Critical theory (colloquially known as being ‘woke’) is a school of thought that has permeated the very fabric of mainstream society – including much of the church. According to critical theory, the root cause of the world’s problem is the oppression of subordinate groups by dominant groups that hold ‘hegemonic’ power in society. These fixed groups exist primarily based on one’s race, class, and gender. Based on which groups we fall into, we either have an oppressor or oppressed status. Of these three categories, the pillar of ‘race’ has taken on particular prominence, evidenced by the global emergence of the Black Lives Matter movement. The task of critical social justice is therefore to dismantle these systems of oppression by divesting the power of oppressor groups and ‘sharing’ this with oppressed groups.

While the God of the Bible is deeply concerned with oppression and injustice, we must evaluate critical theory in the light of Scripture. In Scripture, we find that the fundamental problem with the human condition is rather sin against God and one another; a condition in which we all, regardless of race, stand guilty of (Rom 3:23). Regarding the social construct of ‘race’, the Apostle Paul declared that God made ‘from one blood’ every nation (Acts 17:26). Furthermore, the Bible teaches the liberating truth that our identity is not based primarily on belonging to a group, but rather on belonging to God Himself (Col 3:11)… 

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