The Olin T. Binkley Memorial Baptist Church didn’t want the typical chronicle or hagiography when it asked historian Andrew Gardner to write its congregational history. “And we didn’t want a coffee table book of nice pictures,” said Senior Minister Marcus…
U.S. urged to respond to plight of Black Mauritanians
Activists are stepping up pressure on the U.S. to grant asylum and other protections to Black Mauritanians facing imprisonment, torture, execution and slavery in the northwest African nation. Mauritanian diaspora leaders and other advocates participated in a June 6 webinar…
How King’s ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail’ parallels the Tennessee Three
It was Holy Week and two young Black men, motivated by the courage of their Christian convictions, took part in a nonviolent demonstration. Colleagues chided them for their participation. It was “untimely” given the circumstances, they complained. Furthermore, the young…
MLK’s civil rights work was an outgrowth of his Baptist tradition, author explains
Martin Luther King’s role as a Civil Rights leader was heavily influenced by the Baptist tradition that gave structure to his ministry and activism, Jeremiah Chester said during a webinar presented by Baptist History and Heritage Society. “We can’t separate…
The other speech Martin Luther King gave at Southern Seminary in 1961
Sixty-two years ago this spring, Martin Luther King Jr. famously preached in chapel at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. The date was April 19, 1961. What is less remembered is that King also spoke that day in a…
Basic civil rights are under attack in the courts, Perryman warns
The U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade in June 2022 demonstrates that LGBTQ equality and other basic civil rights are under threat by well-funded and highly coordinated political forces on the right, attorney and activist Skye Perryman said during…
Baldwin, Bobby and the necessity of hard conversations
I’ve been engaging in hard conversations about race for the past seven years. Sometimes I’m asked if they matter, if anything can change hearts and minds. Not long ago, a friend who is a devout Christian and a person of…
Finding inspiration from Fannie Lou Hamer when freedom is under assault
This weekend, I have found strength and solidary in the words of Galatians 5: “Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit.” In this same chapter, we are told that it was for freedom that Christ has set us free. All…
The road to equity for all is still too long, but here’s a hero we need to remember
People always stand at particular points in history, sometimes fully aware of where they stand, but sometimes giving little or no notice. Today we stand at a juncture worth noting — Black History Month behind us, and in the first…