racial reconciliation Archives - Baptist & Reflector

LET’S STOP AND THINK ABOUT WHAT WE ARE DOING

July 9, 2020

By Todd Brady
Vice President for University Ministries, Union University

Some of society’s half-baked thinking has been exposed and mocked recently by conservative pundit, Jesse Kelly.

Last week, Kelly tweeted “Yale University was named for Elihu Yale. Not just a man who had slaves. An actual slave trader. I call on @Yale to change it’s [sic] name immediately and strip the name of Yale from every building, piece of paper, and merchandise. Otherwise, they hate black people. #CancelYale.” A mere six hours after he posted this, his tweet had been retweeted some 17,000 times and liked nearly 40,000 times.

Of course, Kelly’s tweet is sarcastic. It came as calls are being made by some who are wanting certain monuments of people who owned slaves to be removed.

Others jumped on his rhetorical bandwagon by saying that anyone with “Yale” in his biography is a racist and that Yale’s faculty is complicit by their participation in this “historically racist institution.” One person said, “Every person with a degree from Yale should be canceled. They should be forced to resign from public office. Resign from all Boards. Be disbarred. Lose their professional certifications. Lose judgeships.” [Read more…]

C-N ESTABLISHES TEAM TO ASSESS COMMUNITY INCLUSION

June 30, 2020

Carson-Newman news office

Gloria Walker, acting vice president of student services at Carson-Newman University, leads in the selection of members for a new community relations task team, which she will chair. Assisting in the team’s formation is Provost Jeremy Buckner, center, and Matt Bryant Cheney, director of the Center for Community Engagement and co-chair of the university’s diversity and equity committee.

JEFFERSON CITY — Carson-Newman University is organizing a community relations task team to foster unity and awareness within the community and make specific recommendations for improvements that align with the university’s biblical faith and Christian identity.

The university seeks to identify and eradicate any policies, procedures or cultural norms that promote racial division; advance healing and reconciliation; and affirm that black lives matter.

Carson-Newman’s executive leadership, at the direction of President Charles A. Fowler, established the team on June 3 in direct response to the rallying cry for change following the senseless killing of George Floyd in Minnesota on May 25. [Read more…]

STORMY DAYS, STRONG FAITH

June 23, 2020

God at work in Hamilton County amid tough times

By David Dawson
Baptist and Reflector
ddawson@tnbaptist.org

Disaster relief volunteers and others survey the damage at a house that was damaged by a tornado in Hamilton County on April 12.

CHATTANOOGA — The residents of Hamilton County have experienced a trilogy of turmoil in the past few months.

It began when the COVID-19 pandemic first took hold, throwing daily routines into a state of flux. Then came a deadly tornado that created another wave of emotional and physical challenges. And in recent days, Hamilton County, like the rest of the country, has been dealing with racial unrest that was ignited by the death of George Floyd.

The three events might lead some to wonder, “where has God been in all this tragedy?”

Dennis Culbreth, the director of missions for Hamilton County Baptist, said the answer is clear — the Lord has been present and active through it all. [Read more…]

BAPTIST CHURCHES JOIN FORCES TO COMBAT RACISM

June 16, 2020

Baptist and Reflector

Leaders from three entities recently signed a joint statement regarding the death of George Foyd, racism and the current crisis in America. From left, are Barbara Crawford, president, Gallatin United Ministerial Association; Michael Pennington, mission strategist, Bledsoe Baptist Association; and Thomas Staten, moderator, East Fork District Baptist Association, a national Baptist association.

FRANKLIN — At least two Baptist associations in Tennessee joined forces with other churches in their communities to pray for racial injustice and reconciliation.

Bledsoe Baptist Association

Bledsoe Baptist Association, based in Hendersonville, recently combined on a joint statement with East Fork District Baptist Association (a National Baptist association that includes several Middle Tennessee counties) and the Gallatin United Ministerial Alliance regarding the recent death of African American George Floyd, racism and the current crisis in America.

The statement said, “Comprised of African-American, Anglo, and multicultural churches, we unite together to declare our unity in the love of God and the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, one family. We also declare and affirm the dignity and value of every human life, and we condemn in the strongest terms the taking of the life of Mr. George Floyd. We pray for and express compassion, empathy, and love for his family. May God grant them abundant grace and peace.” [Read more…]

THE GOSPEL IS THE ANSWER FOR RACISM

June 15, 2020

By Caleb Barbier

It hurts my heart to read about the shooting of Ahmaud Arbery, the strangling of George Floyd, and the struggles that people of color have to endure simply because of their skin.

