Spirituality can help us to transcend race consciousnessPosted in Articles, Media Archive, Religion, United States on 2015-09-10 14:47Z by Steven |
Spirituality can help us to transcend race consciousness
The Orlando Sentinel
Orlando, Florida
2015-09-02
Charles Michael Byrd, Guest columnist
As someone whom society views as racially mixed, traversing a spiritual path was indispensable for me to achieve happiness by resolving the internal conflicts arising from America’s obsession with the politics of racial identity..
Ultimately the question of how multiracial individuals should identify comes down to the level of individual spiritual consciousness. Does one see himself as the body or the spark of consciousness animating that body? Is one obligated to accept the label society issues at birth, or should one be able to freely name oneself?
Against that backdrop, the Sentinel’s Jeff Weiner’s June 4 article, “Orlando faith leaders: Improving race relations means building relationships” caught my eye and compelled me to reflect on just how inextricably blended race and religion are in America, particularly in the black community.
With Sunday mornings remaining this country’s most segregated time slot, not only have mainstream religions not allowed individuals of all colors to build transcendent interpersonal relationships, but many Americans have soured on the Abrahamic belief systems in favor of innate spirituality. The soul exists beyond racial-identity politics and does not impute value and character onto skin color…
Read the entire article here.