VODDIE BAUCHAM, BLM, MARXISM, AND JUSTICE

 

 

The Good News includes some bad news, even many warnings. Warnings are part of Jesus’ message:

 

• “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”(Matthew 7:15)

 

• And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod (Mark 8:15)

 

Jesus had warned about any teaching that would corrupt the faith. The faithful Christian servant must do likewise.

 

Now for another warning. In every Marxist nation, Christianity has been oppressed to the point of extermination. VODDIE T. BAUCHAM JR., pastor, church planter, and dean of the School of Divinity at African Christian University in Lusaka, Zambia, warns that, according to the Marxist Critical Theory (CT):

 

• Christianity is part of the oppressive hegemony! And according to some, it is the most pernicious aspect of it; it has and maintains “privilege,” and contributes to oppression. One of the foundational CSJ textbooks, Teaching for Diversity and Social Justice, is a mainstay in schools of education. In it, the term “Christian privilege” refers to “the social advantages held by Christians in the U.S. who experience social and cultural advantages relative to non-Christians” derived from hegemony. Hence, it is rooted in “the assumptions underlying institutional rules and the collective consequences of following those rules,” and therefore, “is generally unacknowledged by those who hold it, because it is maintained through the pervasive but largely invisible culture of normative religious practices.” This is the classic Gramscian-Marxist view of hegemony. (Baucham, “Fault Lines,” 207)

 

According to CT, everything about the prevailing culture must be mercilessly criticized until overthrown. Baucham cites another CT neo-Marxist:

 

• “Religious freedom… is really code for white Christians being able to do what they want to do,” (“The Color of Compromise” author Jemar Tisby told Veggie Tales). (207-08)

 

For the CT and the Critical Race Theorist, there can be “No Peace” as long as there is “No Justice.” For them, however, “justice” will not be achieved until the entire system is overthrown.

 

The CT neo-Marxist invariably regards Christianity as the opposition. Baucham cites “Teaching for Diversity and Social Justice”:

 

• The significance of Christianity in U.S. life and the challenges it poses for minority religions is a social justice issue that requires the kind of historical knowledge and structural/cultural analysis we use to understand other forms of oppression that stand in the way of social justice. (208)

 

For the Marxist CT, undermining Christianity is a matter of justice, since it provides the foundation and support for oppression. Therefore, it must be eliminated and replaced by a Marxist system.

 

Baucham argues that BLM (“Black Lives Matter”) is married to Marxism and CT:

 

• The organization is Marxist, revolutionary, feminist, misandrist, pro-LGBTQIA+, pro-abortion, and anti-family, with roots in the occult. It is unacceptable for Christians to partner with, celebrate, identify with, or promote this organization. And that includes being bullied or pressured into using the phrase “black lives matter.” (“Fault Lines,” 223)

 

BLM, a product of Marxist training, has no qualms about the use of pressure and intimidation. Baucham believes that it is his duty as a Christian to expose BLM, especially through its own writings:

 

• We are self-reflexive and do the work required to dismantle cisgender privilege and uplift Black trans folk, especially Black trans women who continue to be disproportionately impacted by trans-antagonistic violence. We foster a queer-affirming network. When we gather, we do so with the intention of freeing ourselves from the tight grip of heteronormative thinking, or rather, the belief that all in the world are heterosexual. (BLM’s website’s “What We Believe” page)

 

In Marxist fashion, BLM’s intention is to “dismantle” and “disrupt.” Force and propaganda replaces peace and reason as their tools for social change:

 

• We build a space that affirms Black women and is free from sexism, misogyny, and environments in which men are centered. We make our spaces family-friendly and enable parents to fully participate with their children. We dismantle the patriarchal practice that requires mothers to work “double shifts” so that they can mother in private even as they participate in public justice work. We disrupt the Western-prescribed nuclear family structure requirement by supporting each other as extended families and “villages” that collectively care for one another, especially our children, to the degree that mothers, parents, and children are comfortable. (Black Lives Matter, “What We Believe,” http://archive.is/oARH0)

 

These are not the teachings that have promoted the Christian faith:

 

• Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. (1 Corinthians 13:4-6)

 

Baucham exemplifies these biblical principles:

 

• I forgave the Africans who took my ancestors’ freedom. I forgave the Americans who bought and exploited them. I forgave the family that replaced my identity with their German name. I just forgave! I did not harbor any ill will. I did not feel entitled to any apologies or reparations. By God’s grace, I recognized that Providence had blessed me beyond my ancestors’ wildest dreams—or my own. I couldn’t help but remember Joseph’s words: “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today” (Genesis 50:20). (228-29)

 

Join me in praying that the Lord will both warn and revive His Church!