The Church and Human Rights

A few years ago I lived in Atlanta, Georgia, for a couple of years. I had an amazing experience and formed so many excellent friendships. I’m thankful that God took me there. But to be honest, I didn’t know anything about the city! I could hardly get to the supermarket without utilizing the GPS on my phone. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to get to know the city, it’s that I just didn’t have the time. Well, it might be better to say that I didn’t make the time. You see, as much as I preach work-life balance, I’m horrible at it. But while there, I decided I wanted that to change. So I began to tour the city with my roommate. We enjoyed many of the awesome sites the city has to offer.

One week, we decided to visit a museum called the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. The museum is divided into two floors with the installments on the bottom floor depicting past events in the civil rights movements in the United States. The installments on the top floor depicting current civil rights movements around the world.

What Stood Out to Me

As I walked through the museum, something stood out to me: the presence of the Christian Church. While I walked through the installments on the bottom floor, I noticed that evidence of the church’s involvement in human rights issues was everywhere. It was undeniable that the Christian Church was a vehicle for the advancement of the civil rights movement in the United States. On the top floor, however, there was very little mention of the church when it came to current work being done to advance human rights.

I want to make it clear that I don’t feel offended that the church was left out of the top floor. And I don’t believe the curators purposely left out mentioning the church in the top floor exhibits. But it did make me wonder: Are Christians still known as the defenders of the least of these? What will it take for the Christian Church to once again be the driving force of love, justice, and mercy for all?
I wonder…

He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God (Micah 6:8, ESV).

Jael Amador writes from New York, New York.

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