The Challenges of Multiculturalism for the American Church

Malcolm Webber, Ph.D.

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The Biblical Basis of Multiculturalism

According to Paul Hiebert, a multiethnic (or multicultural) church is "a church in which there is (1) an attitude and practice of accepting people of all ethnic, class and national origins as equal and fully participating members and ministers in the fellowship of the church; and (2) the manifestation of this attitude and practice by the involvement of people from different ethnic, social and national communities as members in the church" (Ortiz, 1996p. 149). God’s desire for this kind of multiculturalism is found from the beginning to the end of the Bible. As Verkuyl (1992) observes, "the God [of the Old Testament]…is the God of the whole world" (p. A-49). In Genesis chapters 1 through 11, God’s work and activity are directed at the whole of humanity. The promise of divine redemption given to Abraham in Genesis 12:3 declares, "all peoples on earth will be blessed through you" (NIV). Furthermore, as Webber (1998, p. 54) notes, many prophecies throughout the Old Testament foretold the coming time when salvation would be offered to all nations (e.g., Genesis 12:3; 22:18; 26:4; 28:14; Psalm 67; 72:17; Isaiah 2:1-5; 11:10; 60:2-3, 6; Joel 2:28; Amos 9:11-12; Habakkuk 2:14; Zechariah 8:20-22; cf. Galatians 3:8). Likewise, the New Testament affirms not only God’s intention to save people from all cultures and ethnic groups (e.g., Matthew 24:14; 28:19-20; John 4:42; Acts 11:18; Ephesians 1:10; Titus 2:11; Revelation 5:9-10; 7:9-17), but also His desire for those people to be joined together in one body (e.g., Acts 6:1-7; Galatians 3:28; Ephesians 2:12-22; 4:3-5). Thus, in Christ, the church has no real "choice" in the matter. God has called the American church to embrace those of other cultural backgrounds and to seek unity with them.

This multicultural unity, however, does not mean uniformity. As Spencer and Spencer (1998) wisely note, a multicultural unity that is biblical will be "inclusive to all people, [but] exclusive to one Supreme God" (p. 19). According to Rhodes (1998), a biblical diversity "assumes that we hold a common truth but express it in different ways. Diversity presupposes unity. We may not always agree in diversity, but we are committed to working toward the underlying unity amid our differences" (p. 28). Thus, a true multicultural unity will build upon the foundation of unity in Christ with bricks and mortar that reflect the cultural diversity of the participants. The pursuit of such a unity will mean great blessing for the church, but also new challenges.

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The Biblical Basis of Multiculturalism

Multiculturalism: The Good and the Bad »

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© Malcolm Webber, Ph.D., www.healthyleaders.org.

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