Leading Through Cultural Conflict
In 2006, as a junior in Bible College, I was faced with the unenviable task of navigating a potentially race-based labor strike. I was the general manager of a fast-food restaurant, and I received word that our Latino employees would go on strike in only a few days. They were part of a broader movement in America that year, one which was advocating for a change in immigration law. After speaking with the Latino leaders on our team, we were able to avoid any disruptions to our service that day. Everyone came to work. I was relieved and felt that we had dodged a racialized bullet.
It was impossible to dodge the cultural conflict that engulfed America in 2020. As a pastor of a multicultural church in NYC, I watched as protests dominated the news and unrest shook our cities. One night, I looked out of our window, to see several police officers apprehending a black suspect. People were gathered with their cell phone cameras on, pointed directly at the police. At the urging of my wife, I ran downstairs to try to be a voice of reason.
To my dismay, the scene quickly turned chaotic, as around 25 police faced off against about 100 of my neighbors. My wife, watching from above, saw a civilian engage in an unprovoked attack against a police officer on the north side of the block. On the south side, I witnessed a police officer engage in an unprovoked attack on a woman only a few feet away from me. The tumult ended almost as quickly as it began, thankfully, without any casualties.
“...as Christians, we believe that the gospel uniquely speaks to the cultural conflicts that have roiled our society.”
These two incidents from my life showcase the apparent inevitability of cultural conflict for those who minister in the United States. We might prefer to dodge the bullet, but we simply cannot. If we minister in these racialized times, we must discern how to lead through cultural conflict. Whether you pastor a culturally diverse church as I did, or whether you minister in more homogenous settings, the reality of race in America is unavoidable. You might not face an actual melee on your street corner, but you will face the simmering tensions of race. Instead of running from the problem, we should run towards it as followers of Jesus Christ.
In fact, as Christians, we believe that the gospel uniquely speaks to the cultural conflicts that have roiled our society. As a result, gospel people engage these issues with a different focus, one marked by allegiance to a Jewish King and His Family, and not by ties of blood or soil. I believe that our focus should lead us to adopt four postures that can facilitate our leadership amid cultural conflict.
First, we should adopt the posture of a servant. The Church at Philippi was a lot like many churches today: it was characterized by a certain level of squabbling (Phil 4:2). Paul responded by urging humility, and he pointed to the example of Jesus, who laid aside his royal privileges to serve us (Phil 2:1-8). Paul told those who were in conflict to humbly “consider others as more important…” (Phil 2:3) and to look out “…for the interest of others” (Phil 4). In this way, Paul declared, we would be adopting “the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus” (Phil 2:5).
People of all cultures would do well to adopt the posture of a servant when engaging in times of cultural conflict. Due to the racialized history of our country, those from the majority culture might need to make an extra effort to “walk a mile in someone else’s shoes.” When we act like servants, this is not an unreasonable request. It is simply the way of Jesus.
Second, we should adopt the posture of a student. All people are different. Cultures are different. Men and women are different. As we grow up, we tend to think the way that we are raised is normal. Where I come from it’s “normal” to say “Ya’ll” and watch college football all day on Saturdays in the Fall. But that’s not “normal” in other parts of the world (or even in my own country). Now, it is important to note that the way I was raised is not wrong. What is wrong, is if I assume that other people are somehow abnormal because they do not live like me.
As a Christian, I must adopt the posture of a student, imitating Paul who sought to “become all things to all people” (1 Cor 9:22). Like Paul, I hope to minister across cultural barriers by contextualizing the gospel. I can only do this if I am a perpetual student of culture. I should ask questions. I should read. To the best of my ability, I should immerse myself in the language, customs, food, and music of those who are not like me. When I learn about others, I become more sympathetic towards their struggles and concerns. This will go a long way toward defusing cultural conflict.
“More often than we do, we ought to put down the phone and pray.”
Third, we should adopt the posture of a confessor. Christians sin. This means that, until we are home with Jesus, confession is a way of life. The Bible commands us to confess our sins to God (1 John 1:9) and to one another (James 5:16). In the angry discourse over race in America, Christians can be unwittingly swept up, and say and do things that, upon reflection, are not in step with the gospel (Gal 2:11-14). Sometimes our sin might be in a face-to-face interaction, or in a social-media argument fueled by a shared meme. Rather than wallowing in shame, we should repent and experience God’s grace. As many have pointed out, in the gospel, we are not canceled, but our sin is (Col 2:14).
Fourth, we should adopt the posture of an intercessor. Paul prayed daily for those he discipled (Col 1:9). Prayer is a neglected feature of our fiery conversation about race in America. More often than we do, we ought to put down the phone and pray. If we spent as much time praying for people as we did arguing with them, America would be a different place.
I hope you never have to lead a company facing a race-based labor strike. I hope you never get swept into a racially-driven melee between your neighbors and the police. But I do know, that you will face cultural conflict if you engage in ministry in twenty-first century America. My prayer for you, my prayer for all of us, is that we engage biblically. Shaped by the gospel, we can be peacemakers who have adopted the postures of a servant, student, confessor, and intercessor. There is hope for our country, there is hope for our cities, there is hope for our churches. And that hope is anchored in the haunting symbol of a bloody cross and in the wonder of an empty tomb.
