Perhaps 1 reason those who profess Christ think of racism ONLY as a personal transgression instead of both personal transgression & a systemic power is they view sin ONLY as an individual transgression, instead of both as an individual transgression & an enslaving power?

But the Bible clearly teaches sin is both personal transgression and a power that enslaves the entire creation (Rom 3.23, 6.1ff, etc). Sin cursed the entire creation. God judged the entire creation b/c of sin (Gen 3; Rom 8).

Recognizing that sin is both a personal transgression and a tyrannical power that rules and reigns over the entire creation should precede Christian discourse on race.

If we see that sin is MUCH worse & MUCH more powerful than we think b/c of its universal reign over creation, then maybe a few more who profess Christ will see that racism operates at both personal & systemic levels, b/c sin operates at both personal & systemic levels.

Understanding sin’s power will NOT answer all questions Christians have abt the complexity of race & racism. We must be life long learners.

But seeing sin’s comprehensive power at least provides Christians with a theological foundation underneath current Christian racial discourse.

I think one problem in current racial discourse amongst some profess Christ is we are talking abt race, but we underestimate the power of sin. Or we are talking abt racism as sin, but we haven’t considered the complexity of race & racism & how sin uses these constructs in society

Perhaps to be helpful in Christian discourse on race and racism, we who profess Christ need to think a lot more abt what the Bible says abt sin, and we need to do more work seeking to understand the complexities of race & racism. Lord Jesus, please help us!