Is Shakespeare racist? His reconstructed home theater, The Globe in London, believes so. Last year, Cambridge University sponsored the theater to run a series called Anti-Racist Shakespeare. The purpose of the seminar was to “examine Shakespeare’s plays through the lens of race and social justice.”

On January 19, Cambridge published an essay claiming that Shakespeare was a “white, European author with an imperialist fantasy,” adding that “his works reproduce those white, European, imperialist agendas.” The essay continued:

Each of his plays enacts the consolidation of white privilege in multiple ways, including the positioning of whiteness as the ideal, as that which is most pure, as that which is most human ….

If teachers, students, practitioners, and scholars study Shakespeare without attending to this process, then they rehearse his imperial fantasies and legitimize this white supremacist framework by leaving it unchecked. … Teaching Shakespeare in this way is in service to white supremacy and a disservice to students.

The University of Cambridge is not the only institution to attack Shakespeare. The British government’s counterterrorist program flagged Shakespeare’s works in its list of books that were considered “potential signs of far-right extremism.” Other “key texts” on the list included George Orwell’s 1984 and The Secret Agent, by Joseph Conrad. Historian Andrew Roberts marveled: “This is truly extraordinary. This is the reading list of anyone who wants a civilized, liberal, cultured education.”

The United Kingdom eventually backtracked on this policy in February. But the bias was revealed.

“Shakespeare is taught less and less in today’s education in favor of literature of far less value,” wrote Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry in “Shakespeare and the British Empire.” “And even those who perform Shakespeare’s plays often take a very scholarly approach to them, reworking them with their own interpretations and modern ideas. In almost every case, they degrade what Shakespeare did and produce trash.”

The works of Shakespeare are imperialist—in that they helped push Britain to become a global civilizing power. As Mr. Flurry described, Shakespeare influenced leaders such as United States President Abraham Lincoln and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Mr. Flurry further explained Shakespeare knew the Bible and used his plays to emphasize biblical themes and virtues.

The unique opportunity that God gave Britain and America to be civilizing powers was prophesied in the Bible. (Request Herbert W. Armstrong’s free book The United States and Britain in Prophecy for proof.)

The works of Shakespeare gave Britain confidence in itself and its language, a sense of global purpose, and most importantly, a knowledge of Scripture. “The richness of the English language really flourished at that time, and Shakespeare was a major reason for that,” wrote Mr. Flurry. “Perhaps his variety of expression even helped people better understand the Scriptures.”

By attacking Shakespeare, the left is attempting to cut Britain off from its physical and spiritual heritage.

Shakespeare helped prepare Britain to take advantage of its age of opportunity. Shakespeare wrote in his play Julius Caesar, “There is a tide in the affairs of men. Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune ….”

God ensured Britain was prepared to use the opportunities He was about to give it. As Mr. Flurry wrote, we are living in one of these times of great opportunity now, “and if it is taken at the flood, it will lead you into marvelous, wonderful and dazzling rewards from God!”

To understand more about Shakespeare’s links to the Bible and what you can learn from them, read “Shakespeare and the British Empire.”