The REPARATIONS Dilemma - Political or Biblical, Entitlements or Justice
WHY I BELIEVE IN SOME FORM OF REPARATIONS
I believe whatever is revealed that comes from scripture......not from a political sense, but from a biblical sense.
In Exodus 12:33-36, The children of Israel, on their way out of 400 years of slavery, God directed them to request from their neighbors, silver, Gold, etc...and gave them favor to receive the wealth of Egypt....He gave them the reparations of 400 years worth of wages for free labor in ONE night.
I believe in reparations for the ancestors of former slaves because God didn't send Israel out of slavery empty handed. Our African-American forefathers were released from hundreds of years of slavery EMPTY HANDED. This is why I believe in reparations from the BIBLE, not from a political vantage point, but from a biblical standpoint, which is different from what is being promoted in liberal policies today.
Reparations from a biblical standpoint begins with a return to God, from a dependency on a system that at its core is based upon manipulation and control of the masses.
What I see from most people on the subject of Reparations, both Christian and non-religious alike, is that we are more dependent upon government than we are God, with our pursuit after reparations or justice. Or we're more conservative, Republican or liberal Democrat, than we are pragmatic and/or Christian about reparations....
As a Christian, when your policy or social views are against the bible and you choose your political views over what the bible is saying, you then forfeit your faith as a Christian, for your policy or party platform.
You can't see scripture that goes against your political views, and choose your political view over the Bible, and continue as a believer in the Bible. You forfeit your faith, for your party.
The Pragmatic View on Reparations
The bottom line of reparations is our ancestors never received what they were promised upon the end of the slave trade and the horrible crime against Black people, being taken from their lands and forced to be treated as less than human in slavery.
Reparations were warranted, and even though reparations were promised, the legislation passed in one session of Congress known as RECONSTRUCTION ERA, which included giving each slave 40 acres and a mule, the next session of Congress after Lincoln was assassinated, overturned this legislation and the slaves never received anything.
This was unjust, and has never been requited. So there is both a pragmatic AND a biblical basis for reparations.
The interesting thing about the reparations act passed in legislation in 1865 and then overturned in 1877 is, even back then the same political spirit that kept them from giving what they were warranted AND needed, to live free, is the same political spirit surrounding the debate today....conservatism vs liberalism, only the Democrats were the conservatives against the ending of slavery and reconstruction, and the Republicans were the abolitionists, standing against slavery and for Reconstruction.
In addition, the fact that slavery of other groups, like human trafficking of woman, are still happening today is an indication that we have never adequately dealt with the slavery at our nation's formation, along with the presentation of white domination of black slaves and the subsequent systemic racism of our democratic process and system, both with our ancestors, and that's still being grappled with today.
As a result we still have a White dominated presentation of American society with a hegemonic, White, ruling class structure, ruling and deciding for the masses from a bigoted basis....White is right, and knows best.
This presentation has to be torn down in our society....And for it to be torn down in society it must first begin in the American Church, before society will ever change....
But it will never happen with the present political Christianity running rampant in the American church today. We must return to biblical Christianity....basing our worldview on scripture. NOT using scripture to validate our worldview or our party's stance on our particular platforms.
The Biblical View on Reparations
In scripture, when the children of Israel were delivered from Egyptian slavery, God, on their way out of Egypt, gave them reparations, unbeknownst to Pharoah.
Now the Lord said to Moses, “One more plague I will bring on Pharaoh and on Egypt; after that he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will surely drive you out from here completely. Speak now in the hearing of the people that each man ask from his neighbor and each woman from her neighbor for articles of silver and articles of gold.” The Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Furthermore, the man Moses himself was greatly esteemed in the land of Egypt, both in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants and in the sight of the people.
Exodus 11:1-3 NASB
It's worth noting here, that an oppressor never wants to repay an oppressed people for their years of oppression. It takes those detached from the oppression (Moses), or Someone greater than the oppressor (Jehovah God) or those that were opposed to the oppression or compassionate and repentant for the oppression (some Egyptians), to give reparations.
However, reparations are apart of God's process of deliverance of an oppressed people from Slavery. God does, and God can give reparations for oppressed people.
For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge His people”
Hebrews 10:30 NASB
And God's way to repay for years of oppression of any people group against another always begins with a shaking of the economic base of that economy that unjustly profited through the oppression of another people.
God completely destroyed and collapsed the Egyptian economy before giving Israel reparations.
But those reparations came from the people who made up the Egyptian economy, NOT from any other nation.
Why? Could it be because that people and that economy had been made wealthy off the backs of those Hebrew slaves??....
With Judgments being released on Egypt for the oppression of His people with the ten plagues GOD, in the Exodus saw it fitting to repay them for 400 years of NO wages being paid to them, nor to their forefathers, upon their Exodus out of Egypt....
This reveals God's heart concerning reparations...He made it up to them and gave what their forefathers worked for but never received wages for.....
