Ministry News
On the Dark Side of Technology
- Details
- Published on Friday, 31 July 2009 11:52
- Written by Marcus Yoars
Not everyone is benefitting from tech tools these days. A Kansas City, Mo., church was the target of a hate crime this week after its pastor posted a message on Twitter.
Devan Taylor, senior pastor of Beyond the Four Walls Church International, says his first venture into microblogging on Twitter prompted vandals to spray-paint racial slurs on the church's property urging him to leave town. Taylor tweeted in the social media outlet's "Black in America" forum regarding the controversial arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates, and his comment was read on-air by CNN anchor Don Lemon. Taylor says that within minutes he'd received more than 700 responses, many of which included racially derogatory language. The next day he arrived at the church building to discover it covered in similar rhetoric.
"I've been here five years, it's never happened—period," Taylor said of the attacks against his church. "It has never happened to me. I've been living 43 years [and] it's never happened." [fox4kc.com, 7/29/09]
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Comments
behaving yourselves after a human standard and like mere (unchanged) men, immature christians, natural standards and values, in whom the carnal nature predominates
I didn't know that blacks could be racist against other blacks, but I will definitely check into that one. Thanks for the information.
TECHNICALLY generalizing would be 'the white residents of Boston' and not by saying many. 'The white residents would be 100% and 'many African-Americans' could be classified any where from 25-49%.
It's funny how is 'seems' that Pastor Taylor is the only one that can voice his opinion. Let us remember that we all have one and that not everyone will agree with them.
Hopefully this chat has provoked thought one way or the other.
"Many Christians, who happen to be African-Americans, seem to forget that we are not to be persuaded by the things of this world. "
[I have already explained that I believe you are misinterpreting what the N.T. means about what is worldly..
e.g. wrong attittudes and lack of love are wordly [the way of the world]...
being involved in some things that happen in the world, because we are fellow humans with others, is not worldly]
What's so beautiful about my comment is that you couldn't tell if I was black/white. I'm an African-American and I would have felt the same had the roles been reversed.
As a Christ follower, color doesn't persuade me one way or the other. There's God's way and the enemy's way and I will chose God each time.
Healing is called for because the 'color issue' has hardened some hearts and caused division once again. Restoration is needed because it has only driven another wedge among ethnicities, which is a divisive tool of the enemy.
In situations like this, 'people' will begin to vilify an entire group of people (white residents of Boston) and that is also wrong.
President Obama should have left this situation up to the locals, especially since this was a friend of his. See comment response for AR.
Racism!? I'm an African-American, so let's move on from there. Pastor Taylor has the right to free speech and regardless of what he said it doesn't give anyone the right to vandalize his church. I am not condoning what the vandals did in any way, I was questioning the platform in which Pastor Taylor chose to voice his opinion.
As ministers of the gospel, we are to bring others to Christ with love and I don't believe that his comments did that. At the end of the day ask yourself if his comments will bring others to Christ or push them away? Will your comment or my comment draw or drive?
I'll leave you with this, because I won't be commenting again if you should decide to refute this comment. Please know I don't say that in a demeaning way, I just don't believe in debating a point that's not going to bring others to Jesus. God is love and it's not based upon the color of ones skin.
people live in this world.
Your definition of 'worldly' is off
God calls us to be interested in justice for others - African Americans included! [and I am white]
your post has a smell of racism about it [even though you won't see it]
It's not about having an opinion it's about doing the will of God. Many Christians, who happen to be African-Americans, seem to forget that we are not to be persuaded by the things of this world.
You must own up to your comment, which was also 'racially motivated', if anything you might have asked that God bring restoration and healing in such a volatile matter, but you opted to speak on a worldly issue.
As a leader you must be mindful of what you say because you are ultimately representing Christ and He is not divisive. Two wrongs will never make a right.
I think that repentance, acknowledgement of your wrongfully chosen statement is necessary in order to bring healing in your community. Don't let pride prevent you from doing this.
With Love in Christ,
Deborah
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