The anti-racist Bible

The Bible is the most anti-racist religious text in the world. It teaches that we are physically all members of one family (one race, one blood). It teaches that all who believe in the Bible are spiritually all members of one family despite any differences in ethnicity or skin color.

Beginning with the creation of humans we are taught that we are all descendants of one man and one woman. Whether you read this as myth, metaphor or fact, the moral lesson is still the same. Humanity is one race, one blood one family. This is further supported by the account of the flood where all humanity is again portrayed as descending from one family — the family of Noah. Again whether you regard this as myth, metaphor or fact the moral teaching is irrefutable. The table of nations in Genesis Chapter 10 describes how all of the nations of the world are braches of Noah’s family tree.

In Leviticus we are taught to love our neighbor as ourselves. Jesus sites this as one of the two greatest commandments. Neighbor is defined in Leviticus 19:17-18 as your “fellow countrymen.” But Yehovah was not a tribal God but the God of all humanity. So he teaches the people that when as alien comes to share in their belief in Him that they are to treat them as “the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself.” Our spiritual bonds make unimportant any differences in ethnicity, culture or skin pigmentation.

The New Testament also teaches the oneness of believers. It teaches in Galatians 3:28 “here is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” The early church struggles with reconciling Jews and gentiles. Acts chapters 10 and 11 teaches that Christians are members of one spiritual family when they share a common faith.

In Romans the gentile believes are described as branches that are grafted into the native tree of Israel. Further, all believers are described as descendants of Abraham in Galatians 3:29. Finally, we are taught that God makes no distinction and shows no favoritism to any group but loves and judges all impartially. All who believe are His children.

Bible believing people have failed to consistently practice these truths — “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). But the truth of the scriptures is not dependent on the human adherence. Instead the truth is the standard we are to strive to achieve. Judaism and Christianity are the most anti-racist religions because they both draw on the teachings of the most anti-racist religious text in the world — the Holy Bible.