THE EXODUS WAS AN EXAMPLE FOR THE LAST DAYS
For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea; and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ. Now these things happened as examples for us.....
1 Corinthians 10:1-2, 4, 6 NASB
I Corinthians 10:1-6 in the New Testament tells us that the Exodus happened to them as examples for US, to learn from....Not to apply these things from the Exodus to our time because it's in the Old Covenant, would be like saying the blood on the door posts has no connection to us as Christians today, that we can't learn anything from that today. But we know that the blood on the door posts was an example of Christs' blood being shed for our sins today.
The Exodus happened to them as an example FOR US to learn from today....
And What is the example WE can receive from the Exodus today??
When God brings a nation of people out of slavery He looks to give them 3 things
(1) HE RECONNECTS THEM WITH THE GOD OF THEIR FATHERS (JEHOVAH) - Exodus 3:13-17
(2) HE GIVES THEM FAVOR WITH THE PEOPLE WHO ENSLAVED THEM TO GIVE THEM THE BACK PAY THEIR FOREFATHERS WORKED BUT WERE NEVER COMPENSATED FOR....WHAT WAS OWED THEM. Exodus 11:2-4
(3) AND HE BRINGS THEM OUT HEALED & WHOLE - Exodus 12
ISN'T REPARATIONS JUST LIKE THE ENTITLEMENT PROGRAMS OF WELFARE
It's hardly entitlement for a people of a nation whose forefathers worked for NO pay for 400 years, practically built the wealth of the wealthy of this nation for generations...then was released with NOTHING for building that nation.....and then when they ask about those reparations of things promised upon emancipation, but reversed and never given, it's looked on as being an entitlement??
Didn't Blacks already receive Reparations with Welfare?
Firstly, for any of you asking that question, it is very insensitive to just associate welfare with Black people....Welfare is for POOR people that includes WHITE PEOPLE.
Therefore, welfare would not constitute reparations for Black people....There are many black people that have never been on welfare. Welfare has benefited more White people than black people....strictly by the mere numbers of the majority group in our nation....so it's been for everyone that's poor, not just Blacks.
Secondly, Welfare and Reparations are two different things....
Reparations would be akin to a family member passing and having a Will or an Estate that you found out the government or the Courts had not released for whatever reason. It's something they worked for and left for their family, and some may even have stipulations attached to receiving it....
Reparations in my view could involve receiving either land, property or a lump sum of money that would be given in some way, that would be restitution to Blacks for the centuries that their family members worked to build this nation.
So, the question, "Is Reparations akin to asking for handout?" Hardly Not....this could also be comparable to a family asking about what was owed their deceased father/husband, after finding out that his inheritance was stolen or withheld in courts. It's the epitome of respect and retribution for their fathers name to seek retribution or reparations for the years of service and hard work their loved one gave to leave a legacy for his family.
OR
Reparations could be comparable to a prisoner going to jail for something he didn't do and 30 years later under another administration he's found to be innocent and upon his exit from jail he's given millions of dollars in reparations for the 30 years of what he would've or could've accrued in income during his lifetime. THAT'S NOT ENTITLEMENT THAT'S JUSTICE.
RECONSTRUCTION ERA REVERSED
The government at the time of the emancipation of African-American slaves, attempted to draw up a way to get the newly freed slaves acclimated into society, called, RECONSTRUCTION. They were promised 40 acres, and a mule.
But then the incoming Political DEMOCRAT Party cancels this legislation, and establishes the KKK to keep this and any other favorable legislation from being given to them....
While at the same time the White immigrant settlers were being given millions of acres of land FREE, throughout the Midwest and West, to settle and get their feet under them in their new country.
It's SAD that Black people are expected to be where other groups are, having been opposed, blocked and oppressed at every turn and attempt to establish ourselves in this nation. And when those things are brought to the attention of the present plight and situations of the state of our people, it's rebuffed as having happened generations ago and has nothing to do with their present state, or shouldn't be considered by the present leadership of this generation.
All at the same time that people are still continuing to be stopped, blocked and oppressed in convert ways.
AMERICA - A CHRISTIAN NATION???
However, JESUS when He comes is going to reward and repay His people for ALL THE YEARS, CENTURIES AND MILLENIA of work, injustice, and oppression of those that have been unjustly treated in their lifetimes.....This will be the time when the Messiah, Yeshua Hamishiach will give Abraham's descendants, both the heavenly, spiritual descendents through faith in Christ, and the earthly descrndants, the land He promised Abraham, etc
Yet Christian's today, in a supposed Christian nation can't see that our mission should to be the same in time, before Christ returns. We should be willing to requite the injustice of centuries gone by, to the ancestors of slaves, as Christ will do once He returns to the earth. We should do as Micah 6:8 says, Do justly, Love mercy, relieve the oppressed, and repay justice for injustice.
OUR expression of Faith in Christ in this generation of Christianity, is so far from the Christ we say we serve and love.
