The Blessings of Biracial

Paul came to Derbe and then to Lystra, where a disciple named Timothy lived, whose mother was Jewish and a believer but whose father was a Greek. The believers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him. Paul wanted to take him along on the journey. - Acts 16:1-3

Historically the church has sided with both majority and minority cultures when they’ve pushed biracial people to the margins. Majority peoples have often used the approach of command and control, using what’s ‘normal’ to guide the masses for economic and political gain, making anyone else assimilate or leave. Minority cultures, to protect their heritage and what little influence they may have, sometimes try to protect what is theirs by excluding those seen as sacrificing their culture by blending in with the ‘enemy.’

The Bible, however, over and over highlights those on the margins, showing how the Spirit is at work in them. And this has especially been the case for people like Timothy and others who were biracial or bicultural. But rarely have biblical scholars focused their study on this unfortunately.

Thankfully, Willie James Jennings, out of Yale Divinity School, has poured himself into the theological implications of race in the scriptures for us today. He points out in his commentary on the Book of Acts that “Too much of Western life and all those sites touched by the legacies of colonialism are dogged by forms of belonging that narrow the possibilities of life lived in its fullness… Can you imagine a new way of seeing and being yourself, a way that weaves together the ways of many peoples?” Jennings goes on to invite us to imagine the gift of being biracial, like what Paul saw in Timothy, the early church leader who’s racial and cultural heritage spanned two continents.

Ask God today for forgiveness for the ways you’ve given in to narrowing the possibilities for what it means to truly flourish. Ask instead for a wider imagination, a deeper hope for all peoples, and a special blessing on those of us who live deeply in the cultural mix.

**If you’d like to read Jennings’ 3 page theological reflection on the implications of being biracial/bicultural, just email Bill@CityChurchLB.org and Bill will send you a copy