Baptist News Global
Sections
  • News
  • Analysis
  • Opinion
  • Curated
  • Storytelling
    • Faith & Justice >
      • Charleston: Metanoia with Bill Stanfield
      • Charlotte: QC Family Tree with Greg and Helms Jarrell
      • Little Rock: Judge Wendell Griffen
      • North Carolina: Conetoe
    • Welcoming the Stranger >
      • Lost Boys of Sudan: St. John’s Baptist Charlotte
      • Awakening to Immigrant Justice: Myers Park Baptist Church
      • Hospitality on the corner: Gaston Christian Center
    • Signature Ministries >
      • Jake Hall: Gospel Gothic, Music and Radio
    • Singing Our Faith >
      • Hymns for a Lifetime: Ken Wilson and Knollwood Baptist Church
      • Norfolk Street Choir
    • Resilient Rural America >
      • Alabama: Perry County
      • Texas: Hidalgo County
      • Arkansas Delta
      • Southeast Kentucky
  • More
    • Contact
    • About
    • Donate
    • Associated Baptist Press Foundation
    • Planned Giving
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Advertising
    • Ministry Jobs and More
    • Transitions
    • Subscribe
    • Submissions and Permissions
Donate Subscribe
Search Search this site

Most Americans resist admitting world is ‘becoming browner’ says pastor, police chaplain

NewsNorman Jameson  |  July 12, 2016

Racial tensions will naturally run high when a majority refuses to acknowledge “the world is becoming browner” and large numbers of voters rally around a white man “wanting to win back America,” according to pastor and police chaplain Paul Anderson.

Despite a high profile in large churches and national organizations, a graduate degree, civic prominence in Raleigh, N.C., and a highly accomplished family, Anderson knows that in the public eye he is not just “a gentleman” but a “black gentleman.”

That is an important distinction for him and other African Americans because there “are people in law enforcement who still have issues with people of color,” he said.

As the senior volunteer chaplain for the Raleigh police department — whose chief is a black woman — Anderson is a strong advocate for police officers. He conducts a training block for new officers in which he leads discussion about why they want to be in law enforcement, about the sacredness of life and about considerations an officer must make when he or she is confronting people.

Paul Anderson

Paul Anderson

Anderson, 54, is president of the Raleigh Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance, which conducted an open dialog with the NAACP and Raleigh police at Mount Peace Baptist Church on July 11. It’s important that policemen and women be “peace officers,” preserving and protecting the peace in whatever jurisdiction they serve, he said.

“They’re trying to do their best, but unfortunately, like in ministry, we have some people who are not where they should be,” Anderson said. “Unfortunately, they are the ones getting the lime light.”

Still, speaking as he drove to Charlotte, N.C., to visit his 95-year-old mother for her birthday, Anderson bristled with energy and resentment, thinking of a rash of white police officers killing unarmed black men.

He recounted campaigns for equality and justice from the 1950s and 1960s and said the “unconscionable” things that happened to demonstrators then have “never stopped happening.”

He remembers one of his brothers being arrested by the National Guard while simply walking across campus. Anderson has been pulled over for simply “driving while black.”

Anderson noted the contrast: “When a white man carries a gun in public, he’s just carrying a gun in public. If a black man is carrying a gun in public, he’s getting ready to rob someone.”

“We’re not at the point of civil war. But people seriously need to check their emotions.”

Anderson, a 1991 graduate of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, N.C., left the pastorate of a church that had grown to 1,000 members after almost 18 years to start The Fountain of Raleigh Fellowship in 2009 because he felt his church was losing the interest of potential white members by preserving its black heritage and culture.

The Fountain identifies with the National Baptist Convention USA Inc., the Lott Carey Global Christian Missional Community and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. He calls membership of The Fountain “black, white and sage.” The Jewish Temple Beth Or hosted the new church until it bought property. The synagogue and church still interact regularly.

