“Banality” is not a word that we often hear. The dictionary I consulted defines it as “the condition or quality of being banal, or devoid of freshness or originality.” “Triteness,” “staleness,” and “unimaginativeness” are synonyms for banality.
A Litany of Tragedies
The streets of Ferguson had grown quiet, but this was not to last. After weeks of deliberation and hours upon hours of testimony, the grand jury tasked with determining whether or not Office Darren Wilson should be charged with any…
Learning Lament: One Day in Ferguson
Tonight I had the opportunity to share my experience of traveling to Ferguson, MO yesterday. And as our church community made its way to worship tonight, our city was, and is, erupting in protest over the decision in Staten Island…
Welton Gaddy decries burning of Brown family church
By Bob Allen Interfaith Alliance head Welton Gaddy called on authorities to quickly investigate a Thanksgiving week arson that destroyed the Ferguson, Mo., church where the family of slain teenager Michael Brown has attended since July. Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms…
We’ve got a lot of race work to do in America
By Marv Knox No matter what we think about a grand jury’s decision not to indict police officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of Michael Brown, can we acknowledge attitudes about race divide our nation? The grand jury’s Wilson/Brown decision…
We shout ‘Peace, Peace,’ when there is no peace
For those of us who follow the liturgical calendar in our churches, the season of Advent is the time where we focus on the virtues of hope, peace, joy, and love – perhaps lighting a candle on an advent wreath…
CBF pastor hopes Darren Wilson decision will prompt dialogue
By Bob Allen A Cooperative Baptist Fellowship pastor in St. Louis said any hope for improving race relations lies not in agreement about a non-indictment in the Michael Brown shooting death but in relationships that will grow between people with…
Healing the cop-community divide in Ferguson, Mo.
Michael Brown was unarmed when Darren Wilson gunned him down. Now the police chief of Ferguson, Missouri is suggesting that Brown was died because officer Wilson believed he had stolen a box of cigars. I suppose that bit of information is…
If they are black
By Bill Leonard Our pastor, the Reverend Dr. Darryl Aaron, is black. He and his family live about two blocks from our family, in a neighborhood that is predominately white. When an unarmed black teenager named Michael Brown was shot…