{"id":5137,"date":"2016-08-04T17:29:24","date_gmt":"2016-08-04T22:29:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/rhetoricraceandreligion\/?p=5137"},"modified":"2016-08-04T17:29:43","modified_gmt":"2016-08-04T22:29:43","slug":"have-we-forgotten-god","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/rhetoricraceandreligion\/2016\/08\/have-we-forgotten-god.html","title":{"rendered":"Have We Forgotten God?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"black<\/a>by Michael Bowe<\/em><\/p>\n

Recently, I picked up a book because the title caught my eye.\u00a0 I have yet to open it yet, as I have some several other readings that I need to accomplish.\u00a0 However, I did buy it and I will eventually make my way to reading it.\u00a0 Its title is Forgotten God<\/em> by Francis Chan.\u00a0 The subtitle has leadings that it will talk of the Holy Spirit, but I do not know its contents.\u00a0 However, I would like to borrow the title for this article.<\/p>\n

It seems this country has forgotten God.\u00a0 Now let me clarify.\u00a0 There are countless calls and criticisms on the basis that the country has forgotten God.\u00a0 The claims are that God is removed from school, God is disregarded considering same sex marriage, God is kicked out of America because of etc.\u00a0 The list can be long.\u00a0 However, based on recent events I think America has forgotten who God is.<\/p>\n

Malcolm X stated, \u201cIf you\u2019re not careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed, and loving the people who are doing the oppressing.\u201d\u00a0 When we see the lists of people being oppressed such as Sandra Bland, Freddie Gray, Alton Sterling, Tamir Rice, and countless others, I am amazed by the people who are siding with the governmental force that oppressed these people.\u00a0 Please understand, I am not nor will I ever condone killing anyone, including police officers.\u00a0 I am simply asking has America forgotten the character of God revealed in the Bible?<\/p>\n

In Isaiah 61:1-2 the prophet states, \u201cThe spirit of the Lord\u00a0God\u00a0is upon me, because the\u00a0Lord\u00a0has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; 2\u00a0<\/sup>to proclaim the year of the\u00a0Lord\u2019s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn.\u201d\u00a0 This was written to bring comfort to a people who were being oppressed.\u00a0 Later, Jesus would quote these verses and say he was the fulfillment of these verses to a people who were oppressed by the Roman Government.\u00a0 Throughout the gospels we find that Jesus was constantly on the liberating side of the people oppressed.\u00a0 This includes the woman at the well, Matthew the tax collector, the woman with the issue of blood, and the other criminal on the cross beside him.<\/p>\n

Now when miscarriages of justice occur, people automatically begin to justify the actions of the oppressor.\u00a0 He was resisting arrest, he had a rap sheet a mile long, he had a gun; he looked suspicious and so on.\u00a0 The news media has twisted many of these events causing people to have to pick sides. Unfortunately, I am finding many of my Christian brothers and sisters loving those who are doing the oppressing and forgetting the oppressed.\u00a0 James Cone states, \u201cTheology ceases to be a theology of the gospel when it fails to arise out of the community of the oppressed.\u201d[1]<\/a>\u00a0 When will the Christian community arise and call out the oppressors of this land?\u00a0 Where is the gospel today?\u00a0 Have the people forgotten God?<\/p>\n

[1]<\/a> Cone, James H. A Black Theology of Liberation<\/em>. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1990. Pg 1<\/p>\n

Michael Bowe is a D.Min student at Memphis Theological Seminary<\/em><\/p>\n

Donate to the Work of R3<\/b><\/p>\n

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Like the work we do at Rhetoric Race and Religion? Please consider helping us continue to do this work. All donations are tax-deductible through Gifts of Life Ministries\/G\u2019Life Outreach, a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization, and our fiscal sponsor. Any donation helps. Just click\u00a0here<\/a>\u00a0to support our work.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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by Michael Bowe Recently, I picked up a book because the title caught my eye.\u00a0 I have yet to open it yet, as I have some several other readings that I need to accomplish.\u00a0 However, I did buy it and I will eventually make my way to reading it.\u00a0 Its title is Forgotten God by […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5138,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[158],"tags":[131,20,784,783,4],"class_list":["post-5137","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guest-contributions","tag-america","tag-god","tag-michael-bowe","tag-political-theology","tag-theology"],"yoast_head":"\nHave We Forgotten God?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"by Michael Bowe Recently, I picked up a book because the title caught my eye.\u00a0 I have yet to open it yet, as I have some several other readings that I\" \/>\n<meta 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