White Supremacy in the Evangelical Church

By: Ana Imes      

On Jan. 5 at George Fox University (GFU), the Intercultural Resources Center (IRC) and Mathetes student group hosted a panel discussion on white supremacy in the white American church. Dean of Student Success and Equity Jenny Elsey introduced the Zoom meeting as a space to talk “about people, not issues.”

Panelists included Free Methodist church elder Michael Simmons, Professor of Faith and Culture Randy Woodley, and a women’s life coach Andrea Emerson, as well as (GFU) students Jeanette Barton and Rory Brown. Hannah Lee, education engagement intern at the IRC facilitated the discussion and subsequent Q&A. She noted the timely nature of the discussion following the insurrection at the Capitol building on Jan. 6, emphasizing the importance of acknowledging the white supremacy in our lives. 

All panelists shared the premise that white supremacy has pervasively entered every space in America because of the country’s history of violence towards black and brown folks. They focused more specifically on the ways the white American church has engaged with racism, presenting ideas for how to address these failures.

IRC intern Barton defined white supremacy as “any belief or action that prioritizes and centers white people.” This served as a baseline understanding for the discussion. Brown gave the example of traditional images of Jesus, saying, “We look up to white Jesus and we see Jesus as white; if Jesus is perfect, Jesus is white, and that’s what you’re going towards.” She added that most churchgoers hesitate when asked, “Do you realize that Jesus was a person of color?”

Emerson addressed the misconception that white supremacy only exists in conservative Evangelical spaces, saying, “Benevolent white supremacy is in progressive churches that refuse to dismantle systems of power and money.” She echoed the call of the other panelists to prioritize reserving church leadership positions for people of color. 

Woodley, who runs the Eloheh Center for Earth Justice in addition to teaching at Portland Seminary, has personally felt the impact of white supremacy in Christian spaces. He said, “I’ve been fired from a private Christian university for my stance against white supremacy, been fired at by my neighbors, I’ve had to lose a house and move because of it, and it’s cost me and my family a lot over the years.” He emphasized the cost to “standing up to the predominant force of the culture,” which he argued is as present in the church as anywhere else.

Simmons noted that the burden of dismantling racist Christian structures has largely fallen on black and brown people. He and Brown demanded that white people take a stronger stance against these structures. Brown said, “You will always be taking the log out of your eye when it comes to the white supremacy of the church . . . what works best is telling people your own experience with racism in the church . . . you have to look them in the eye and say ‘I am a racist.’”

To those who want to address and deconstruct white supremacy in their churches, Simmons advised, “Get out of the way this desire for harmony.” Noting that white people in the church might have to lose friends to achieve their goals, he continued, “We’re going to first of all need to get out of the way our belief that to be Christian is not to have any kind of animosity.”

Woodley agreed. He addressed white churchgoers, saying “If you aren’t pointing out the sins of other white people, then I have to.”

This discussion was made into a podcast and is available for streaming on Spotify and Anchor. The episode is called “White Supremacy in the White American Church.” Watch for the next Mathetes event by following the IRC on Instagram @gfu_irc.