As a Christian, is prejudice acceptable?

[KJK80]

Per dictionary.com

1.an unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason. 2.any preconceived opinion or feeling, either favorable or unfavorable. 3.unreasonable feelings, opinions, or attitudes, esp. of a hostile nature, regarding a racial, religious, or national group. 4.such attitudes considered collectively: The war against prejudice is never-ending. 5.damage or injury; detriment: a law that operated to the prejudice of the majority. –verb (used with object) 6.to affect with a prejudice, either favorable or unfavorable: His honesty and sincerity prejudiced us in his favor.

And on a related note… is discernment acceptable?

Also from dictionary.com

1.the faculty of discerning; discrimination; acuteness of judgment and understanding. 2.the act or an instance of discerning.

 

[ralphinal]

I was a cannot answer yes or no. First, discernment is acceptable and needed, but one must becareful as to where one gets the information and whose advice they follow.

Prejudice, as defined in entry 3, is not acceptable. We cannot judge the heart at all let alone by the exterior.

Prejudice, as defined by entry 2, may be acceptable. Gut feelings about issues are a part of this. A clearly formed conscience helps us to judge things on the surface. Not people, but actions. For example, abortion is always wrong. Am I prejudiced against abortion?

Prejudice as defined in entry 1 is human nature, part of our fallen state. It is not inherently bad or good, it depends on the target. It is, however, a limitation to growth.

The other two definitions are neutral, they are descriptions of the totality of a situation and are not morally problematic.

 

[KJK80]

I really appreciate your reply! Well thought out.

It seems to me, prejudice is unacceptable for the Christian, it is popular sense… That is, judging somebody without knowing them. I think that happens a lot in the culture today regarding religion. There seems to be a lot of lack of understanding.

On the other hand, in popular culture… prejudice is skewed so heavily that it also throws away discernment… which is very important for a Christian.

If I’m out of line, let me know.

 

[ralphinal]

I really appreciate your reply! Well thought out.

It seems to me, prejudice is unacceptable for the Christian, it is popular sense… That is, judging somebody without knowing them. I think that happens a lot in the culture today regarding religion. There seems to be a lot of lack of understanding.

On the other hand, in popular culture… prejudice is skewed so heavily that it also throws away discernment… which is very important for a Christian.

If I’m out of line, let me know.

I would not consider you out of line. It is ok to judge a tree by its fruit, but you must see the fruit first!

 

[Spirithound]

Prejudice is never acceptable. We may, however, judge ideas to be right or wrong, and then it is not prejudice to affirm that a holder of an incorrect idea is indeed wrong.

 

[ralphinal]

Prejudice is never acceptable. We may, however, judge ideas to be right or wrong, and then it is not prejudice to affirm that a holder of an incorrect idea is indeed wrong.

True,
But in today’s society, affirming some ideas as right and wrong is called prejudice. In some ways, you cannot win for losing.

 

[ForMary]

That is a loaded question.

Of course, one would expect to hear the answer, “No, prejudice is never acceptable.”

However, think about that realistically. Making judgments is how we stay alive and how we choose to continue the faith that has been handed down through the generations. We prejudge the food we eat and streets we traverse the place where we work will be safe, that the information we seek is complete and accurate, but we must always keep a critical eye for safety and reality.

Does that mean I treat people I am meeting for the first time differently based on their accent or hair color? No, it doesn’t. But by their actions and words? Yep, probably so; that’s when I’ll make a judgment call and act on that myself.

 

[Spirithound]

True,
But in today’s society, affirming some ideas as right and wrong is called prejudice. In some ways, you cannot win for losing.

Exactly, which is why I was careful in my explanation.
Fight the Dictatorship of Relativism!!
:knight1: :byzsoc: :nun2: :angel1:

 

[strngrnrth]

I always heard prejudice defined as pre-judging – judging wihout knowledge.
I don’t believe in judging what you don’t know about. I believe in judging ideas and acts you know about or have thought carefully about.