Diplomacy Doesn't Work
During our ministry staff devotions this week we ended up talking about what our Christian responsibility is to those in positions of power whose attitudes and beliefs about racial justice (among other areas) are damaging to people. These powerful individuals could be a parent, a boss, or someone whose own access to racial privilege grants them a measure of power.
It's not a theoretical question. I've had lots of conversations in recent months with people who've been wrestling with exactly this. How do I respond when I see, overhear, or experience a racially damaging perspective or action? After this initial question comes the follow-ups: Who might be impacted if I don't respond? How will my silence be interpreted? What will be the personal cost if I speak up?
One of the ways I think many of us respond to these sorts of scenarios is by being diplomatic. Our strategy is to determine which sort of response will be most effective in getting the powerful offender to change. So, when that racist thing is said or done, we start asking how questions: How can I get this person to see what they've done? How can I gain this person's trust so that I can say the difficult thing? How can I bring up this racist encounter without alienating them?
I don't know about you, but I'm not a very good diplomat. I'm unable to keep anyone at the table and I certainly can't know, on any given day, what is just the right way to point out that instance of racism.
In the end, much of our attempted diplomacy ends up being little more than negotiating around the edges of an inferno. Or some polite conversation amidst unmitigated theft and plunder.
I've come to believe that Christians oftentimes take the diplomatic approach in order to avoid telling the truth. By focusing on the how we overlook the what. What damage has been caused by this person's words or actions? What lie has been advanced? What truth needs to be articulated? As followers of the embodiment of truth, our loyalties are to the Truth, even when it's impossible to speak that truth diplomatically.
During our staff conversation I said something I'd not quite verbalized before: I think the Holy Spirit is the diplomat. We are called to speak the truth in love. It's not our responsibility to determine whether the truth will be received or not; this is something that God alone can do.
So let's not confuse our timidity with an effective diplomatic strategy. Let's pray for courage and commit ourselves to speaking the truth all the time. (Try this, for example: The president is not investigating election fraud; he's attempting to disenfranchise voters of color.) And then let's trust that the Holy Spirit is more than capable to make even the most powerfully heard-hearted person tender to the truth.
(A postscript: None of this is easy, especially for those of you who will experience painful repercussions for speaking truthfully. Here we need two things. First, wisdom to know what to say and when to say it. Wisdom, unlike our attempts at diplomacy, never tells half-truths. And thankfully, the Spirit wants to give us wisdom. Second, for those with some racial privilege, the constant reminder that whatever blow-back we experience from telling the truth about racism pales when compared to, you know, experiencing it.)