I was taught in school that racism was something of the past, that the world has made progress, yet here we are. Another shooting. More bloodshed. Continued injustice. Although we must address racism with urgency, I believe racism reveals something much deeper, something under the surface. [Read more…]

GOLDEN RULE STILL WORKS — IF WE WOULD APPLY IT

June 10, 2020

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
lwilkey@tnbaptist.org

Our world is in turmoil and it all can’t be blamed on COVID-19.

We were in a mess before the pandemic, we’re in a mess during the pandemic and we will be in a mess after the pandemic. Why? The answer is simple. We live in a world where sin is alive and well.

The world is upset with the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis and rightly so. I usually give police the benefit of doubt in most cases, but it’s hard to do so when watching this man die at the hands of a police officer. The police officer expressed exceedingly poor judgment and will no doubt pay the price. [Read more…]

START PRAYING NOW FOR SBC MEETING IN JUNE

March 4, 2020

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
lwilkey@tnbaptist.org

For a number of years the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention has come and gone without a lot of fanfare, a far cry from the late 1970s to the early 2000s when annual meetings were national news during the years of the “Conservative Resurgence.”

Attendance has dwindled dramatically at annual meetings but there could be a major uptick in numbers when Southern Baptists gather June 9-10 in Orlando, Fla. Yes, the location will be a factor in more attendees, but so will recent developments in the Southern Baptist Convention.

A dissatisfaction with some current leaders in the SBC is becoming more prevalent among pastors and churches throughout the SBC, including Tennessee. Here are just a few examples. [Read more…]

ORR: RACIAL RECONCILIATION BEGINS WITH MISSIONS

February 21, 2020

By Ann Lovell
IMB Editorial Design Manager

Bartholomew Orr, pastor of Brown Missionary Baptist Church in Southaven, Miss., said missions can be unifying.

SOUTHAVEN, Miss. — Bartholomew Orr believes in racial reconciliation, and he believes that reconciliation comes through a shared commitment to missions.

Orr has served as senior pastor of Brown Missionary Baptist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, since 1989. A vibrant church with a rich history, Orr and his congregation want to serve as an example of a church that leads the way in local, national and international missions.

“This is our season to lead, and I believe God is calling us to lead on so many fronts,” he said. “One of those is racial reconciliation. … Anyone who does a quick history lesson will discover one thing that has always brought Baptists together is mission work.” [Read more…]

NO ROOM FOR RACISM IN THE CHRISTIAN HEART

September 4, 2019

By Chris Turner
cturner@tnbaptist.org

“Are you gonna let that n—r coon sit in our class?’ a boy shouted at me. ‘We can kick the crap out of this n—-r. Look, it’s 20 of us and one of her. They ain’t nothing but animals …Go back where you came from.’ ” — From Warriors Don’t Cry

I don’t recall ever reading a book as emotionally taxing as, Warriors Don’t Cry, by Melba Pattillo Beals, one of the “Little Rock Nine” who integrated Central High School in 1957. The amount of physical brutality and emotional abuse those children — children my daughter’s age — faced every day for the entire school year is incomprehensible. They endured attempted lynchings, beatings, acid in the eyes, constantly being spit on, being trapped in bathroom stalls while white students stood on toilets in adjacent stalls and rained burning paper on them, and so much more, just because they were black.

The cruelty was inhumane; it was satanic. At times, Melba’s story physically nauseated me. White parents and their children went to extremes to drive them from Central High. For example, parents employed Ku Klux Klan psychologists to coach the students on how to make life hell for Melba and her classmates. The book is a raw look at racism, prejudice and segregation in the South in the 1950s. [Read more…]

TAKING STEPS TOGETHER

August 8, 2019

Group from Maury County finds ways to promote, produce racial harmony

By David Dawson and Ashley Perham
Baptist and Reflector writers

The members of Stand Together Fellowship gather on the steps of the state capitol building in Montgomery during the group’s recent trip to Alabama. — Photo by Bridget Stuart. (For information about the ‘Justice Journey Tour’ book of photos by Bridget Stuart, contact her at 931-398-4056)

COLUMBIA — With reflective expressions and hopeful hearts, the members of Stand Together Fellowship walked across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Ala., on the afternoon of July 10.

They moved along in mixed pairs — one white and one black — as they strode across the historic bridge that served as the starting point for the March to Montgomery in 1965. By the time they reached the other side, many in the group had wet faces, the combined result of sweat and tears on this steamy summer afternoon. [Read more…]

God at work in Hamilton County amid tough times

“Are you gonna let that n—r coon sit in our class?’ a boy shouted at me. ‘We can kick the crap out of this n—-r. Look, it’s 20 of us and one of her. They ain’t nothing but animals …Go back where you came from.’ ” — From Warriors Don’t Cry

Group from Maury County finds ways to promote, produce racial harmony

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