I am aware that there are a bunch of traditionalists who are retreating into nationalism. They are returning to home, hearth and tribe, Many of them have absorbed their Spengler, and they are advocating that the duty of a man is to marry, and to persuade his wife to have as many kids as possible. Preferably of the tribe in question. At the more feral end of this, there is a sense that the state can support them in this, as the righteous deserve some support.
This is not of Christ. In Christ, the division is between the believer and the non believer. The periperhal things — I like porridge, bacon and potatoes and hate grits, greens and Southern Biscuit — (and coffee should not be dilute into that perversion called Starbucks, or worse, diner coffee) do not matter. I can hold my nose and eat not to cause offense. But dividing ourselves along tribal lines is simply stupid.
13Let us therefore no longer pass judgment on one another, but resolve instead never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of another. 14I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself; but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean. 15If your brother or sister is being injured by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. Do not let what you eat cause the ruin of one for whom Christ died. 16So do not let your good be spoken of as evil. 17For the kingdom of God is not food and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18The one who thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and has human approval. 19Let us then pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding. 20Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for you to make others fall by what you eat; 21it is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that makes your brother or sister stumble. 22The faith that you have, have as your own conviction before God. Blessed are those who have no reason to condemn themselves because of what they approve. 23But those who have doubts are condemned if they eat, because they do not act from faith; for whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.
Now, this means that I ignore skin tone. In part this is that I was married inter-racially to a Han woman: my children have both Chinese and Western names, and I’m fully aware that bridging cultures has difficulties. But I was chasing Godliness — and used Churchianity as a proxy for this, which was an error. You need to marry someone who chases God.
If you marry (and some men should not: those who are continent, those who have been scarred to the point that they cannot trust another, and those who can not understand the burden and duties of marriage, consent, lead or provide) then you will have to merge two family cultures to make a new one. This is part of what one flesh means. If you marry across cultures, it will not be the food that traps you.
It is the assumptions you have. Some cultures do not have Disney Princesses (and are better for it). Some cultures are shame based, and keeping appearances is foundational. Others delight in confrontation, irony, satire and disputation. And if you live in a cross cultural marriage it is continually like living on the mission field.
It is easier to marry someone from the tribe.
The problem for the godly man and godly women is that the Church, in the west, is but a remnant. The number of single godly women (speaking as a man, reverse it if you are a girl) — once you have excluded the churchians — are few. And those women generally marry well, marry young, and remain faithful. Within the church, then, we have to look across the tribes, so we can form godly families, and raise the next generation (in part using differential fertility) to be more Godly than this one
UPDATE: Some things are worth imitating from our Chinese and Jewish friends. Music lessons help.
I got a radical idea – let’s just be for Christ, and not be either for or against ‘miscegenation’, i.e. let’s sidestep the issue completely, and not even talk about it! Of course, NOT talking about race is impossible for Yanks (not talking about ANYTHING is impossible for Yanks), but hopefully the rest of us can lead them by example, by not encouraging them…
P.S. I’m of mixed-race, and it was tough, growing up so. I think, notwithstanding my feelings about the overall irrelevance of the issue, that people who balk at the notion, considering the difficulties my likes have gone through, are not without reason in doing so.
I just wish people, esp. a certain obsessed Yank woman or two of colour, would just STFU about the matter. Nobody else, bar some stupid WNs, really gives a damn.
Oh wait; progressives give a damn, e.g. obsessions lately about whether porn has enough interracial sex:
http://www.theroot.com/views/porn-industry-racist?wpisrc=/root_more_news
Do we Christians want to be in the same category as them progs?
Guess if you’re a Yank, you can’t help yourself, though…
Sheesh. Do we really want to pretend that there is any morality in porn?
Apparently progs do!
One never seems to think that God may have had a reason for separate races. Personally, I just want my children to look like me and belong to the same culture. Yep, racissss! Don’t care.
I just wish people, esp. a certain obsessed Yank woman or two of colour, would just STFU about the matter. Nobody else, bar some stupid WNs, really gives a damn.
First, I only know of one half-yank woman who posts such posts, usually in reaction to something read somewhere else in the sphere.
Secondly, it amazes me that whenever I comment on such threads that none of this should matter in Christ, I am roundly denounced by almost everyone who comments on the threads.
So is it that no one gives a damn? I’m not sure. I for one, think that people should do what they think is best for them (in keeping with Scripture of course concerning being equally yoked) and leave it at that.
But bloggers aren’t really the “live and let live” types, are they?
@FH. No, your kids are not yours. They are God’s. And they will look like you, but (Fortunately) they will also look like your spouse. My ex is much more beautiful than I am, and for that I give praise.
@ Will and Elspeth. YOU TWO ACTUALLY AGREE. Stop banging heads. Will is correct, we should in Christ ignore race. And in Canada, as in NZ, this is not an issue — we oppressed the indigenous not black slaves from a rebel nation. What us in the commonwealth forget is that the scars of slavery cut deep — and that includes the church.
The deep irony is that Elspeth’s and Vanessa’s husbands model the correct response. Ignore the regulations and seek excellence. Circuits do not care what colour you are.
(Mutters, and adds a rant on this to today’s post)
Hm, nice underhanded insult there. Anyway, I’ll stick to my race, you do whatever it is you need to do.
Cheerio.