what is
said, believed and expressed ... by black people concerning God. Black Theology as such is
black God-talk or black God-expression," their statement said, quoting a journal on
the subject.
"The recent Ecumenical Study Process on Racism, spearheaded by the WCC’s Program
to Combat Racism (PCR), has presented the WCC with a kairos.
"For the WCC to address racism, it needs to take seriously the self-expressed
theology of black people as they reflect on their own realities. Any other approach is
patronising and a perpetuation of the heresy of white supremacy," they said.
Their statement expands on a similar one addressed to the Harare assembly from the
Dutch-based South Hope for Europe without Barriers (SHEBA), set up with WCC support in
1987.
Signatories include Bishop Joseph Aldred, director of the Centre for Black and White
Christian Partnership (UK), the Rev. Marjorie Lewis-Cooper, a Multiracial, Multicultural
worker with the United Reformed Church (UK), Mr Naboth Muchapo, racial justice secretary
(Methodist Church, UK), and Ms Doreen Hazel of Multiracial, Multicultural Development
(Reformed Church, The Netherlands).