Almost seven years old, The Fountain attendance is 450 to 500. Limited parking requires two services and breakfast is served between services to promote fellowship and community.

Anderson laments that interactions between white police and black citizens are not the only place where race gets in the way. “We want black people to integrate white churches,” he said, “but we don’t want white people to integrate black churches.”

Worse, he feels many white contemporary churches are “modified plantations” that reach out to enlist young black professionals for their financial gifts but never put them on staff, or into leadership roles.

Most white Christians looking for a church “don’t want to hear from a black leader,” he said, despite similar education, oratory and leadership skills and church ministries that reflect those of any predominantly white church.

“White America still believes that worshipping in a black congregation doesn’t give them the same utility they’d have in a white congregation. We just need to be honest about it.”

Anderson’s own family reflects the country’s racial history. He possesses the bill of sale that enslaved his Nigerian paternal great-great grandfather. His maternal great-great grandfather was white.

Anderson is the youngest of nine children, born to a mother, then 41, who ignored a doctor’s health advice to abort the pregnancy. Members of his extended family are Filipino, Hawaiian and Italian.

Although his father basically taught himself to read, all of Anderson’s siblings are college graduates and more than half have graduate degrees.

“Our parents told us that with prayer and work we could make a difference,” he said. “I’m not here just to exist. I’m here to make a difference.”

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window)
More by
Norman Jameson
  • Get BNG headlines in your inbox

  • Featured

    • What did Pope Francis say, and what did he mean, in AP interview on homosexuality?

      Analysis

    • Biden administration urged to remove Cuba from list of state sponsors of terrorism

      News

    • Jesus and Buddha are talking with me about loving and blessing my enemies

      Opinion

    • Zimbabwean pastors flee ministry to join more lucrative care work in the UK

      News


    Curated

    • GOP Rep. Who Spoke At Pro-Hitler Event Goes After Ilhan Omar Because Of ‘Anti-Semitism’

      GOP Rep. Who Spoke At Pro-Hitler Event Goes After Ilhan Omar Because Of ‘Anti-Semitism’

    • Psychedelic churches in US pushing boundaries of religion

      Psychedelic churches in US pushing boundaries of religion

    • Prominent Jewish leaders add to drumbeat of criticism of Israel’s new government

      Prominent Jewish leaders add to drumbeat of criticism of Israel’s new government

    • At Tyre Nichols’ funeral, VP Harris and Sharpton among those praying and promising reform

      At Tyre Nichols’ funeral, VP Harris and Sharpton among those praying and promising reform

    Read Next:

    Nonreligious young adults say they are more open to religion than older adults, but campus ministers say that’s still a delicate opportunity

    AnalysisMallory Challis

    More Articles

    • All
    • News
    • Opinion
    • Curated
    • Armie Hammer links his sexual excesses as an adult to his abuse by a youth pastor when he was 13

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • ‘I remember repeating to myself: “I have the right to be here.”‘

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Lyell asks Alabama court to dismiss Sills lawsuit for lack of jurisdiction

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • PC(USA) committee lambasted for choosing a ‘text of terror’ for ordination exam

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • BCMD executive director, also a NAMB vice president, resigns due to ‘moral failure’

      NewsMaina Mwaura

    • Title 42, congregations and the sojourner

      OpinionSean Powell

    • SBC Executive Committee member once again criticized for sexually crude social media posts

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • The truth about police brutality

      OpinionJames Ellis III

    • In Ukraine: ‘We cannot just preach like we did before the war’

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • TikTok trends and three questions you and your church should ask this year about rest

      AnalysisLaura Ellis

    • Two churches ‘under inquiry’ by SBC Credentials Committee for platforming Johnny Hunt

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Biblical orthodoxy 2023: Sign or get ‘churched’

      OpinionBill Leonard, Senior Columnist

    • Zimbabwean pastors flee ministry to join more lucrative care work in the UK

      NewsRay Mwareya

    • Jesus and Buddha are talking with me about loving and blessing my enemies

      OpinionH. Stephen Shoemaker

    • Biden administration urged to remove Cuba from list of state sponsors of terrorism

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Why most everything you think you know about global migration is probably wrong

      AnalysisMark Wingfield

    • What did Pope Francis say, and what did he mean, in AP interview on homosexuality?

