Every time I tell someone that I’ll be going on the World Race, they either ask what the heck is that, or they ask if it is somehow equated to “The Amazing Race?”.
No! Not the Amazing Race.
Although this race will be amazing, I think the name may be misleading to a lot of the poor souls to whom I blabber.
Well, allow me to try and clarify.
The World Race:
The problem is that our definition of race tends to be one of speed, movement or competition, and while there will be a lot of movement on this trip, I do not think that is where the focus should be. Another understanding of race typically pertains to skin color. Having spent a few years studying sociology, I want to point out a few things about this particular definition of the word “race”.
Race, as in skin color, is a social construct, meaning it was invented to describe a social phenomenon. In this particular definistion, the word “race” is applied to people based solely on the color of their skin. This is not to be confused with “ethnicity”, which describes the cultural tendencies and affiliations of a person or a people group. For example, there may be three people with the same skin tone. Most would identify them all as members of the same race (here are the federal government’s classification of race and ethnicity: African-American, Hispanic, Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, Non-Hispanic White, or Other). However, it is crucial to understand that, though each of the three individuals appears to have the same skin color, or may all bubble in the same selection on their documents, they could ascribe to three different ethnic traditions, thus making them three different ethnicities. Ethnicities are real. Races are not.
Since race describes only skin color, it is seen by many sociologists as a flawed criteria by which to describe individuals. Other sociologists do not even recognize race as a real thing. The existence of race is equivalent to that of the Easter Bunny—a made up entity, designed to make people feel better. In fact, biologists have found that there is absolutely no DNA linked to race. It is simply a matter of melanin quantities in the skin. Sociologists have found that there are more differences between two randomly selected members of the same “race” than there are between two randomly selected members of different “races”.
All that being said, I have my own theory:
There is only one race–the human race.
All of the people in the world were created in the image of a loving, passionate, creative, merciful and graceful God. So if each member of this race is loved by God and made in his image, why shouldn’t God's people love them each?
So here is the deal. I am not competing in some sort of extravagant competition of speed or agility. I am going out to love the one race of God’s children. I am going forth to see His image in everyone I meet. I am being sent off to love on the World Race.
