“Black is King” vs. Jesus is King
By: Meade Adams
Tags: Christianity, Beyonce, Racism, Black Is King, Africa

Black is King vs. Jesus is King

Why Christians are Seeing Beyoncé’s Black is King as a Threat to Their Christianity

From etonline

It hasn’t even been a week since Beyoncé released her visual masterpiece, Black is King on Disney+. There are really great think-pieces on the content of the film, so I won’t dive into that here. My purpose is to explore some of the online responses to it.

There seems to be a visceral reaction to Beyoncé’s latest film/album/artwork Black is King from Christians on the interwebs. I have seen everything from the work being “demonic” to people complaining that Beyonce’ is trying to assert that “Black is God.” Many are retorting to the work saying, “Black is not king; Jesus is King!” It seems that many are taking Beyonce’s film as an affront to Jesus Christ. Some have asserted that the film is a direct response to Kanye West’s last album, Jesus is King. Let’s be absolutely clear: Beyonce’s film has NOTHING to do with Kanye’s album. It is a live-action retelling of The Lion King. Let’s put that to bed. But what is it about this film that is making Christians so defensive? Is it simply the title and the perceived dethroning of Jesus? I don’t think so.

My thesis is that it is the elevation of blackness coupled with the African imagery that is really the center of the issue.

Whether they will admit it or not, many Christians, black and white, view the elevation of “Blackness” as antithetical to the Gospel. After all, Paul said, “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:28 NIV) They will say that elevating “Blackness” is just as evil as elevating “Whiteness.” They will say that to say “Black is King” is reverse racism. They will say that “Black is not king; Jesus is King.” These are the ones that assumed that “Black Power” meant “black superiority” or that black conscious thought must be sacrificed at the foot of the cross.

The problem with this line of thinking is that it misses the point of black conscious thought and places an unnecessary dichotomy between one’s cultural heritage and profession of faith. Black people do not say things like “Black is King” or “Black Power” or “Black Lives Matter” because we want to be superior. No Black person I’ve ever talked to or read wants to overthrow the government and institute a Black government. Even so-called “radicals” like the Original Black Panther Party, Malcolm X or Stockley Carmichael who is credited with coining the term “Black Power,” and who Bill Clinton recently pitted against the late John Lewis, never envisioned some kind of Black coup where Black people asserted dominance over White people or anybody else. So-called Black radicals, as well as moderates, have always only asked for one thing: full and equal treatment and opportunity. The methods and strategies for getting there have indeed differed, but that has always been the goal.

Once we have established that nobody is asking for Black superiority, but fighting for Black humanity, there should no longer be the guttural reaction from Christians that feel like Black people are trying to assert dominion over them. Sure, there is a strand of Black conscious thought over the years that has made assertions like “the Black man is God” or that “the Black man is the Original Man.” However, it should be noted that these statements are desperate cries of disenfranchised people, many of which have no trace of heritage beyond a plantation. They are grasping for meaning, identity, and belonging in the context of a country that has denied their basic humanity for 400 plus years.

Somewhere along the line, we were told by missionaries who doubled as colonialists and slave-masters that our blackness was antithetical to God’s image. However, to be proud of one’s blackness and to rejoice and celebrate it is to rejoice and celebrate the skin that God put us in. To say that we should no longer walk around ashamed of our skin, hair, language, cultural expressions, and music is not antithetical to the gospel. Instead, it is affirming of the imago Dei that has been denied us for 400 years. Christians, Black or White that have an issue with Black people celebrating their blackness, should reexamine their attitudes about Blackness. The common refrain “we’re all one in Christ” is the Christianeze equivalent of “All Lives Matter.” It is a dismissal of the image of God present in us.

A second part of the Black is King Christian “blacklash” has to do with the image of Africa. Those same missionaries that doubled as colonialists and slave-masters also told us that Africa was full of paganism, barbarism, and demonic symbols and rituals. They told us that those old pagan ways had to be sacrificed at the foot of the cross. (Ironically, the same cross with which they tried to keep in bondage.) Lots of people have commented on the “spiritualism” and symbolism in Black is King and have overtly dismissed it as demonic. This is nothing short of overflow from centuries of anti-black, anti-African indoctrination.

From CinemaBlend

I have seen a lot of backlash on the use of masks, horns, and other symbols of African religion in the film. These things allegedly automatically make the work “demonic.” But I question, how different are African ancestors and spirits to Christian saints and angels? Are not horns made from God? Is nature not God’s first revelation to humankind? Yes, I believe God is present in the horns, and in the trees, and in the rivers.

To quote esteemed mystic and writer, Father Richard Rohr, “I am not a pantheist (God is all things), but a panentheist (God is in all things). There is nothing intrinsically evil about horns, or masks, or the sun for that matter. Some might say, “but they (Africans) use those things to manipulate the spirits and God.” I respond, how is their attempt at manipulation different than yours? Many Christians pray, go to church, return tithe, and participate in outreach ministries because they think it earns them divine brownie points that will ultimately coerce God into giving them what they want. This is why they get mad at God when tragedy or suffering befalls them. This wasn’t part of the deal. “I did all these things, and now You owe me!” My point here is not that these stances are correct. It is simply that American-Euro expressions of religion and Christianity are no more inherently holy than African ones. To say that Black is King is inherently demonic simply because of its African material is racist and colonized thinking.

In summary, I believe the Christian response to Beyonce’s Black is King is based on anti-black theology and anti-African, colonialist indoctrination. I want to conclude by reiterating again that we can enjoy good art and not agree with everything it says or represents. We can appreciate great art for what it is. It does not always have to agree with us for us to consume it. I was raised in a Christian context that said that anything that doesn’t agree with our view is evil, demonic, or a deception. That is a terribly narrow way to view art and the world for that matter. Let us open our horizons to beauty, to meaning, and to awesome wonder. Saying “Black is King” is not a threat to God. God is King of kings, and that will never change.