      AnalysisMallory Challis

    • Transitions for the week of 2-3-23

      NewsBarbara Francis

    • Letter to the Editor: Kudos all around for Baptist News Global

      OpinionLetters to the Editor

    • Letter to the Editor: Jesus expects us to follow him; Trump expects us to follow him

      OpinionLetters to the Editor

    • Humor and hope mark the dark journey taken by a creative and brave photojournalist

      OpinionKathy Manis Findley

    • ‘Can you imagine looting the religious artifacts that help strengthen the Christian faith from the Vatican?’

      NewsAnthony Akaeze

    • One year of sobriety

      OpinionGlen Schmucker

    • Panelists discuss how the Hamline University controversy could have been handled better in a diverse culture

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Men’s ministry needs more than, eggs, bacon and football

      OpinionMaina Mwaura

    • Armie Hammer links his sexual excesses as an adult to his abuse by a youth pastor when he was 13

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • ‘I remember repeating to myself: “I have the right to be here.”‘

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Lyell asks Alabama court to dismiss Sills lawsuit for lack of jurisdiction

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • PC(USA) committee lambasted for choosing a ‘text of terror’ for ordination exam

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • BCMD executive director, also a NAMB vice president, resigns due to ‘moral failure’

      NewsMaina Mwaura

    • SBC Executive Committee member once again criticized for sexually crude social media posts

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • In Ukraine: ‘We cannot just preach like we did before the war’

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Two churches ‘under inquiry’ by SBC Credentials Committee for platforming Johnny Hunt

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Zimbabwean pastors flee ministry to join more lucrative care work in the UK

      NewsRay Mwareya

    • Biden administration urged to remove Cuba from list of state sponsors of terrorism

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Transitions for the week of 2-3-23

      NewsBarbara Francis

    • ‘Can you imagine looting the religious artifacts that help strengthen the Christian faith from the Vatican?’

      NewsAnthony Akaeze

    • Panelists discuss how the Hamline University controversy could have been handled better in a diverse culture

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Pope Francis arrives in Africa on a two-nation tour seeking peace amid decades of conflict

      NewsAnthony Akaeze

    • Museum of the Bible to host Wednesday morning event to pray for God’s judgment on America, and breakfast is not included

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • National Prayer Breakfast gets new sponsorship but still looks like government-sponsored religion, BJC leaders say

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Ministry jobs and more

      NewsBarbara Francis

    • Zimbabwe Theological Seminary names new principal

      NewsBNG staff

    • What happens when church and state merge? Look to Nazi Germany for answers

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Southwestern Seminary student arrested for alleged ‘felony sexual assault’

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Trial date set for Patterson and Southwestern versus Jane Roe

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Faith groups must fight online hate, Interfaith Alliance urges

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Colorado cake maker back in court, this time for refusing service to a transgender woman

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • For every critic of Jesus and John Wayne there are many more positive responses Du Mez says

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Bob Banks, longtime SBC missions leader, dies at 91

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Title 42, congregations and the sojourner

      OpinionSean Powell

    • The truth about police brutality

      OpinionJames Ellis III

    • Biblical orthodoxy 2023: Sign or get ‘churched’

      OpinionBill Leonard, Senior Columnist

    • Jesus and Buddha are talking with me about loving and blessing my enemies

      OpinionH. Stephen Shoemaker

    • Letter to the Editor: Kudos all around for Baptist News Global

      OpinionLetters to the Editor

    • Letter to the Editor: Jesus expects us to follow him; Trump expects us to follow him

      OpinionLetters to the Editor

    • Humor and hope mark the dark journey taken by a creative and brave photojournalist

