I don’t think Baptists today are particularly gifted in the spiritual discipline of confession of sin. We’re glad to echo Romans 3:23 and declare that all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory, but we tend to avoid candid…
Learning to breathe in the Spirit by confessing, ‘I can’t breathe’
At various times in the biblical narrative, the Hebrew people gathered memorial stones in sacred spaces. These rock formations served as places of remembrance for all to see and be reminded of the power and transformative nature of God. May…
Black Baptist women in ministry and the principality of patriarchy
As we march into Women’s History Month, I’ve been thinking about women in ministry, particularly Black Baptist women in ministry. This area is especially near and dear to me as my wife, Betty Wright-Riggins, is a woman in ministry. Betty…
How slavery still shapes the world of white evangelical Christians
Without meaning to do so, Henry Louis Gates’ two-part series on “The Black Church” dramatically exposed the gaping chasm that divides the way Black Christians and privileged white Christians — especially white evangelicals — understand God, protest and politics. For…
Faith leaders call for an end to racial bullying in the Indiana legislature
Tension is at an all-time high in the Indiana General Assembly and the entire United States. The Ministerium, an Indiana statewide ministers’ organization, and other faith leaders across the United States are concerned. Attempted physical abuse and public bullying tactics…
One year later: Some musings on post-COVID culture and social ethics
When this column appears, it will be exactly one year since my last trip to the airport. One year since I lectured outside my own home or university. Just under one year since my Mercer classes went to Zoom for…
Why vote to fund something you won’t ever use?
Last fall, my hometown of Austin, Texas, put a monumental public transportation bond question on the ballot: light rail, tunnels underneath downtown, electric buses. Austin’s Capitol Metro called the plan “bold.” Another way to say that: “Billions.” Austin voters have…
What if we cared about Black History Month as much as Lent?
Growing up in the ’80s and ’90s as an independent Baptist in an all-white church, the first 20 Februarys of my life came and went without any awareness of either Lent or Black History Month. Liturgy was considered something the…
Making the case for why Black History Month is necessary
Black History Month has its critics, but Chalice Overy isn’t one of them. Overy, associate pastor at Pullen Memorial Baptist Church in Raleigh, N.C., said the focus on Black heroes and accomplishments every February growing up prepared her for being…