The Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America has grown a lot since its founding in 1984. Its focus over the years has expanded from poverty and nuclear proliferation to racial justice, gun violence and immigration, among other issues. And a…
NBC/USA president calls for greater sensitivity in race relations
The president of a major African-American denomination who earlier this summer participated in a groundbreaking discussion about improving race relations with leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention said Sept. 8 that non-blacks often lack empathy for the plight facing black America….
Black pastor urges CBF to partner with institutions in the ‘hood’
An African-American pastor says Baptists should become less concerned about “just having blacks in white space” for the sake of diversity and more involved in building institutions that empower predominantly black neighborhoods.
Pastor says being black a ‘burdensome joy’
An African-American minister described the experience of being black in America as a “burdensome joy” at a New Baptist Covenant luncheon June 23 during the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship General Assembly in Greensboro, N.C. “Much of who I am and what…
Do only black football players sexually assault coeds at Baylor?
This is a big month in race relations among Baptists. This week at the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, Jerry Young, president of the National Baptist Convention USA Inc. was a speaker, and a participant with SBC president…
The ‘next America’ demands change from churches
The headline for this column is misleading. The “next America” actually is the “now America.” To paraphrase the late cartoon character Pogo, “We have seen the future, and it is here.” And it means most Baptist congregations and their denomination…
Finding a way forward through relationships
Race, Ferguson, and Youth Ministry
There are important conversations happening now in American about race. Since I’m a student minister, I’ve been thinking about my students and how this conversation needs to include them. So, how do I talk with teenagers about something as big…