Reflecting on Race
As people across the country consider racism and racial injustices, columnist Wade Paris reflects on racial issues emerging at various churches during his decades as a pastor.
How White Supremacy has Disfigured American Christianity
Robert P. Jones reflects on the slavery history of White Baptists and how to address that truth today as part of repairing the damage. Read full piece
For White Christians, Racial Justice Starts with Telling the Truth
As the country is once again facing a reckoning on racial justice, perhaps the biggest obstacle to White Christians’ full participation in the movement for racial equality is an unshakable commitment to our own innocence.
America has been Addicted to Whiteness for 400 Years
Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove reflects on progress toward racial justice and how much more is needed. Read full piece
Some Still Revising South’s Reasons for Civil War
Terrell Carter (a pastor, university administrator, and Word&Way columnist) writes about the myths of the Lost Cause sympathizers still pushed today. Read full piece
Being Willing to Listen
Columnist Christopher Dixon admits feeling fatigue amide coronavirus, racial injustices, and more. But he also sees the importance of churches and Christians staying engaged and listening.
Building Tombs for the Prophets Our Ancestors Killed
Editor Brian Kaylor reflects on the passing of Baptist civil rights giants C.T. Vivian and John Lewis, and what it would mean to really honor the legacy of those two and their fellow Baptist minister Martin Luther King Jr.
The Quiet Desegregation of Glorieta Baptist Assembly
Many Southern Baptists are familiar with Annie Armstrong, founder of the Woman’s Missionary Union. Fewer know of Annie Filmore, a 20th century pioneer of Baptist missions, who was initially denied fellowship with Armstrong’s WMU because of the color of her skin.
Bryan Stevenson on How America Can Heal
Bryan Stevenson talks about truth and reconciliation in America — and about whether truth would actually lead to reconciliation in America. And he discusses what the process of reckoning with our past sins and present wounds would look and feel and sound like. Read full piece
When We Forget Our History, Institutions Do the Sinning for Us
It would be a mistake to think that the events in Wilmington, North Carolina, 120 years ago are not still with us. The stories of history do not disappear simply because only a few people know them. What people forget, institutions remember. Read full piece