Bill, it certainly does. When I was a child, I had drug addicted parents who weren't around for days sometimes and little or no food in the cupboards. I understand poverty.

But I wonder, is the solution government handouts? And remember, these are reparations we are talking about; if the U.S. government decides to go ahead with this, I think they probably will give money to anyone whose ancestor was a slave, regardless of their current economic status.

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Nigel Holland

Nigel said: "if the U.S. government decides to go ahead with this, I think they probably will give money to anyone whose ancestor was a slave, regardless of their current economic status."

Nigel, if they begin to start doing this, in my opinion, it will open up a can of worms, that may never be able to be closed.

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Bill

The answer from the opposing side on the reparations issue would say you all are voicing the common perspective of someone who is a member of the white race whose history in this country is entirely different from that of the black race. You never came here illegally kidnapped and chained on ships and then forced to do labor to make others rich. You have never been looked on as a genetically inferior type of people. When you were in your white only high schools taking history who ever taught you that George Washington and Thomas Jefferson and many of your famous founding fathers owned slaves? Why was no mention ever made of the racial crimes committed by your hero Columbus and his folks? Blacks fought in the Revolutionary War to help found this country. They fought in the Civil War to help preserve the union. They fought in the world wars on the side of America. Why 100 years after the civil war were blacks still being lynched on many occasions for simply being black and also being denied equality in the work place? Why did blacks have to march in the back of parades behind the horses after WWII when the veterans were being celebrated in these parades? To say your thoughts and prayers have always been with us and to admit a wrong was done is not enough. Reparations are in order. Again, need we remind you that your experience as white people in this country is entirely different than those of us who have lived on the other side.

I don't ascribe to all of the above but this is and will be the argument from the reparations side. How do we answer this in a straight gospel manner? History shows that at many times professing Christians were responsible for the mess. These comments are sharp I realize but I have studied this issue and been part of efforts to heal the breach between these two races. Conservative black ministers who live and preach by the scriptures (I found that there are multitudes) speak in more balanced and biblical ways on the issue can't get the time of the day from the media.

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David Winter

The response to the above is simple- it is not fair or right to judge the actions of yesterday by the standards(and usually ridiculously PC standards) of today.

Paul did not forbid slavery because in his day slavery was extremely common and many were perfectly content being slaves, just as many were perfectly happy “in service” in England to wealthy families.

Now I understand the particular evils of plantation slavery in the US in the 18th and 19th century but that was 200 years ago and black persons were viewed far differently then, out of ignorance.

I certainly don’t think Washington and Jefferson were evil men for owning slaves- that’s just the way things were then and there was not a second thought about it- until the abolitionists started getting their message across.

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Todd

This is the message people need for racial reconciliation:

"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus." Galatians 3:28

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Nigel Holland

I just read where......Elizabeth Warren Comes Out In Support of ‘Gay Reparations’ if this is really true, with my “can of worms” statement in an earlier post, I might have been prophesying. :-)

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Bill

Yes, I saw that as well. Yesterday it was descendants of enslaved people, today its gays and lesbians. What will it be tomorrow? Honestly I believe this whole discussion will go away after the election, no matter which party wins. This falls into the same category as paying off everyone's student loans, and free everything. It is the purchasing of votes.

But the spirit behind a group of people thinking they are owed money for sins committed against their ancestors from 7 to 11 generations ago is evil, in my estimation. "You have something I want, and I am going to take it from you." I think that reparations is pure socialism. It certainly rejects the Gospel, the good news. Forgiveness.

The Voting Rights Act insuring all citizens the right to vote regardless of race was not passed until 1965. This was not 7 to 11 generations ago. At this time, high schools and colleges were still segregated to a large degree and members of the black community were still being denied fair opportunity in the work place and unions. Plus incidents like the horrific and unjust murder of Emmit Till and the Birmingham church bombing (Sept 15, 1963) that killed four young black girls in Sunday school was still fresh on everyone's mind. The voting rights activists James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner were abducted and murdered in 1964 for working toward black minority representation at the voting booth. Even after the Voting Rights Act was passed in 1965 attempts were still made to exclude blacks from voting and social and employment discrimination still continued. We all know Dr. King's fate. The Constitution we brag about stated a black person could only be counted as 2/3 of a person. The Dred Scott Decision (1857)handed down by the Supreme Court said a black person could only be counted as "property" and had no rights. I'm not picking at anyone just trying to remind us of how the other in favor of reparations sees the issue.Their experience in this county has been entirely different than those opposing reparations.

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David Winter

Is there any group of people that at some time or another in the past did not enslave another?

I find it inconsistent that American Blacks are calling for reparations when the slave trade was aided and abetted by local blacks in their own community in Africa. With out their assistance I am not so sure it would have become such a big business that it did.

Scripture-wise I see nothing there that succeeding generations are obligated to pay for the sins - if owning slaves is a sin, e.g. - of those in the past.

Sandra

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Sandra Miller

David, I'm not personally condoning or condemning reparations, what I am saying is, you have to be awful careful this day and age as I said, opening up a can of worms. Perfect example, Elizabeth Warren Comes Out In Support of ‘Gay Reparations? where does it stop? I personally believe it will never stop, every lawyer in this country will make sure of that. So just remember, once the can is opened up, people agreeing on reparations will be responsible in a way for all reparations afterwards. The atmosphere in America is perfect right now for this to happen, I can see it now, our children wanting reparations because their parents made them go to church, and believe in a God they never have believed in, where will it stop?

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Bill