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

SBC leader says racism alive and well

NewsBob Allen  |  November 5, 2015

By Bob Allen

Proclamations and public gatherings aside, racism is not gone from the Southern Baptist Convention, says the convention’s top spokesman for moral and public-policy concerns.

russell moore crop“Racism is alive and well within the Southern Baptist Convention and within many of the churches that you will find yourself serving,” Russell Moore, president of the SBC Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, said in a Nov. 3 lecture at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, N.C.

Moore said today’s racism looks different from that of the slaveholders who founded the convention in 1845 or the segregationists of the 1950s.

“Unlike your grandparents, who would have had people honestly stand forward and say ‘I do not want that baptistery to be troubled by someone of another ethnicity,’ most people are too ashamed to say that now,” Moore said. “They will find another issue. They will look for another place of vulnerability, and they will attack it without mercy.”

Moore’s remarks stood in concert with a Nov. 4 “Conversation on Race in America” featuring leaders of the SBC and historically black National Baptist Convention, USA, in Mississippi.

“You say racism has been so paramount in our state, now God has, through providence, decided that He’s going to start a movement in the same state to get it right,” Jerry Young, president of the National Baptist Convention and pastor of New Hope Baptist Church in Jackson, Miss., told NBC affiliate WMC Action News 5.

SBC President Ronnie Floyd, pastor of Cross Church in Northwest Arkansas, said pastors from across the country “conversed on the issue of racism in America, what the church can do, where we are, the pain of the past as well as the hope for the future.”

This past March the ERLC held a two-say summit titled The Gospel and Racial Reconciliation in Nashville, Tenn., in response to racial tension rising in cities across the country over allegations of police brutality against African-American men. In his address, Moore said race is not just a cultural, political or social issue but a “gospel issue” for the local church.

“The fundamental problem that we have when it comes to this issue in the American church — even when we understand that there is a problem — is that those of us who are white, born-again Christians tend to assume that the Body of Christ is white with room for everybody else,” Moore said. “White people are normal, and the others that we minister to are ethnic.”

In his lecture at Southeastern, Moore said any pastor “who genuinely believes that the gospel breaks down barriers and the gospel brings about genuine brotherhood, sisterhood” is going to face opposition.

“The question is whether or not you are a hireling of the meanest and most aggressive people in your community or whether or not you are a servant of Jesus Christ, who will stand up and say ‘Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest,’” he said. “That’s the question.”

In 2008 the Southern Baptist Convention, the nation’s second-largest faith group behind Roman Catholics, sat out a major conference called Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant spearheaded by former President Jimmy Carter with support from President Bill Clinton.

Frank Page, president of the SBC Executive Committee dismissed the confab as a “smokescreen leftwing liberal agenda that seeks to deny the greatest need in our world, that being that the lost be shown the way to eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord.”

Moore, then a professor and administrator at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, termed the effort “voodoo ecumenism.”

“The unity of which news reports speak is a unity based on social action and ethical engagement,” Moore said in an editorial published by Baptist Press. “Even apart from questions of [Clinton’s] personal ethics and about the long-ago debates over alleged high crimes and misdemeanors, what about the official social agenda of the former president? This is, after all, a man who vetoed legislation protecting unborn infants from partial-birth abortion, and then blamed his abortion-rights ideology on what he says he learned from his former pastor at a Little Rock Southern Baptist congregation.”

Supported by other Baptist groups including the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and American Baptist Churches USA, the New Baptist Covenant has moved beyond mass meetings to “covenants of action” uniting black and white Baptists across the country through worship, fellowship and service in their local communities.

One of the first covenant partnerships, linking Kirkwood Baptist Church and Harrison Avenue Missionary Baptist in St. Louis, began in 2008 after an African-American activist barged into a city council meeting and killed two police officers and three city officials before authorities shot him to death. The relationship helped prepare both congregations for the turmoil in Ferguson, Mo., following the police shooting death of black teenager Michael Brown that gained national attention in 2014.

Their major collaboration is “Hands on Kirkwood,” a one-day mission blitz that draws hundreds of volunteers to spend a day serving those in need through projects such as yard work, home repairs, winter car checkups and safety repairs, electronics recycling and a Winter Clothing and Toy Store. Nonperishable food and baby items are also collected to donate to local organizations.

