Jazz Theologian:  Malcolm X’s main critique of Christianity in America had to do
with how race seemed to determine our habits more than Jesus.  Which of
your questions in A New Kind of
Christianity can lead us closer to the unity that Christ prayed for in
Jn. 17 and why?

McLaren:  The
first of the ten questions probably is key here [the narrative question]. I
suggest that what many of us take to be the biblical narrative is actually the
Greco-Roman narrative, and that narrative is inherently dualistic. It creates
us vs. them, civilized vs. barbarians, insiders vs. outsiders, and that dualism
easily gets translated into racism and related -isms, white versus black,
settlers versus native peoples, Americans versus immigrants, whatever. 

I’d also say that the third question is really key, the God
question: Is God violent? If we believe that God plays favorites – loves some,
hates others – chooses some, rejects others – makes some rich, lets others be
poor – then it becomes very easy to see our race (or nation, or denomination)
as blessed and everyone else as cursed. That connects us quickly with the
fourth question, the Jesus question, because if we believe that God is like
Jesus, and we see Jesus constantly crossing boundaries to show love to the
other, then we see God as being the God who breaks boundaries too, rather than
the one who creates boundaries.

Then I think about the sixth question, the church question
… because we need to ask how we manifest and embody our view of the biblical
narrative, our view of God, our view of Jesus, in our local churches. All of
our theology needs to be translated into real life in local faith communities
… that’s where it makes a difference, especially in our cities, where it is
needed so much!

Join the Groove…are we as Christians moving closer or further away when it comes to unity in the Body of Christ?