“Red and Yellow, Black and White”
Two songs stand out in my memory from my childhood years growing up in church. The earliest song I remember hearing is “Jesus Loves Me.” The second song I remember is “Jesus Loves the Little Children.” Both songs spoke to me of Christ’s love for me but the second song indicated that Jesus loves all the children of the word, not just me. It said “red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in his sight.” These songs became foundational for my understanding of Jesus. He was someone who loved me and someone who loved everyone else too. It didn’t even matter what color skin they had; Jesus loved everybody.
I learned these songs and sang them in the late 1950s and early 60s. What I saw and heard growing up during this time did not, however, always match the message of these songs. I heard a lot of grownups refer to Black people in words that were not kind at all. I also remember hearing Asian Americans referred to in a derogatory manner. Even as a child it disturbed me to hear such talk. It didn’t match the theology that had been instilled within me by the songs I had learned. God loved everyone. It seemed cruel to call those different than us ugly names. A lot of years have passed since that time and in some ways there has been a lot of change but two things have not changed. One is my strong conviction that Jesus does, in fact, love me and everyone else. The other is the unease that arises within me when I hear people call individuals of other ethnic groups cruel names. I believe it is wrong to do so and that there is no excuse for degrading others solely because they are different from us.
Because of these two strong convictions I have been greatly disturbed by many of the events being reported on in the news the past few days. What the young men in the fraternity at the University of Oklahoma were recorded chanting is heartbreaking. Things said by police officers in Ferguson, Missouri, were likewise hard to stomach. Unfortunately, I know all too well that these were not isolated incidents. Such cruel language is directed daily by small minded people at any number of groups. I just don’t understand why.
This morning when I was leaving my office I happened to notice a sycamore tree directly in front of my car. Since I park in the same spot everyday I’m not sure why I hadn’t noticed this tree before but the truth is I had paid it no attention. Today, however, I noticed the beautiful colors and patterns on the bark of this tree. It was fascinating to see the great variety of colors that was produced on a single tree. I made a mental note to come back later in the day and photograph the bark.
As I drove off it occurred to me that sycamore tree is a reminder that God delights in color. That thought led me to consider how wonderful it was that one single tree could have so many different colors. It was, in fact, the many colors that made the tree so beautiful. This thought then made me ponder that God could have made the human race all look the same but chose not to and that we are actually much more beautiful because God decided instead to make us different colors and different in other ways too. I truly am thankful that God did not make us all look or be the same.
The author of Genesis 2:27 says “God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” Here is another foundational truth for me. I believe every single person has infinite value simply because he or she is created in the image of God. I do not believe there are any exceptions. No matter the color of one’s skin, one’s nationality, one’s religion or one’s sexual orientation, everyone carries within them the image of God and because they do they deserve to be treated with the utmost respect. Both the songs I learned as a child and the Scriptures I have spent my entire life studying lead me to believe that Jesus truly does love each and every one of us. They also lead me to believe that there is no place for referring to those Jesus loves in a derogatory manner.
There is much I see and hear that convinces me that we have not come nearly as far in the past fifty years as we’d like to believe. Still, I hold on to the hope that things can get better. I certainly pray that they will.
–Chuck