Rick Warren announced a couple of weeks ago that he will appeal the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee’s decision to disfellowship Saddleback Church. In the past few days, Warren has grabbed a bullhorn and “taken to the streets,” so to…
An open letter to all Southern Baptists
Editor’s Note: Rick Warren published this open letter Friday, June 2, and sent it to various media outlets, including BNG. Rather than write a news story about the letter, we decided to run the full letter as an opinion piece….
An open letter to Elijah Brown, Baptist World Alliance CEO
I am chagrined by the Baptist News Global report that you used your position with the Baptist World Alliance to dismiss T.J. Williams-Hauger from his participation with two BWA commissions: Interfaith Commission and the Racial Justice Commission. My chagrin rests…
Why this seminary professor’s view of MrBeast and his friend is deadly and dangerous
I’m trying to like Southwestern Seminary these days, but Daniel Darling just made it that much harder. The Fort Worth, Texas, seminary is promoting a piece Darling wrote for the conservative World magazine. Darling serves as director of the Land…
What I learned from Taylor Swift
I knew something was up weeks earlier. Making my typical hotel arrangements for the monthly trip to Nashville seemed complicated. Every hotel was sold out. Even my trusty 15-miles-outside-the-city economy hotel wanted $500 for a night’s stay. It only took…
Remembering Pulse nighclub and the power of affirmation
There are some meetings that, when they’re over, you know your life will never be the same. I remember pulling into a church parking lot on a Friday afternoon in September 2016 knowing in my heart I was a fish…
Working and waiting with people and plants
Coming in from a quick look at the plants and grass in my backyard, just before the dark came, something occurred to me: For much of my adult life, I have been working and waiting for someone or something to…
Let’s reclaim the real Baptist identity
I have the honor of serving a progressive congregation in one of the most beautiful cities of the Southeast. Our church is steeped in history with strong liturgical worship, and we pride ourselves on being welcoming and affirming, while also…
To the mother who complained about Amanda Gorman’s poem
Dear Concerned Mother, You were astute to signal the potential problems the published poem, “The Hill We Climb” by Amanda Gorman, might cause for your own two children and other elementary school readers at Bob Graham Education Center in Miami…
Rising from the ashes: God’s empowering message for displaced women
For the past few weeks, the same headline has echoed throughout the United States: “Title 42 Ends.” Title 42 is a regulation implemented to halt immigration during a national health crisis. While not expressly intended for this, the law inadvertently…
How the Progressive National Baptist Convention plans to put faith into action
What will it take to organize and mobilize your organization or congregation on justice issues? At the Progressive National Baptist Convention, we believe that is a critical question as we face our current environment and look toward the 2024 elections….
Believe me: The struggle of Black pain
Chronic pain is something many people all over the world deal with and are all too familiar with the numerous side effects of such pain. Chronic pain can be caused by a variety of things such as fibromyalgia, surgery or…