Why Juneteenth is good for all of us.

Today is Juneteenth.

If you’re a Christian who isn’t Black, you may wonder what is the appropriate way to acknowledge the holiday. Or you might think Juneteenth is a political football and you don’t want to play. But there are at least two powerful reasons why this occasion is uniquely worth celebrating, no matter what your skin color. First, some history.

Emancipation Day (Juneteenth) goes back to June 19, 1865. Major-General Gordon Granger rode into Galveston, Texas with thousands of Union troops. The Civil War had effectively ended two months previously when Confederate General Robert E. Lee had surrendered.

Two years prior to that, President Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation that declared an end to slavery in the South. But since Texas had seceded from the Union, people there pretty much ignored Lincoln’s words. Some 250,000 African-Americans remained enslaved throughout the state. They were unaware of the liberty that was now theirs because no one had told them or enforced the proclamation. And they had no power to take hold of what belonged to them.

So when General Granger arrived that third Monday in June, he came with a life-changing truth to share. He had the enormous privilege of being the one to stand in front of the crowd and read them the text of General Order No. 3 – which conferred immediate freedom to all the slaves in Texas. It reinstated their God-given right to be treated as equals with whites in the eyes of the law.

The reaction was instant jubilation and infectious celebration. People couldn’t contain their elation. Felix Haywood, a former slave who was present that day, later described the scene: "Hallelujah broke out…Everyone was a-singin’. We was all walkin’ on golden clouds…Everybody went wild...We was free. Just like that, we was free.”

What an incredible moment. A huge weight of oppression was lifted off the backs of a quarter million people in those words. The joy was palpable. Hallelujah broke out.

As significant as the day was for those impacted by it, the question remains: why does this event matter to non-Black Christians 155 years later?

First of all, the Bible tells us to rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. (Romans 12:15) Over the past several years, we have been emphasizing the need to lament the sins of racism and injustice that still plague society. We have sought to come alongside the pain and anger of our Black brothers and sisters, and the work of addressing the wrongs has barely begun.

There has been much to mourn and weep over. All the heaviness makes the part about rejoicing even more crucial, When there IS a cause for true joy, we can't afford to sit on the sidelines and miss it. If something encourages and uplifts one part of the body of Christ, the whole body benefits. And Juneteenth marks an incredibly joyous occasion.

The second reason I see for celebrating Emancipation Day is this: It shows us more of Jesus.

When Jesus visited his hometown synagogue in Luke 4, he stood up and read a portion of Isaiah 61. The specific words couldn’t be more clear: he came to proclaim freedom for the captives. His purpose was to do exactly what General Granger had done: tell people the really good news. Sin, death and fear no longer own us.

Can you think of any day that captures the mission of Christ more directly? Juneteenth is the very picture of what the gospel does, lifting the age-old, lead weight of sin off the backs of humanity.

Those of us who aren’t people of color may never fully grasp the significance of this holiday to the Black community. But we can wholeheartedly add our voices to the celebration. All of us can proclaim it loudly. All of us can help do away with the yoke of oppression (Isaiah 58:9). There is still much work to be done for freedom to move from proclamation to experience. But all of us can seek to unburden others with our words and remind those around us of the incredible freedom that is ours in Christ.

So Happy Juneteenth. May more hallelujah break out.