Initial Thoughts On Race, Love, & the Unity of the Church
Our Executive Director has been located in the Twin Cities area since 2018 and recently met local leader Alicia Thoj on a pastor’s prayer meeting call. She shared some revealing thoughts about how her primarily Asian church has been affected by attitudes surrounding COVID-19, and we invited her to share briefly on our recent webinar, Tools and Conversation to Reflect the Kingdom of God in your Neighborhood, as well as through this blog.
We hope this post will be a starting point to hear another perspective and begin to learn how we as the Church can play a role in supporting our brothers and sisters of color, listening to their stories, and speaking up against injustice. These are ongoing conversations and a lifelong journey that we can live out every day as we seek to care for others as Jesus did, despite the challenges and discomfort. The unity Jesus prayed for his people in John 17 may not be easy, but we believe, as Alicia does, that Love will guide the way.
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Alicia Thoj has been the Community Engagement Director at RiverLife Church in St. Paul, Minnesota for the past six years. Her role is to provide opportunities for people in the church to connect with the community through initiatives like their food shelf, helping refugee families resettle, and serving the homeless population in Minneapolis. She, and many of the attendees of RiverLife, represent a Southeast Asian ethnic minority group called the Hmong (pronounced “Mung”). The church’s mission is to bring Hope and Healing to second and third generation Hmong individuals and families who struggle to navigate between cultures–they may not all speak the native language and have adopted elements of American culture, but treasure their roots and identity as a people.
Alicia’s family migrated from Laos during the Vietnam war, living in a refugee camp in Thailand until they were brought to the United States. (For history buffs, the Hmong presence in the United States is largely due to their participation in the CIA’s “Secret War” against communism; due to their alliance with the United States they faced extermination in Laos if they didn’t flee.)
RiverLifeChurch is led by Pastor Greg Rhodes, a white pastor who is married to Dr. Pangfoua Yang Rhodes, a Hmong woman. They planted RiverLife with the goal of building a faith community that represented a “beautiful mix of both cultures,” says Alicia.
The church, which caps out at about 270 attendees on a good Sunday, is made up largely of young Hmong families who are attracted to the sense of belonging and close knit community that many hadn’t experienced before at largely white churches. The Hmong culture’s strong emphasis on community has woven itself into the fabric of RiverLife, along with various other influences such as modern music and integrating women in leadership.
In early March 2020 as the COVID-19 virus began to catch national attention and spread in the US, Alicia and the RiverLife congregation began to notice an uncomfortable shift in the national dialogue. Below Alicia shares her perspective on what it’s been like for Asian Americans in the wake of Coronavirus, and some thoughts on how Jesus followers can stand up for one another in love.
What has concerned you about how people have responded to the Coronavirus pandemic?
“At first being a spectator it didn’t sound like a big deal, but when key leaders started calling it a “Chinese virus” people were ready to blame someone for something, so it made Chinese people and Asian people a target. People believe these things out of fear, they go to really dark places, and that causes them to believe wrong information about how it got here. It created a platform for Americans to allow their biases to manifest itself. It gave invisible permission to say racial slurs or avoid contact with Asians.
I was in a webinar recently that was put on by the Minnesota Children’s Defense Fund that had a pretty awesome panel of Asian leaders from the Twin Cities and one of the panelists shared about how racism has shown up in the healthcare system. Asian doctors and nurses had seen an increase in patients asking for a different physician who was not Asian or asked to put on gloves to prevent them from catching COVID.
Another example regarding the economic impact is that Asian restaurants around the country have seen a decrease in their business because of their fear of catching COVID. My family happened to be at a Chinese buffet in early March to celebrate a birthday and it was empty. This was a more popular buffet but there was hardly anyone in there. At the time I did not think much about it but then it made sense that people were avoiding Asian restaurants.
Eventually Minnesota released data that showed Asians within the state had the lowest number of COVID cases and that really helped affirm for us that we were not the ones spreading the virus to people in Minnesota. It confirmed for me that people were acting out of their xenophobia and fears simply because we looked Asian.”
Can you share about some of the challenges you/your church have faced as members of the Asian community due to the virus?
“As an Asian church the impact is more the fear and uncertainty of what could happen to me or my family simply because we look Asian. In our church specifically there has been an increase in anxiety and decrease in emotional health and well being. Being in quarantine has increased levels of stress already but the extra fear of being targeted when going out in public adds another layer. Our community is going through a lot of internal feelings of anxiety and feeling like they can’t be who they are during this time.
I haven’t received any reports of any violent or hate acts within our church congregation but it doesn’t mean that people are not experiencing racist acts. Asians are extremely private about shameful things that happen to them. It’s not put on social media or shared even with extended families. It’s not surprising that I haven’t heard more about what everyone is experiencing at this time.
I have had conversations with family and friends who have felt scared or received stares when they were out shopping and that raised concerns for them because they were with their children. Another friend shared that he was worried about his wife who was at the store too long. Another was afraid to go for a walk or go out in public by themselves. My husband and I now carry pepper spray with us and we are constantly checking our environment and being extra vigilant when we are out in public.
A few weeks ago in St. Paul there was an older Asian woman who got kicked in the face by three teens and it was caught on video. She was simply waiting to get on the bus and was attacked. It’s these kinds of moments that make us afraid of being Asian.”
What has been your/the church’s response to those experiences?
“Our church has decided to respond to this by changing our sermon series to “Healthy Mind, Happy Home.” We focused on validating feelings of anxiety and tensions with kids, teens, and adults. We chose to focus on the internal because it guides our external words and actions. In one of our sermons the pastor’s wife pushed back against racism towards us and our fellow African American brothers because that same week Ahmaud Arbery was shot in Georgia. Then recently Minnesota experienced the death of George Floyd which has also been tragic.
