“Dissent against any ideology that seeks to replace Christ … with political power, nationalism, lies or fear,” outgoing Moderator Juan García urged the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship during its annual General Assembly in St. Louis June 26.
“As true Baptists, we must oppose any attempt to co-opt the gospel for political gain or to use the name of Jesus as a weapon instead of proclaiming him as good news for the oppressed, the poor and the marginalized,” said García, pastor of Primera Iglesia Bautista in Newport News, Va.
The resonance of García’s challenge stimulated repeated applause throughout his speech. He received a sustained standing ovation — perhaps unprecedented in CBF’s 35-year history — at the conclusion of his comments as outgoing CBF moderator.
Christians are called to dissent against systems that exploit and exclude, García said, noting: “This dissention is not optional. It is foundational to those who follow Christ, who embraced and included all, especially those whom social systems rejected and excluded.”
García called on Fellowship Baptists to search their souls and ask themselves vital questions.
“Will we stand firm with the gospel of Jesus against the injustices our elected officials are committing?”
“Will we defend the dignity of immigrants, the hungry, the homeless, the poor, the elderly, the marginalized — those being dehumanized and demonized by elected officials?” he charged. “Will we stand firm with the gospel of Jesus against the injustices our elected officials are committing — or allowing to happen — against ‘the least of these,’ who are mostly people with black or brown faces?
“Will we have the courage to speak truth to power when discriminatory laws and practices are falsely presented as ‘protection’ or ‘national security’? Will we claim and uphold our heritage as people who stand for what is right — not for political convenience, not only when it’s safe to do so, not only for ourselves and those who look like us, but for all God’s children, regardless of their origin, nationality or circumstance?”
García commended the Fellowship for its history of fighting for justice. He cited CBF’s recent involvement in a lawsuit to protect “sensitive locations” — church facilities — that enable congregations to provide shelter to undocumented immigrants.
“This decision was especially meaningful for me as pastor of a Latino immigrant church that felt the impact of the abrupt and inhumane changes to immigration policy brought on by the current administration,” he said.
But even though Fellowship Baptists have advocated for the rights of the vulnerable, “we can do more,” García stressed.
“We are called to dissent against complacency in our own churches,” he said. “It’s easy to get comfortable, to let fear of conflict and its repercussions keep us from speaking and living the truth of the gospel with boldness.
“We are called to dissent against complacency in our own churches.”
“But our faith is not meant to be passive or to preserve the status quo. The same Spirit that gave courage to the prophets, that stirred the early Baptists to defy kings and that moved those who founded this Fellowship in the 1990s is in us and with us. So, let us allow the Spirit to continue to work freely and transformatively through us today.”
Although being a dissenter is difficult and requires courage, wisdom, conviction and dependence on the Holy Spirit, Fellowship Baptists do not dissent alone, he affirmed.
Juan Garcia (CBF photo)
“The Lord Jesus himself was the greatest dissenter — challenging the religious and political powers of his time,” he said, noting Jesus called his disciples to “a kingdom of love, justice and peace.”
“This is the moment to rise with courage, lift our voices and act,” García urged.
“This is the moment to demonstrate that our primary, fundamental and ultimate allegiance is to Christ, his lordship and his kingdom. This is the moment to stop living a comfortable and safe gospel. This is the moment to unite ourselves as one body of Christ against injustice and denounce what is wrong, unjust, immoral and anti-Christ in our society — whether it comes from the left or comes from the right.
“This is the moment to hold fast to our Baptist roots and dissent with respect and conviction.”
Dissent may be costly, “but what is the alternative for us who are called to live on earth as citizens of heaven?” he asked. If Fellowship Baptists remain silent and “allow the oppression and injustice that are affecting all of us to continue,” they would embody what 20th-century Christian theologian and martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer called “cheap grace — grace without following Jesus, grace without the Cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”
“How could we look at our own children and grandchildren in the eye and instruct them in the faith if what they see from us is a dead faith — a cowardly faith — a faith that takes no action — a faith that does not look like Christ?” he asked.
While dissent is costly, the stakes of failing to dissent are high, he observed, calling Fellowship Baptists to a sense of urgency.
“Let us not wait until everything that is happening affects us personally to finally stand up to advocate and dissent,” he said. “Don’t wait until it touches your finances, threatens your job or disturbs your comfort, your privilege and your future to then decide to act. No! That would be pure selfishness and hypocrisy.
“Stand up because you know it is just and right, even if it’s not the most popular thing.”
“Stand up because you know it is just and right, even if it’s not the most popular thing. Do it in solidarity with your neighbor, understanding that the well-being of each person is the well-being of all.”
See the stamp of divine creation in every person, he said.
“Act because there are sons and daughters of God — of different colors, languages, cultures, immigration statuses, genders and sexual identities — who as human beings have suffered injustice for years and have been impoverished, stripped of dignity and deprived of fundamental God-given human rights. Do it because you know it is what Christ would do out of love, all the way to Calvary.”
García reminded the Fellowship they belong to the church of the risen Christ.
“The kingdom of God, which Jesus inaugurated with his life, death and resurrection, is one where everyone belongs, and it must be manifested in our world through us — the living, united and active church of Jesus.”
“So let us stand up with courage and determination,” he concluded. “Let us be faithful dissenters, tireless defenders of justice and love, until we see God’s kingdom fully unfolded among us — until God’s will is done on earth as it is in heaven.
“Let us show everyone out there, with our words and actions, that they belong here. This is our calling, our privilege and our responsibility. Our time is now. Let us then seize our moment.”
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