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We don’t need a vote to know this is wrong. I’m John Stonestreet, and this is The Point.

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A decision at a Kentucky Free Will Baptist Church to ban interracial couples from membership and leadership made national news last week. I’m sure I wasn’t the only Christian who cringed in anger and embarrassment.

And, though the denomination condemned and the church finally reversed the decision, I’m still distressed by the AP report that the vote count was only 9-6 of the 35-40 people who attended the service. Apparently, the majority of the congregation either left or didn’t vote. Why not?

If only three more people had acted against this racist vote, it wouldn’t have passed, wouldn’t have been reported, and it would have saved that church and the Church embarrassment and shame. Silence and apathy allow bad ideas to flourish, and bad ideas have bad consequences.

Silence and apathy in the church have always created the moments of our greatest shame. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “To not act is to act. To not speak is to speak.” For thePointRadio.org, I’m John Stonestreet.