Racism and the Image of God

220 Pages·2010·1.167 MB·English

by  Karen Teel (auth.)

Black Religion / Womanist Thought / Social Justice
Series Editors Dwight N. Hopkins and Linda E. Thomas
Published by Palgrave Macmillan
“How Long this Road”: Race, Religion, and the Legacy of C. Eric Lincoln
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African American Humanist Principles: Living and Thinking Like the Children of
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White Theology: Outing Supremacy in Modernity
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The Myth of Ham in Nineteenth-Century American Christianity: Race, Heathens,
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Loving the Body: Black Religious Studies and the Erotic
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Shamanism, Racism, and Hip Hop Culture: Essays on White Supremacy and Black
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Women, Ethics, and Inequality in U.S. Healthcare: “To Count Among the Living”
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Black Theology in Transatlantic Dialogue: Inside Looking Out, Outside Looking In
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Womanist Ethics and the Cultural Production of Evil
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Whiteness and Morality: Pursuing Racial Justice through Reparations and Sovereignty
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Conceptions of God, Freedom, and Ethics in African American and Jewish Theology
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Black Religion and the Imagination of Matter in the Atlantic World
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Gifts of Virtue, Alice Walker, and Womanist Ethics
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Racism and the Image of God
By Karen Teel
Self, Culture, and Others in Womanist Practical Theology
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Women’s Spirituality and Education in the Black Church
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Racism and the Image of God
Karen Teel
RACISM AND THE IMAGE OF GOD
Copyright © Karen Teel, 2010.
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2010 978-0-230-62277-7
All rights reserved.
First published in 2010 by
PALGRAVE MACMILLAN®
in the United States—a division of St. Martin’s Press LLC,
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
Where this book is distributed in the UK, Europe and the rest of the world,
this is by Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited,
registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills,
Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS.
Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies
and has companies and representatives throughout the world.
Palgrave® and Macmillan® are registered trademarks in the United States,
the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries.
ISBN 978-1-349-38429-7 ISBN 978-0-230-11471-5 (eBook)
DOI 10.1057/9780230114715
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Teel, Karen, 1976–
Racism and the image of God / Karen Teel.
p. cm.—(Black religion/womanist thought/social justice series)
Includes bibliographical references (p. ).

1. Theological anthropology—Christianity. 2. Image of God.
3. Racism—Religious aspects—Christianity. 4. Human body—Religious
aspects—Christianity. I. Title.
BT702.T44 2010
233(cid:2).5—dc22 2010009105
A catalogue record of the book is available from the British Library.
Design by Newgen Imaging Systems (P) Ltd., Chennai, India.
First edition: November 2010
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
Acknowledgments vii
1 Racism as a Christian Problem 1
2 Racism as a White Problem 15
3 Racism as a Theological Problem 37
4 Combat Breathing: Katie Geneva Cannon 53
5 Surrogacy and Survival: Delores S. Williams 77
6 The Color of Christianity: Kelly Brown Douglas 99
7 Shoulder to Shoulder: M. Shawn Copeland 121
8 Dismantling Evil: Emilie M. Townes 143
9 One Body at a Time 161
Notes 173
Bibliography 191
Index 203
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Acknowledgments
Many people have supported the writing of this book. My teachers at
Gonzaga University first introduced me to theology as an academic
discipline, and my colleagues and friends at Boston College and the
University of San Diego—faculty, staff, and administration—have
consistently cheered me on. I am especially grateful to Boston College
for funding this research in its early stages, and to the University of San
Diego for the research grants that reduced my teaching load for two
semesters, enabling me to complete the book in a timely manner.
Any theological merit in this work is due largely to M. Shawn
Copeland’s gracious and conscientious mentoring, which I have been
fortunate to experience not only through her scholarly work but also
personally. Her input during the initial development of these ideas was
invaluable. While I will always have much to learn, both as a theolo-
gian and as a white person in the United States, Professor Copeland
has generously pointed me in the right direction. More broadly, the
encouragement of colleagues who are also striving toward antiracism
means much more to me than I can say.
I am tremendously grateful to Sarah Azaransky for suggesting that
we form a writing group and for meeting faithfully to set goals and
celebrate progress; the process would have been much more lonely
and stressful without her. In addition, she, Shawn Copeland, Mary
Doak, Belinda Lum, Emily Reimer-Barry, Tracy Tiemeier, and Matt
Watkins read and commented on drafts of various chapters. I thank
them for improving the argument, and I take responsibility for the
errors and gaps that remain.
My family and friends have helped me enormously. My parents,
Betty and Jerry Teel, instilled in me a solid moral foundation from
which serious questions about justice and peace became possible, and
they supported my theological aspirations even when they worried
that I would never leave school and get a “real” job. Since I did so,
my family, neighbors, and friends have continued to keep me sane. I
viii Acknowledgments
have also been sustained by the welcome extended to me in my church
communities. And to Sarah Moriarty, my deepest gratitude for creat-
ing (on short notice) the exquisite drawing that expresses the spirit of
the book so beautifully.
Finally, completing Racism and the Image of God would have been
far more tedious without the companionship of my family—Matt,
Madeline, and Gabriel. They believe in my efforts, struggle with me
on the journey toward antiracism, and bring me joy every day. To
them I lovingly dedicate this book.
1
Racism as a Christian Problem
“The Lord is my shepherd: I shall not want!”
I had heard this psalm sung many times before. But this was
different.
“The Lord is my shepherd: I shall not want! He makes me lie down
in green pastures . . . ”
In the white churches of my past, this psalm was intoned serenely,
as though reflecting a present security and peace. Now the words rose
up as a cry to God.
“Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil, for
you are with me . . . ”
Throbbing with anguish, the black woman’s passionate voice yet
resonated with a determined hope and trust.
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forevermore!”
This was no casual assurance of one waiting comfortably for her
eventual reward, but an urgent demand for justice. The Lord is my
shepherd, I shall not want: in the end, God, you will fulfill these
promises.
Attending mostly white churches when I was growing up, I sensed
that many people were there because they thought they ought to be.
Some, sincerely devout, tried to live according to their faith during
the week as well. Nevertheless, attending church remained a matter
of choice and even a point of pride. Our family, I understood with-
out being told, went regularly not only because my parents believed
in God and wanted to raise us children to be faithful Catholics, but
also because going to church was what virtuous people did. In my
sheltered faith, I trusted that the comforts I enjoyed in this life would
be exponentially greater in the next.