Nailing the Coffin Shut on Continuationism: Does the increase in tongues, healings, mirac!es and prophetic utterance evince a continuation of Pentecost (continued)?

In Response to Nate Pyle's Article

by David L. Miner

Recently, I read an article concerning some implications of the social protest waged by Colin Kaepernick at a professional football game, written by Nate Pyle. You can review the article by clicking here: http://natepyle.com/kaepernick-america/

I have read the article several times to assure as much as I can that I understand the intent of the article. And I believe the intent is clear and honorable. Pyle is concerned with people worshiping America – either the Constitutional Republic it was created to be or the Socialistic Democracy it has become. This worship must never occur. America is a nation made up of people and, while everyone worships or holds reverent something or someone, only a small portion of its people worship the God of the Bible. Pyle is also concerned that America is, or has become, a nation infused with a systemic racial prejudice that needs to be addressed. And he sees Koepernick and his actions as effectively addressing that systemic prejudice.

In these observations, or perhaps they are concerns, Nate Pyle is correct.

But somehow Pyle suggests that saluting the flag or singing the National Anthem is tantamount to worshiping “the nation for which it stands.” This is horse feathers.

And Pyle goes even further and seems to laud Kaepernick for taking a stand against nation worship, or at least against systemic racial prejudice, when he refused to take a stand and sing the National Anthem. This is even more horse feathers.

It would seem that Nate Pyle was very short of material to post, and twisted both Kaepernick's action and singing the National Anthem into something neither was nor is.

First, saluting the flag and singing the National Anthem is not and never has been a “national liturgy,” as Pyle claims several times in his article.

“Liturgy” is defined as “a fixed set of ceremonies, words, etc., that are used during public worship in a religion” at http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/liturgy.

It is further defined as “the customary public worship performed as a 'work of the people' by a specific religious group, according to its particular beliefs, customs and traditions” at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liturgy.

And liturgy has no voice or application when people stand, salute the flag, and sing the National Anthem. There is no worship involved in this action. There is only respect and thanksgiving in this action. Respect for the freest nation in history, and thanksgiving to the God of the Bible for helping to form this Great Nation.

Second, saluting the flag and singing the National Anthem is not endorsing any perceived systemic prejudice that may or may not be held by Americans. Any perceived systemic prejudiced is NOT endorsed or practiced by the nation as a whole, but by individuals within that Nation. I have lived in the Deep South (Alabama and Tennessee) for many years. Did I witness racial prejudice? Absolutely. But I witnessed it just as strongly by Whites and Blacks. And I saw great efforts to address that racial prejudice by both Whites and Blacks.

Prejudice is not manifest by America. Prejudice is manifest by individuals within America. And it is just as strong in predominately Black communities as it is in predominately White communities. But to protest one side and ignore the other side does neither side any service.

We cannot help to end racial prejudice by commenting negatively, or protesting, one side without at the same time commenting negatively, or protesting, the other side. If racial prejudice is wrong for Whites, it is wrong for Blacks. And to ignore one while protesting the other is itself an act of racial prejudice.

I have been in parts of towns where I, as a White male, was simply not welcome. I have never been in parts of any town where Black males are simply not welcome. I suspect they exist but I have never found them Yet I have seen public protests concerning those sections of town where it is claimed Black men are not welcome many times, while never seeing or even hearing about public protests concerning the opposite.

I have seen violent protests and even riots across America when a White male is not convicted of a crime after killing an unarmed Black male, and this has happened many, many times. Yet I have never seen or heard of violent protests and even riots when a Black man is not convicted of a crime after he kills an unarmed White male.

I have seen Black people rise up in protest when a White male kills a Black male, yet these same people are silent when a Black man kills a white male. And this happens thousands of times more often in America than the other way around.

I have seen the Black Entertainment Network lauded for rewarding Black entertainers. But I have never seen the Black Entertainment Network lauded for rewarding White entertainers.  And heaven forbid that anyone ever attempts to create a White Entertainment Network.

I have seen the United Negro College Fund lauded for making funds available to Black people and their education expenses. Yet I have never heard of the United Negro College Fund ever awarding a White person any funds at all.  And heaven forbid anyone ever attempts to create a United White College Fund.

I have heard of people protesting the awarding of limited professional positions to a White person, but no one ever protested when I, a White male, was denied my “dream job” because the company was told by its legal department that it must award the position to a Black woman, even when the Personnel Department admitted I was clearly better qualified for the position, because that would be two points in its favor if a Black person filed a lawsuit because he or she was not selected.

I have heard of potential legal action against the NFL because it was claimed there were not enough Black people in upper management commensurate with the Black population in America. But I have never heard these people or anyone else protesting the fact that there are way more than the “acceptable” percentage of Black people earning more than a million dollars a year in professional sports. Heck, everyone seems silent when the NBA puts Black men on the court in numbers exceeding half of its players.

YES, there is racial prejudice in America. And YES Americans should protest and try to end racial prejudice in America. But this will never happen when only perceived White prejudice is protested and condemned while ignoring clear and evident Black prejudice.

It would seem that the systemic prejudice in America is against White people, and not against Black people, but people like Pyle seem to be blind to it or else they endorse it.

If Nate Pyle wants to end racial prejudice, he needs to address racial prejudice and not just White racial prejudice.

But comparing Kaepernick's disrespectful social protest with the stories of honorable religious protest in Daniel is just so much horse feathers. Kaepernick's actions were racially prejudiced, and were not honorable in any way.

And Nate Pyle should be ashamed of his effort to place Black prejudice into some form of good and honorable social protest disguised as some form of godly justice.