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)
Tags:Russell MooreSocial IssuesracismNew Baptist Covenant
More by
Bob Allen
  • Get BNG headlines in your inbox

  • Featured

    • Are Americans attending church more or less than before the pandemic? It’s complicated

      News

    • Preying preachers: Confronting clergy sexual abuse

      Analysis

    • ‘In a pluralistic democracy’: An interview with Jennifer Rubin

      Opinion

    • Guys, guns and gods

      Opinion


    Curated

    • Pilgrimage and revolution: How Cesar Chavez married faith and ideology in landmark farmworkers’ march

      Pilgrimage and revolution: How Cesar Chavez married faith and ideology in landmark farmworkers’ march

    • GOP Rep Slams ‘Unchristian’ GOP Immigration Proposals

      GOP Rep Slams ‘Unchristian’ GOP Immigration Proposals

    • Responding to Indigenous, Vatican rejects Discovery Doctrine

      Responding to Indigenous, Vatican rejects Discovery Doctrine

    • Faith leaders and religious groups voice opposition to Biden’s plan to restrict asylum

      Faith leaders and religious groups voice opposition to Biden’s plan to restrict asylum

    Read Next:

    How the church of the Nashville shooting winds through history, gender wars, church discipline and the SBC sexual abuse study

    AnalysisMark Wingfield

    More Articles

    • All
    • News
    • Opinion
    • Curated
    • One of the first whistleblowers at Northern Seminary says she has been fired by trustees

      NewsElizabeth Souder

    • On the separation of church and university

      OpinionPaul R. Gilliam III

    • An open letter to Baptist women

      OpinionAnna M.V. Bowden

    • Bob Jones University president resigns in battle with board chairman

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Evangelical leaders beg DeSantis and Florida Legislature not to make them criminals for transporting immigrants to church

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • If you’re going to quote 1 Timothy 3:2, be sure to read Exodus 20:17

      OpinionBrad Bull

    • 650 UMC clergy and laity publish letter supporting International Transgender Day of Visibility

      NewsBNG staff

    • On the indictment of a president

      OpinionMark Wingfield

    • Boy Scouts closer to settling abuse claims, but challenges remain

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Oral history archive explores relationship between faith and forced migration

      NewsMatthew Blanton

    • The shift from positional power to relational power

      OpinionMahan Siler

    • What the SBC can learn from NCAA women’s basketball

      OpinionSusan M. Shaw, Senior Columnist

    • Guys, guns and gods

      OpinionNapoleon Harris

    • Are Americans attending church more or less than before the pandemic? It’s complicated

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • A response to ‘The List’

      OpinionAlice Cates Clarke

    • What Mike Law got right

      OpinionJennifer Hawks

    • Preying preachers: Confronting clergy sexual abuse

      AnalysisJoel Bowman Sr.

    • Transitions for the week of 3-31-23

      NewsBarbara Francis

    • ‘In a pluralistic democracy’: An interview with Jennifer Rubin

      OpinionGreg Garrett, Senior Columnist

    • Northern Seminary trustees respond to student complaints

      NewsElizabeth Souder

    • I’m one of the female pastors on the SBC’s hit list

      OpinionCarlisle Davidhizar

    • How the church of the Nashville shooting winds through history, gender wars, church discipline and the SBC sexual abuse study

      AnalysisMark Wingfield

    • Baptist church jumps into service as reunion point for Covenant School children and parents

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • School shootings: How can we respond to children, parents, teachers and others affected?

      OpinionBrad Schwall

    • Part of former student’s case against Patterson and Southwestern dismissed by judge

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • One of the first whistleblowers at Northern Seminary says she has been fired by trustees

      NewsElizabeth Souder

    • Bob Jones University president resigns in battle with board chairman

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Evangelical leaders beg DeSantis and Florida Legislature not to make them criminals for transporting immigrants to church

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • 650 UMC clergy and laity publish letter supporting International Transgender Day of Visibility

      NewsBNG staff

    • Boy Scouts closer to settling abuse claims, but challenges remain

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Oral history archive explores relationship between faith and forced migration

      NewsMatthew Blanton

    • Are Americans attending church more or less than before the pandemic? It’s complicated

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Transitions for the week of 3-31-23

      NewsBarbara Francis

    • Northern Seminary trustees respond to student complaints

      NewsElizabeth Souder

    • Baptist church jumps into service as reunion point for Covenant School children and parents

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Part of former student’s case against Patterson and Southwestern dismissed by judge

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Antisemitic-motivated assaults at record levels

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Peter James Flamming, ‘bridge-building’ pastor in Texas and Virginia

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • New court documents show First Baptist Houston leaders knew of allegations against Pressler in 2004

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Ministry jobs and more

      NewsBarbara Francis

    • A tragic tale of death on the Mediterranean Sea amid Tunisian and British migrant backlash

      NewsAnthony Akaeze

    • Movements expand and contract, Black Lives Matter co-founder says

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Ukrainians join European Baptists to help quake victims in Syria and Turkey

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Two Baptist seminaries among six ‘recommended’ by new Global Methodist Church

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Advocates for constitutional ban on female ‘pastors’ in SBC publish a list of 170 churches they deem in violation

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Former staff at Knoxville church see a familiar pattern in Northern Seminary’s complaints about Shiell’s leadership

