How to evaluate secular ideology: Critical Race Theory

Critical Theory is antithetical to Christianity. Here's why.

We as Christians encounter opposing viewpoints every day. There are thousands of messages that bombard our consciousness constantly, demanding complete submission and acceptance. However, while others may be drawn in by the deceitfulness of those attempting to persuade us toward their position, believers are commanded to “destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ…” (2 Cor. 10:5), “…so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.” (Ephesians 4:14).

So how do we know if an idea can exist alongside the truth of Scripture, or if it is antithetical to our faith?

The best litmus test is to start with the basics of the Gospel: “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23).

What is the problem? Sin. What is the solution? Christ.

If there is any ideology that presents a narrative which leaves out one or both of those essential aspects of the Gospel, it must be rejected.

What is the problem? Sin. What is the solution? Christ.

Let me give you an example.

Critical Theory is the ideology that is taking our nation by storm. This narrative presupposes the idea that everyone is composed of different aspects which imput them into categories of “oppressed” (non-white, female, non-Christian, disabled, LGBTQ, etc) and “oppressor,” (white, male, Christian, able, straight, cisgender) entitled intersectionality. The goal, then, of a society and of a non-bigoted, antiracist person, is to take down the “oppressor” and liberate, or uplift the “oppressed.” The origins of the ideology are rooted in Marxist thought, which posed the “proletariet” (or oppressed) against the “bourgeoisie” (or oppressor).[i]

It is very easy to see this ideology present in the vast majority of our culture. However, what is most concerning to me is its infiltration of the Church.

In his book How to Be an Antiracist, Ibram X. Kendi lays out much of the groundwork for modern Critical Race Theory, a category of the broader term Critical Theory, which encapsulates Gender Theory, Ableism, etc. During the first two chapters of his work, Kendi points to the start of his belief in Critical Race Theory, which he terms "antiracism." Looking back before he was born, he relates the impactful moment when his father met James Cone, a prominent writer and advocate of Black Liberation Theology. When asked how he defines a Christian, Cone responded, “A Christian is one who is striving for liberation” (17). After relating this life-changing moment experienced by his parents, Kendi asserts, “I cannot disconnect my parents’ religious strivings to be Christian from my secular strivings to be antiracist” (17).[ii] This critical moment demonstrates the utter interconnectedness that exists between Critical Theory and Liberation Theology, whether through the Black Church through authors such as James Cone[iii] and Willie James Jennings,[iv] or from the Latino church with Gustavo Gutierrez,[v] among others.

The issue with Liberation Theology and Critical Race Theory is that they violate the most basic principles of the Gospel: The problem is sin and the answer is Jesus.

As is demonstrated from Cone’s poignant answer: “A Christian is one who is striving for liberation,” in Critical Theory, the problem is not that all humans are equally sinful and in desperate need of a Savior. Rather, the most basic issue at the root of all problems is that there is oppression. Thus, rather than focusing on the Savior, Christ Jesus, who rescues us out of sin and death, Critical Theory and Liberation Theology see salvation as some sort of “transcendence,” or a lifting off of the oppression to find a true “self-realization,” or the answer within oneself. This is not Christianity.

Keri Day articulates this worldview particularly well in her book Unfinished Business: Black Women, the Black Church, and the Struggle To Thrive in America:

"The idea of God does not necessarily need to be understood in traditional Christian terms. A pragmatic or postmodern notion of God recognizes that nontraditional conceptions of transcendence are as legitimate as more traditional Christian conceptions of God in in empowering these [black] women to experience courage, hope, and fulfillment within their contexts of socioeconomic uncertainty and struggle. This more expansive concept of transcendence enables womanist discourse to stay open to a plurality of religious experiences as well as the ways in which these women find meaning and ultimate value within their daily lives and contexts of oppression." (34)[vi]

The central issue to identifying the definition of the human problem as oppression is that it leads to the human-focused solution: finding liberation in oneself, a “free” entity without ties or inhibitions by any group or set of rules that may restrict one’s self-expression or realization.

That is what is happening to the church in America. Too many churches have adopted this mentality and are preaching a message opposite from the Gospel of the Bible.

What is the problem with this? Without dealing with sin, those who throw off the oppressor will become oppressors themselves. This has been seen time and time again in societies which adopt a Marxist mindset. The sinfulness of humanity will always take precedence, perpetuating a cycle of violence and oppression. That is why we are in such desperate need of a Savior.

In addition, Critical Race Theory (along with many "woke" churches and institutions) teaches that certain groups are more guilty than others. The answer is continual guilt based not on what one has done, but based on one’s immutable characteristics. There is no forgiveness. There is only recognition of a shared guilt.

Without dealing with sin, those who throw off the oppressor will become oppressors themselves.

In her best-selling book White Fragility, Robin Diangelo lays out the assumptions that one must accept in order to be considered “antiracist”:

“Being good or bad is not relevant

Racism is a multilayered system embedded in our culture.

All of us are socialized into the system of racism.

Racism cannot be avoided” (142).[vii]

The effect of antiracism is the necessity that white people feel guilt simply on the basis of the color of their skin, without any hope of redemption. This is not the Gospel.

As 2 Cor. 7:10 says, “For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.”

Rather than advocating for a perpetual guilt based on immutable characteristics, the Bible speaks of an equal fallenness, the corruption of the human heart that can only be remedied through repentance and restoration through the cross of Christ.

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). All. Not just certain categories.

I plead with you not to embrace the dangerous ideology that causes its adherents to drift from Christ by seeking to "liberate" themselves by their own power.

Jesus is our only hope. Sin is the true oppression.

Critical Theory is destroying our nation and our church. Do not be deceived.

[i] https://shenviapologetics.com/what-is-critical-race-theory/ [ii] Kendi, Ibram X. How to Be an Antiracist. Random House; New York. 2019. Print. [iii] Cone, James. God of the Oppressed. (Revised Ed.) Orbis Books; Maryknoll, NY. 1997. Print. [iv] Jennings, Willie James. The Christian Imagination: Theology and the Origins of Race. Yale University Press: Newhaven. 2010. Print. [v] Gutierrez, Gustavo. A Theology of Liberation: History, Politics, and Salvation. (Revised Ed.) Translated by Sister Caridad Inda and John Eagleson. Orbis Books; Maryknoll, NY. 1988. Print. [vi] Day, Keri. Unfinished Business: Black Women, the Black Church, and the Struggle to Thrive in America. Orbis Books; Maryknoll, NY. 2012. Print. [vii] Diangelo, Robin. White Fragility: Why it’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism. Beacon Press; Boston. 2018. Print.