A Confession of White Privilege
A commitment to educate, advocate and alleviate
San Diego First Church of the Brethren
Approved at the CBM on June 7, 2020
What does the Lord require of you? To do justice, and love kindness, and walk humbly
with your God. Micah 6:8
If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice
together. 1 Cor 12:26
It is becoming progressively clear that while God created humanity in God’s own image
(Genesis 1:26 ), some people choose to be God and to claim goodness for some and
not for others. If we believe 1 Cor 12:26 holds truth, then when one part of the body
suffers, we all suffer. The treatment and murders of People of Color: Michael Brown,
Tamir Rice, Freddie Gray, Sandra Bland, Eric Garner, Amaud Arbery, George Floyd and
countless unnamed others, all members of the human body, cause the entire human
race to suffer. If one member is honored, all rejoice together. It is time to honor the
lives of people of color! The suffering has been enough!
It has been time for change for decades. Our time is now. Invited by God to do justice,
love kindness and walk humbly with our God, we the San Diego First Church of the
Brethren, acknowledge our participation in a dominant white institutional Christian
culture. We acknowledge we live embedded in a white dominated oppressive system.
We acknowledge that we need to understand more fully our white privilege. We
acknowledge that we need to understand how we participate in systemic racism. We
acknowledge that we need to understand our role in the impact of economic injustice
on the lives of people of color.
We confess we need to turn ourselves away from these ideologies toward new
understandings that demonstrate God’s unconditional love for all people. Black Lives
Matter, and our complicity and complacency have continued the myth that in America
all are equal. Jesus calls us as followers to another way of living…. A way that honors
God and compels us to take care of each other.
Our present course of action continues to separate/alienate us from God and each
other. Therefore, we commit ourselves to conversations, book studies, advocacy and
actions that work at dismantling our white privilege. We commit to be present in our
community(ies) in ways that manifest God’s unconditional love.
Pastor Sara Haldeman-Scarr
Tax ID # 95-3108371
3850 Westgate Place San Diego, CA 92105
oasisforpeace.org
619-262-1988