If you're from the American south, you probably won't be surprised to learn about the Gulnare Freewill Baptist church in Pike County, Kentucky, banning interracial couples form church activities. I have to wonder if they have already explicitly or implicitly banned racial minorities entirely -- I don't see how you can ban interracial couples while also welcoming black people generally.
The issue arose when Stella Harville arrived with her fiance, Ticha Chikuni. The two met at school and Chikuni is from Zimbabwe -- something that the conservative Christians in this church just couldn't handle. It was apparently contrary to the ideal of "unity among the church body" for a black man and a white woman to be "united" in any fashion.
WYMT obtained a copy of the resolution. It states:
"That the Gulnare Freewill Baptist Church does not condone interracial marriage. Parties of such marriages will not be received as members, nor will they be used in worship services and other church functions, with the exception being funerals.
All are welcome to our public worship services. This recommendation is not intended to judge the salvation of anyone, but is intended to promote greater unity among the church body and the community we serve."
Harville talked to WYMT's Angela Sparkman on the phone. She said, "It's just a travesty, especially of Christianity, that this church feels this way. They've crossed the line in revoking my fiance and mine's right to worship in a public place. It hurts even more that I have attended this church ever since I was a baby."
Ticha Chikuni is originally from Zimbabwe but he has lived in the United States for eleven years "He just has one of the kindest hearts for God and then this is happening. People who have backwards way of thinking, they should know that their racism actions should not and will not be tolerated," said Harville.
Source: WKYT
The resolution condemning interracial relationships was not greeted kindly by other churches in the region, which is a positive sign:
The decision has caused sharp reaction and disapproval in the Eastern Kentucky county. "It's not the spirit of the community in any way, shape or form," Randy Johnson, president of the Pike County Ministerial Association, said of the vote.
Johnson, with the local ministerial association, said the reactions have included heartbreak and disbelief. "Most of us thought that we'd moved well beyond that," he said.
Source: The Kentucky Herald-Leader
The sad truth is that there is still a large amount of racial prejudice in the South (and America generally, but matters can be worse in the South). Prejudice against interracial relationships only exists on a foundation of racial animus and the racial animus in the South is ultimately fed and preserved by religion. Thus it's far less surprising to see this in the context of a church than in the context of other organizations or institutions.
Slavery and segregation were both preached from Christian pulpits. Entire dominations like the Southern Baptist Convention were created for the sake of defending slavery. Churches took the lead in creating racially segregated private schools when the government desegregated public schools. Church services continue to be the most segregated place in America.
No matter how much churches might preach universal love, they won't really mean it so long as they don't actively work against racism -- both racism in principle and racist outcomes. And that, unfortunately, is not something that conservative evangelical churches are ever likely to do.
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