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Egged on by evangelical influence, Ugandan Parliament passes harsh new anti-gay bill

      NewsAnthony Akaeze

    • Judge’s dismissal of 36 churches’ lawsuit holds implications for other UMC departures

      NewsCynthia Astle

    • Barna finds pastors are exhausted and isolated, which could be an opportunity for change

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • One-third of Northern Seminary students express no confidence in trustees

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • On the separation of church and university

      OpinionPaul R. Gilliam III

    • An open letter to Baptist women

      OpinionAnna M.V. Bowden

    • If you’re going to quote 1 Timothy 3:2, be sure to read Exodus 20:17

      OpinionBrad Bull

    • On the indictment of a president

      OpinionMark Wingfield

    • The shift from positional power to relational power

      OpinionMahan Siler

    • What the SBC can learn from NCAA women’s basketball

      OpinionSusan M. Shaw, Senior Columnist

    • Guys, guns and gods

      OpinionNapoleon Harris

    • A response to ‘The List’

      OpinionAlice Cates Clarke

    • What Mike Law got right

      OpinionJennifer Hawks

    • ‘In a pluralistic democracy’: An interview with Jennifer Rubin

      OpinionGreg Garrett, Senior Columnist

    • I’m one of the female pastors on the SBC’s hit list

      OpinionCarlisle Davidhizar

    • School shootings: How can we respond to children, parents, teachers and others affected?

      OpinionBrad Schwall

    • Why we should amplify women in all roles of church leadership

      OpinionBrittany Stillwell

    • Lent, confession and the ‘no true Scotsman’ fallacy

      OpinionRobert P. Jones

    • What pastors may not say, but really want us to understand

      OpinionMark Tidsworth

    • Religious leaders must step up to support our trans siblings

      OpinionPaul Brandeis Raushenbush

    • To increase congregational health, decrease domestic violence

      OpinionGeneece Goertzen-Morrison

    • From a Gen Z perspective, another ‘Jesus Revolution’ seems improbable

      OpinionMallory Challis

    • Trumpism is leading America to the valley of dry bones

      OpinionRodney Kennedy

    • Dear churches who invite women to preach

      OpinionSarah Boberg

    • How dare they publish that list

      OpinionArthur Wright Jr.

    • ‘Woke’: I don’t think that word means what you say it does

      OpinionRoger Lovette

    • The Russian Orthodox Church is a big loser in the Russian-Ukrainian war

      OpinionAndrey Shirin

    • On the path to immigration justice, it’s time for Biden to change course

      OpinionSalote Soqo

    • If a story is meant to evolve, then so are we

      OpinionKaitlin Curtice

    • Pilgrimage and revolution: How Cesar Chavez married faith and ideology in landmark farmworkers’ march

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • GOP Rep Slams ‘Unchristian’ GOP Immigration Proposals

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Responding to Indigenous, Vatican rejects Discovery Doctrine

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Faith leaders and religious groups voice opposition to Biden’s plan to restrict asylum

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Carl Lentz, in first staff position since Hillsong, joins Transformation Church in Tulsa

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • UK’s Religion-Free Speech Debates Enter ‘Thoughtcrime’ Zone

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Jimmy Carter believes Black lives matter. Would his decency be considered ‘woke’ today?

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • The Man Who Leads Senate Prayer Is Fed Up With ‘Thoughts And Prayers’

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • At launch rally in Waco, former president sets the stakes for Trump ’24 campaign with apocalyptic, violent, genocidal rhetoric

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Judge rules immigration officials violated pastor’s religious freedom rights

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • A ‘historic’ day in Israel ends with a political compromise — and big questions about the future

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • NY’s power to regulate religious schools trimmed by judge

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Amid rise in antisemitism, Yeshiva University focuses on Holocaust education

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Is Pope Francis ‘The Only One Who Can Make A Difference’ In Uganda’s Anti-LGBTQ Bills?

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • “We Will Fight You for It”: Can Womenpriests Save the Catholic Church?

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Whitney Houston’s family wants to highlight her gospel roots

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Pelosi on cleric who barred her from Communion: ‘That’s his problem, not mine’

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Criminal or Not, Trump’s Case Is a Moral Test for Christians

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Netanyahu vows more active role in Israel’s judiciary fight following a day of tense protests

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Jimmy Carter’s religious values were never far from his presidency or his policy

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Pioneer of gospel music rediscovered in Pittsburgh archives

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • As The King’s College faces closure, scrutiny turns to its backers

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Communicators for Christ: how homeschool debate leagues shaped the rising stars of the Christian right

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Israeli leader halts bill against Christian proselytizing

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Trump’s arrest ‘prediction’ inflames holy war narrative and sanctifies violence — welcome to Trump ’24

      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