      OpinionKathy Manis Findley

    • One year of sobriety

      OpinionGlen Schmucker

    • Men’s ministry needs more than, eggs, bacon and football

      OpinionMaina Mwaura

    • The church must show the world a more excellent way of nonviolence

      OpinionRodney Kennedy

    • Church historian Richard Hughes reflects on a lifetime of ‘Troublesome Questions’

      OpinionTed Parks

    • What churches could learn from the Pub Choir phenomenon

      OpinionMike Frost

    • Living into lament: A white response to the killing of Tyre Nichols by police

      OpinionRobert P. Jones

    • Of church cemeteries, pulpit committees, crafts and sweet potato casserole

      OpinionChris Ayers

    • Of Margie, mountains and ‘El Shaddai’

      OpinionBert Montgomery

    • What I learned from meeting Martin Luther King in Louisville and Josie in Hopkinsville

      OpinionBill Thurman

    • On the baptism of our firstborn

      OpinionEmily Hull McGee

    • Has virtual worship actually harmed Christianity?

      OpinionSara Robb-Scott

    • ‘What can we forgive?’: An interview with Matthew Ichihashi Potts on Forgiveness

      OpinionGreg Garrett, Senior Columnist

    • My father’s faith

      OpinionBrett Younger

    • The apology that never came at Bubba-Doo’s

      OpinionCharles Qualls

    • Trump and his allegedly disloyal white evangelical supporters

      OpinionRobert P. Jones

    • Doom-scrolling, sourdough starter and three kinds of kin

      OpinionJustin Cox

    • Putin needs to be taken down

      OpinionMark Wingfield

    • How my eyes were opened to America’s broken immigration system

      OpinionChristian Vaughn

    • GOP Rep. Who Spoke At Pro-Hitler Event Goes After Ilhan Omar Because Of ‘Anti-Semitism’

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Psychedelic churches in US pushing boundaries of religion

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Prominent Jewish leaders add to drumbeat of criticism of Israel’s new government

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • At Tyre Nichols’ funeral, VP Harris and Sharpton among those praying and promising reform

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Marvin Olasky Still Wants to Make Journalism Biblically Objective

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Progressive National Baptists to deploy $1 million grant to boost ‘compelling preaching’

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Church of England sheds light on ‘shameful’ slave trade ties

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Chinese Christians remain in Thailand fearing deportation

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Black police officers aren’t colorblind – they’re infected by the same anti-Black bias as American society and police in general

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Ohio is investigating a Nazi homeschooling network that teaches children to love Hitler

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Omar says some Republicans don’t want a Muslim in Congress: ‘These people are OK with Islamophobia’

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Tyre Nichols police beating video prompts faith leaders to react with grief, goals

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • How Egyptian police hunt LGBT people on dating apps

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • N. Carolina church says it lost nearly $800K in email scam

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • On A Mission To Fill Empty Pulpits: A Couple Addressing The Preacher Shortage

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Second gentleman Emhoff visits Auschwitz, part of a push against antisemitism

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • A Buddhist disaster relief organization offers key support after Monterey Park shooting

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • It shouldn’t seem so surprising when the pope says being gay ‘isn’t a crime’ – a Catholic theologian explains

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • USCCB official: The church must admit its role in destroying Native American culture

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • House bill would limit government authority over religious events

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • ‘He Gets Us’ organizers hope to spend $1 billion to promote Jesus. Will anyone care?

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • The Rise of Spirit Warriors on the Christian Right

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Twitter reinstated white nationalist Nick Fuentes. He lasted 24 hours.

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • In Rare Rebuke, Elaine Chao Calls Out Trump’s Anti-Asian Attacks

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • How Southern California helped birth white Christian nationalism

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    Conversations that Matter.

    © 2023 Baptist News Global. All rights reserved.

    Want to share a story? We hope you will! Read our republishing, terms of use and privacy policies here.

    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • RSS