Disappointed in Christianity

In a prior letter, I stated that I would write about my experiences as a Christian. I became a Christian at age 16. What have I learned after being a Christian for 44 years?

I do not remember my parents calling themselves Christians. We moved to Edwards Air Force Base when I was 8 years old. When I joined the Boy Scouts, we repeated the 12 Boy Scout Laws. They seem to guide my life, and I still remember them: “Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courtesy, Kind, Clean and Reverent.”

The King James Version of the Bible was hard. My mother gave me The Living Bible upon entering college. Much better.

At a young age, I remember my parents telling me about their experiences with racism. My mother told me of the time when white students would get brand new books. The books they had were given to the Black students. However, the white students would mark or tear out pages of the old books before giving them away.

I was in first grade at the time when I saw Christ-like qualities. I have a black-andwhite picture of my classmates sitting around Valentine’s Day boxes. I was the only African American in class, and I remember Ms. Stevenson, my teacher, telling the class that they were going to reach out to me. I did not have to explain how I felt. My first-grade teacher knew how I felt without inserting herself as a victim of racism.

That is what I was trying to explain to Ms. Stephens and Mr. Thacker. A true Christian puts him/herself in your shoes.

I did not know it at the time, but many of my friends would be white. That would be pivotal in that it helped me to understand their viewpoints. I initially did not share my feelings about being African-American because I desired their friendship. I also wanted to be white. I realized that God did not make a mistake in making me Black, so I started to express my feelings.

I’m very disappointed with how Christianity is today. Christianity embodies all truth. It is not with Christians sitting on the sidelines in silence with Trump’s deceitfulness. Where are all of the conservatives who were criticizing Obama’s alleged failures and yet keep silent when Trump is immoral? It implies that a white man that’s conservative can escape criticism. Everybody’s the same under God’s law. Vincent White

Lancaster