Baptist News Global

Transitions for the week of 12-18-20

Please submit transitions — including staff changes, ordinations, anniversaries or deaths — to Barbara Francis. This page will be updated bi-weekly. STAFF CHANGES Bruce Burfield, to First Baptist Church, Lindsborg, Kansas, as pastor. Sean Dunker-Bendigo, concluding his tenure as pastor…

‘Cultural humility’ fosters a lifelong self-examination of racism

The work of identifying racist attitudes and behaviors is not only uncomfortable, but also never-ending, said Kerri Fisher, a lecturer and diversity educator at Baylor University. Recognizing white privilege and oppressive social systems isn’t enough to sustain “cultural humility,” said…

Supreme Court declines to consider Indiana case on rights of same-sex parents

An effort by Indiana officials to deny parental rights to same-sex couples was turned away by the United States Supreme Court Dec. 14. Without comment, the high court denied certiorari in the case Box v. Henderson, which means the court…

Visionaries seek new creation from United Methodist chaos

In 1784, the Methodist Episcopal Church was formed in the fledgling United States of America at a gathering that became known as the Christmas Conference. This year, The United Methodist Church, descendant of that first denomination, faces a Christmas of…

In this advice, I was wrong

I was wrong in advice I gave to young ministers for many years. My intent was good, but my advice was wrong. The recent intense debate over a Wall Street Journal opinion piece has helped me clarify this. In that…

COVID took my Mom but did not have the final word

COVID-19 thinks it took another victim tonight, Dec. 14, 2020. There will be a death listed in the Bell County, Texas, newspaper, with the State of Texas, and other databases. For my family and me, that death is not just…

Contemplative pandemic cooking: Feeding souls and neighbors

In rural New England, winter comes not only with a downpouring of snow but with a heavy dose of loneliness and isolation. While the wondrous “white stuff” is a nuance that my spouse and I still get excited about, that’s…

Why are SBC seminary presidents rejecting Critical Race Theory if they teach about Jesus and the prophets who denounced injustice?

This article is part of a series on Critical Race Theory published throughout the month of December. See the links below for previous articles in the series. On Nov. 30, 2020, presidents of the six seminaries affiliated with the Southern…