How could I have been so blind?
This week I had two heart-rendingly difficult communications with friends who I admire and respect about the subject of racism in the United States. I’ll start with the second. My friend told me that she just felt hopeless. That she didn’t see an end. That she didn’t see a solution. That she had been so badly hurt by the members of the church that we both belong to and believe holds the truth that she couldn’t bring herself to attend anymore. This isn’t someone who is weak, uneducated, seeking power, or angry with people who are trying their best. This is someone who is strong, intelligent, educated, humble, and sincere. And she feels hopeless because she knows that in a month (or less), people like me will have moved on and stopped listening. How could I have been so blind to her pain? Especially when I consider myself a disciple of Christ, to whom this friend is every bit as valuable as myself? Before I explain the other conversation, I have to say that this friend is practically a ...