A White Pastor & A Black Panther
What happens when a white pastor, the Black Panther and the 50th anniversary of the murder of Martin Luther King intersect with the Holy Spirit? In my case, a great deal. This may take a moment to explain but I hope my transparency moves the conversation about racial tensions in a positive direction.
I enjoy the MCU movies a ton. However, when I saw Black Panther on opening weekend I left the theatre with a bad taste in my mouth. When I saw it again a few weeks later I left the theatre with repentance in my heart. What happened?
Since I live in South Carolina I rarely speak of my Great, Great Grandfather. He served in the War Between the States, as it is known in the south, with the 100th Pennsylvania. In the book, Infantryman Pettit, my relative Ernest P Weyman is mentioned as having ended his initial two-year term while in Tennessee. He walked back home to Western Pennsylvania in December without shoes so he could reenlist. The thought of a man being enslaved was unthinkable to him.
At the end of Black Panther, one of the lead characters asks to be buried in the ocean with his ancestors who knew it was “better to be dead than be in bondage.” That line hurt. It felt like the sacrifices of so many who laid down their lives to set people free was stomped on. It felt like the sacrifices of my Grandpa Weyman was minimized. To be honest, it made me a bit frustrated, if not angry.
When I watched Black Panther again, the sting had settled and I was able to watch it knowing what was coming. I also was able to see the movie, not as a descendent of a man who fought to set black people free, but as a brother of a black man who feels very little progress has been made since black people were set free from slavery.
Ultimately, I chose to see the movie from another persons perspective instead of defending my family lineage which opened the door to see more clearly what the Black Panther was partly about. It was then that I needed to repent of my occasionally myopic view of the world and my tendency to see the world through my own anglo-glasses first. It would be arrogant to declare I know how a black person felt when they saw the movie. However, I was able to see more clearly once I placed my own perceptions and indignation down.
I took the time to consider what some in our community might be feeling, what they have experienced and what pain they endure. Some want to argue about what progress has been made to fix racial issues. People fall all over the map on what has been done and what needs to be done. Few can agree on solutions as most can’t even agree as to what the problem is. My desire is not to engage that debate here.
Martin Luther King said that it is easy to integrate a bus. I would suggest to you that it is much more difficult to integrate the heart of humanity. I am not accusing any person of anything in this blog. I am merely saying that God looked into my heart and helped me see something that needed changed in me.
It is my hope that those who read this will give God a chance to peer into the heart and helps us to see the others point of view. Listen instead of speak. Love instead hate. Instead of engaging in rhetoric, speak words of value to another human being. Maybe if we will stop trying to defend ourselves and instead seek understanding, the next black hero will be able to say, “Bury me beside my father. We fought the good fight. We are loved, respected, valued and are seen as equals today.” That is what Ernest Weyman fought for and it would make this Weyman proud.