Religious Studies - Ethics (prejudice and discrimination)

Prejudice and Discrimination

People sometimes say that discrimination is created when prejudice is combined with power. Prejudice is the attitude of someone whose opinion is not based on fact. Prejudice can be triggered by differences of religion, race, colour, sex, language, disability or age. Prejudice is not illegal, as an attitude can’t be illegal, but discrimination is illegal.

Discrimination and human rights

All forms of discrimination go against the first two Articles of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights:

Article 1 All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Article 2 Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.

Christian attitudes towards prejudice and discrimination

Christianity teaches that everyone is equal in the eyes of God. Therefore there is no reason to treat people differently.
Christian teaching about other people is based on love and this is stated by Jesus:

I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.
John 13:34

You shall love your neighbour as yourself.
Matthew 22:39

There are also two important teachings in the writings of Paul about this:

From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.
Acts 17:26

There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Galatians 3:28

No one can follow these teachings perfectly, and there will be occasions when Christians, like those of other faiths, are guilty of prejudice and discrimination.
But there are many examples too of Christians challenging injustice when they see the laws of God being broken.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu has devoted his life to fighting poverty, injustice, and inequality and advancing ideas of forgiveness and cooperation. As an ordained priest in the Anglican Church, and later as the Archbishop of Cape Town, he was instrumental in promoting non-violent resistance to apartheid and the repeal of racially discriminatory South African laws. In 1984, Archbishop Tutu won the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts.

Inequality in the Christian Church

Many people think that the Christian Church is sexist. It does not treat men and women equally.
The teaching of St Paul is often quoted to support the way some churches today treat women. From the extracts below, it would seem that he believed that the role of women was different to that of men, and secondary to it.
St Paul said:

Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says. If they want to enquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.
1 Corinthians 14:34-35

Now I want you to realise that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonours his head. And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonours her head - it is just as though her head were shaved. If a woman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off; and if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut or shaved off, she should cover her head. A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man.
1 Corinthians 11:3-7

 Jesus, however, always showed by his actions that he respected and valued women. He included them among his closest companions, and sometimes went against the conventions of his time which kept men and women apart. Jesus made it clear in the Parable of the Good Samaritan how his followers should treat people – he made no distinction between men and women.

Some Christian denominations have recently begun to allow women to be priests or ministers (eg, Church of England and the Methodist church). Some remain opposed to this (eg, the Roman Catholic Church). Some Christians believe that women are second to men, that men should lead and women should follow. So although Christianity teaches that everyone should be equal and should be treated the same, this doesn't always happen.