Angels and priests are supposed to be the good guys, right? Nearly all religions are down with peacefully loving one another. But that's not always the case for religious people in Black Like Me. Racists pervert what Griffin sees as a gospel of love into one of hate.
Thankfully, not everyone sees things the same way, and many people really take the whole "God is love" thing to heart. In Griffin's eyes, religion is a saving grace, and it's not religion's fault if some people want to give it a bad reputation.
Questions About Religion
- Why do you think Griffin continually turns to famous Catholic thinkers throughout Black Like Me? What do these thinkers have in common?
- How does religion impact the way that some of the African-Americans Griffin meets in the book approach race relations? How is it the same or how does it differ from the approach of the white people he meets?
- When Griffin meets the priest at the monastery, he says that racists would not visit them. Why? What sort of views do you think a person who visits a Trappist monastery would have?
- How do the racists in the book justify their actions despite their Christian beliefs?
Chew on This
Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.
Since real Christians believe that God is love in Black Like Me, racists can't be Christians.
Many people in the book change their religion to suit their racial beliefs.