By Bob Allen It’s time for black and white Baptists to begin honest dialogue about the reality of racial inequality in the United States, says Virginia denominational leader John Upton. Upton, executive director of the predominantly white Baptist General Association…
White preaching professor, black preaching students
By Brett Younger Brett: Our student body is 48 percent African-American and 13 of the 15 faculty members are white. Have you wondered if this is a good place for an African-American minister? Dihanne: What really shocked me was the…
Oakhurst Baptist celebrates 100 years
By Bob Allen A progressive and radically inclusive Baptist congregation celebrates its 100th anniversary this weekend in Atlanta. Constituted in 1913, Oakhurst Baptist Church in Decatur, Ga., sparked controversy in the 1960s as one of the first Southern Baptist churches…
The Bible-denying racist liberal homophobe
The past year, like every year in Christian history, has seen significant amounts of Christian conflict. Consider the vitriol that spewed from the mouths of liberal and conservative Christians alike after multiple landmark Supreme Court decisions. Liberal Christians called (some)…
Making dreams come true
By Andrew Manis Some years ago, when I taught at Averett College in Danville, Va., my friend Thurman Echols, pastor of the Moral Hill Missionary Baptist Church in Martinsville, often came to speak on the civil rights movement to my American…
Study connects views on race, church size
By Jeff Brumley Christians who worship in “very large” congregations see racial inequalities differently from those who attend smaller churches, a joint Baylor University and University of Southern California study has found. Members of the bigger institutions “do not tend…
Environmental racism afflicts US minorities
By Miguel De La Torre We are called by God to be good stewards of the earth. Unfortunately, racism gets in the way. Environmental racism, defined as the link between the degradation of the environment and the racial composition of the areas…
Ethicist criticizes Rangel’s ‘cracker’ remark
By Bob Allen A moderate Baptist ethicist compared Rep. Charlie Rangel’s recent use of the term “white cracker” to cooking celebrity Paula Deen and NFL player Riley Cooper using the “N-word.” The difference, Robert Parham of the Baptist Center for…
Judgment and empathy
By Marv Knox Let’s face it: a white person doesn’t know what being black feels like, and a man can’t completely understand a woman. But during this long, hard summer, I’ve tried. First came the George Zimmerman trial. A Hispanic…