Program
Doctor of Ministry
Number of Pages
191
Year Approved
2025
First Advisor
Katie Friesen Smith
Second Reader
Jeanine Parolini
Third Reader
K Scorgie
Abstract
The problem this project addressed was the barriers to Christian churches' understanding how they are impacted by white supremacy culture. The research identified themes that hinder racial equity and arrived at recommendations on how to disentangle white supremacy culture and the Christian Church. Biblical and theological resources were utilized to provide support for the scriptural foundation of the Christian faith, and current literature provided scholarly backing to identify the barriers to understanding the possibility of the entanglement of Christian churches and white supremacy culture. Conclusions reached included that the same foundational faith among folks of different races/color, results in a different and uneven experience; that addiction of the Christian church to white supremacy culture is likely a true phenomenon, for both racial groups; both white and black churches agree that change must be made that dismantles the connection between white supremacy culture and the Christian church; and disconnecting the Christian church from white supremacy culture, provides the avenue for the Christian church to return to the roots of the Christian faith. The focus of the research project on the possibility that white supremacy culture is an addiction opens new avenues of study and research across multiple subject areas. The argument that the Christian faith has been undermined and co-opted by white supremacy culture was cemented by the focus scriptures, the definition of addiction and addictive behaviors, and by the collected data. Scholars offer recommendations that lead to disentanglement.
Degree Name
Doctor of Ministry
Document Type
Doctoral thesis
Recommended Citation
Ngunjiri, P. R. (2025). Barriers to Churches Understanding How They Are Impacted by White Supremacy Culture [Doctoral thesis, Bethel University]. Spark Repository. https://spark.bethel.edu/etd/1201
Terms of Use and License Information
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.