“We don’t have to all agree on the same political issues but as Christians we are called to love one another just as Christ loved us and that should supersede our political values.”
In addition, church members including my pastor and our district leaders signed the statement put out by Asian American Christian Collaborative to denounce the rise of Anti-Asian racism throughout the country. It was a call to end xenophobic rhetoric, hate crimes and violence against our people and communities. We needed to stand together if we were going to call out evil and as Christians we know that this is the work of the enemy.”
What is your message to the broader Church about how to support its Asian members during this time? Are there tangible things we can all be doing?
1.) Validate what is happening in the Asian community–“Wow, people are saying this about them?” Being silent is harmful and we must not ignore the cries for help. This is something as Asians we are still learning because with the recent events such as the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd, some Asians are still silent.
- Join social media groups to learn and listen. People are sometimes quick to offer advice or give solutions without being willing to listen, but listening will give you insight.
- Ask friends and families who are not white about how you can advocate for them and support them through difficult times such as COVID or the death of George Floyd.
- Read books and materials written by diverse authors which will help you to understand different worldviews and cultures and help you to empathize with others.
2.) Conversations are important. Create spaces for conversations in your circle which includes your home, family, friends, church, and work. Start the conversation with something as simple as, “Did you hear what happened today?” Focus on having conversations that are loving to help process feelings and emotions rather than playing the blame game.
- My husband and I have long conversations over multiple days each time a major event happens locally, within the US, or overseas.
- Initiate conversations with children too–they can talk about issues that are important. I have talked to my eleven year old nephew recently about immigration and racism against African Americans. He asked great questions and provided a unique perspective.
- When I was part of the Race Equity team at work one of the BIG goals was to normalize conversations about race. My workplace would create justice circles to allow people to process what they were feeling. We had one recently after the death of Geoge Floyd.
- At Church, when there was a ban against Muslims entering the United States we had a healing circle to provide space for people to process what was going on and how they were feeling. It also allowed Christians to discuss their faith in conjunction with what was happening around them.
Related Post: A Letter to the Church on George Floyd & Biblical Justice
3.) Stand in solidarity with Asians, and with our Latino/a families, African American families, Native American families, Karen/Karenni families, Somali families… we all need each other to stand up against what is wrong.
- We all have the ability to speak out against evil together, especially racism. That means pushing back when someone in your family or church says racist things about a person or communities of color. It’s stepping in when you hear kids repeating racist jokes. We don’t have to all agree on the same political issues but as Christians we are called to love one another just as Christ loved us and that should supersede our political values.
4.) Empower people of color in your church and workplaces to be leaders. Ask them to be part of committees and teams and let their talents, gifts, leadership, perspectives, and prayers bring your organization healing and blessings.
- Jesus came for everyone and he gave us the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit dwells in all who say they believe in Jesus and so we also have the Holy Spirit to speak out against darkness.
- Prayer. When was the last time you had a person who was of a different ethnicity pray over you? There is something beautiful when another person prays in another language to ask God to protect and bless you.
- Address systemic racism. This means that some of you have to address systemic racism by helping rewrite laws, policies, bylaws, and theologies to be inclusive of all people This also means voting for your church leaders, elected officials, school boards, state and federal leaders who will help better the lives of all people.
Is there something you hope the broader Church can learn from all of this?
“If you only allow yourself to see what the world is like through your lens, the people around you who don’t look like you will pick up on that right away. If you choose to live through a lens of love they can also pick up on that. When I led Race Equity trainings at work I was able to identify those individuals who have lived their life through a single lens and have not taken the time to understand other people and their cultures.
“When was the last time you had a person who was of a different ethnicity pray over you? There is something beautiful when another person prays in another language to ask God to protect and bless you.”
The Bible says that love casts out fear, and I believe we have to let love be our guide. I truly believe that if we as Christians started with love there would be more understanding of cultures, less hate crimes, increased understanding of our biases, and the ability to set aside our political views and provide hospitality to one another.
We need each other to lift each other up. Leaders need to call out their own biases and become friends with their Asian brothers and sisters. We also need to put leaders of color in places of power and influence because they are just as gifted. (If that statement bothers you then pay attention to that feeling. It’s a bias that you are experiencing.)
Here is a powerful question for self reflection: How has your denomination or church evolved in the past 25 years? 50 years? 100 years? Is it still the exact same or has it grown over the years to meet the needs of each generation?”
Anything else you would add?
“It’s important for the Church to include books, articles, and videos from people of color on Christianity. The global church is much bigger than the White American Church and sadly I’ve spent the majority of my life trying to understand a White Jesus and White theologies. I’ve had a really hard time trying to fit that in with my Hmong life and wondered how I could bring the best of both worlds into my life as a Christian. Our Christian communities need to hear from godly Asian women and men on how to navigate Christian life with specific cultural perspectives.
“The Bible says that love casts out fear, and I believe we have to let love be our guide. I truly believe that if we as Christians started with love there would be more understanding of cultures, less hate crimes, increased understanding of our biases, and the ability to set aside our political views and provide hospitality to one another.”
Here is an example that I’ll leave you with. The famous marriage passage of leaving your mother and father and cleaving to your spouse? In Hmong families the youngest son stays with the parents until they pass…I happened to marry the youngest son. I had to ask God to give me understanding of this cultural practice and wisdom to still honor God with my marriage. I wished I had the opportunity to hear from Asian pastors and leaders who have navigated this cultural piece and this specific passage because life would have been a little easier. This is why I am grateful for the opportunity as a second generation Hmong woman to have been given a chance to share a little snippet of my life and am blessed to serve with RiverLife Church.”
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This is the first post in a series highlighting diverse Christian voices in conversations about race, faith, and the Church. Stay tuned for more opportunities to learn from and engage with faith leaders of color!
