A majority of Americans associate most closely with people who look, think, vote and worship like them, according to new research by Public Religion Research Institute. “Across demographic groups, Americans’ core friendship networks tend to be dominated by people of…
White House event celebrates the diversity of Black America
The assumption that enslaved Africans encountered authentic faith only upon their arrival in America is a stereotype that needs to end, Yolanda Pierce, dean of the Howard University School of Divinity, said during a Feb. 23 Black History Month webinar….
Brian Flores, the Rooney Rule and some lessons for churches seeking diversity
“It happened again!” That was my thought when I got up to leave the church interview. Although this was pre-social media, I can remember it like it was yesterday. A very well-meaning friend sent my name into the medium-size church…
The ‘MAGA faction’ could be a hindrance for multiracial congregations
One of the prized goals of evangelical and mainline churches in America today is to create multiethnic congregations. But the same political trends that are making life difficult for pastors also bode ill for multicultural churches. New research published Jan….
The big news from the 2020 Census is multiculturalism, which threatens some people and still eludes most churches
Demographers have been predicting for three decades that the United States was headed toward a non-majority status for any single racial group in the population. Results of the 2020 Census released last week confirm that ongoing trend, but the real…
Do all the birds on Jaybird Street really want to hear all that tweet, tweet, tweet?
Some of us can still remember song lyrics from our teen years. We may forget what we were seeking when we opened the refrigerator door, the exact dates of our children’s birthdays, or why we went into the garage, but…
Separation of church and state looks different through the eyes of minorities, BJC speaker says
The First Amendment and concepts such as separation of church and state and freedom of religion seem to signal that religious diversity is strong in the United States. “Well, that’s not really true,” Khyati Joshi, author of White Christian Privilege:…
That time I went to the school board meeting to speak against banning books
This week, I found someone who has it rougher than pastors in handling dissent generated from right-wing conspiracy theories and fear of the LGBTQ community: Public school administrators. I had no idea how bad this is, and yet I should…
The colors of America
I am one of those white Baby Boomer guys who has screwed up everything — or at least the finger has pointed often our way. I don’t totally deny it. I grew up in Oklahoma, Tulsa. When I went off…