I can't find my confused head-tilt smiley.
Ok. Let me reiterate:
1) I think racism isn't supported by either the Bible OR by modern biology; moreover, I don't perceive that disliking other people simply because they are slightly different than me is any kind of a good reason to fight against them. If other people are majorly different than me in some important moral way (say, for instance, they're really very much like Hitler), then I might see a reason for fighting against them. And I might fight them, even if not for myself, If I sense the need to do so for the loving protection of my family.
2) There is an "Aryan Nations" interpretation of the Bible that is somewhat militant and not completely compatible with mainstream, traditional Christian faith; and we can see this militant kind of pseudo-faith being held had by members of groups like the Klu Klux Klan, Christian Identity cults, and maybe some Neo-Nazis. These people are are dead wrong in their theology, and I'd say they are also in need of some major overhauls in their applications and understanding of hermeneutics. If they fail to do so, I'm under the impression that they won't be gaining Eternal Life with Christ.
3) I'm not a racist, AND I'm still a Christian. In fact, ever since I first became a Christian and I read through the entire Bible that first year of my faith many moons ago (like 30 moons ago, or so), I never came away from my reading that the Canaanites were victims of prejudice or racism. No, they had some very dysfunctional elements in their societies, elements that I wouldn't personally apply the term "culture" to.
4) Yes, I voted for Obama. I thought that at the first, he made the better candidate. And I think he turned out to be a somewhat dignified president, more so than we've seen in some of the guys we've had as president over the past, say, 25 years or so. However, I'm not Democrat, and I'm not Republican.
In this case they're trying to summarize a very complex sociological concept. Most in-depth definitions would be much longer, convoluted and would require a subscrption.
Yes. I realize that much of it. You are talking to someone who has a degree in philosophy, part of which included Analytic Philosophy which has to do with scrutinizing the use and meaning of language itself.
What definition would you like to use?
I don't rely on just one, although as a Christian, I'm going to lean toward one that in some way incorporates all that 'jive' that Paul said about there being, in Jesus Christ, "no Greek, no Jew, no circumcised, no uncircumcised, no barbarian, no cultured, no slave, and no free." But this kind of approach can only come for those who are on the same wavelength by faith in Christ.
Of course, we have the additional contributions to consider for a definition of racism coming from advocates of various diversity groups, humanitarians, United Nation's workers, and even Humanists; all of this can be considered for whatever merits that these sociological and moral viewpoints may have. So, for instance, we may consider the ideas of an education and 'diversity advocate' such as Sonia Nieto (2004) who cites some independent views on racism which, together, infer that the racism we think of it today involves: 1) Distinctions made between people without recourse to consideration of actual merits [or lack thereof], 2) Stereotyping of others, 3) Institutional discrimination [as seen in unequally equipped schools], 4) the presence of a system of privilege and penalty based on belonging to a certain group, and 5) the false doctrine of White Supremacy. All of these (and a few more things, perhaps) can shape our respective views on racism, Nieto says (pp. 36-39). And I tend to agree with her general heuristic in attending to issues of racism today. However, what we find in the Bible is a different story ... and this is the case not just because it pertains to the social actions of Israelites/Jews who lived in the Middle East "long ago."
Moreover, there really is little genetic difference--and I mean very, very little genetic difference--biologically speaking between people of different ethnic groups. However, there are cultural differences, and some of those differences involve moral codes, and some of these lead to some serious disagreements between these same groups.
Reference
Nieto, Sonia. (2004).
Affirming diversity: The sociopolitical context of multicultural education. Boston, MA: Pearson.
I think you're still missing point. If the Bible said that the Canaanites are evil, violent, and morally deprived and said nothing more about them, my point would still be the same.
If the Bible says that the Canaanites are evil, then your point is ONLY proven IF there is absolutely, and in no uncertain terms,
NO HOLY, CREATOR GOD existing whatsoever as affirmed by the biblical writers. And I'm not going to assume there is no such god as this ... You can if you want to, but I see no reason to jump that far ahead.
