Our historic convictions as Baptists are not a liability in today’s environment. They are a deep well of wisdom and strength. When we lean into what makes us uniquely Baptist, we truly can make a difference in the world.
The Color of Compromise: American Christianity’s legacy of racism calls for ‘repentance and repair’
In his new book, The Color of Compromise, Jemar Tisby documents the ways in which white Christians, churches and religious institutions inside and outside the South manifested, acquiesced to and facilitated racist responses to people of color in general and African Americans in particular.
The scattering yet unifying Spirit and the place of LGBTQ persons in the Church
How do we discern how the Spirit works in our particularities for the sake of the larger mission? Today I imagine the Spirit’s fire would fall down on LGBTQ folk, enabling them to speak to God’s testifying work in their lives and in their communities.
Why I don’t buy the gloomy forecasts about the church’s future
I believe there has never been a better day to be the church. Indeed, I believe the 21st century will find the church of Jesus Christ emerging from decades of slow decline to rediscover authentic community, witness and vibrancy.
To resist is not enough; as Christians we are called to do more
Korean minjung theologians speak of han, the deep and abiding suffering that persists as a result of unresolved injustice. Right now, I believe our faith communities are overwhelmed by han. In this in-between space of conflict and despair, let’s remember that doing right is its own reward.
CBF’s general assembly: less Baptist baloney, more Baptist babies
The nutritional makeup of these annual gatherings normally consists of 10 percent awkward side hugs, 20 percent irrelevant breakout sessions, 30 percent over-priced, low-value luncheons and 40 percent whitewashed worship services. However, at recent assemblies I’ve noticed a decrease of Baptist baloney and an increase of Baptist babies.
Searching for false gods: a challenge to the argument for inclusiveness
The theological assertion of God’s inclusive nature is used to justify the church’s inclusion of gay persons into the full life of the church. Could not another person, equally sincere, conclude from scripture that God is not affirming of sexual relationships between same sex persons?
When a transwoman served me communion
To be presented the Body of Christ by a transwoman created a role reversal I had not anticipated. As a pastor, I am accustomed to being the one serving the elements. Today, I was the one who received. And in that moment, I was changed yet again.
The prevailing power of Pentecost and the Holy Spirit’s socialist tendencies
We need God’s very essence and being to persuade those in power to see the work that they do through God’s eyes, to adopt and embrace God’s view of things, and then to make it happen in the legislation they produce, the policies they enact and the initiatives they advance.
Yes, my kids are ‘real’: adoption and the myth of children who are less
As we prepare for the birth of daughter, we have been struck by the differences between the response to her anticipated arrival and the response to our first two children. Kids welcomed into families through adoption are no less “real children” than biological children.
Sister leaders from Cuba and America: inhabiting the Body of Christ and the nation-state
Together we as Cuban and American Christians are part of the beloved community constructed by the Triune God who creates space for our disparate national identities. We share a commitment to live as Christians under the Lordship of Christ while navigating the demands of citizenship and religious liberty.
Core Baptist convictions: After 400 years are many of us uncomfortable in our own skin?
Some Baptists are ready to ditch “brand name” Christianity for Christian evangelical mono-culture, ready to run a congregation of called and baptized believer-priests as a corporation and ready to forget that we ever were these people called Baptists. I’m not there just yet.