Reading the Bible Like Enslavers
Editor Brian Kaylor considers a common thread between two recent controversies at Baptist schools, and what this can teach us about how we read and interpret the Bible today.
Uncharted Territory: Jesuits in St. Louis Search for Descendants of People They Enslaved
Four years into an ongoing research effort, officially called the “Slavery, History, Memory, and Reconciliation Project,” about 70 people have been identified so far, who, between 1823 and 1865, were mainly forced to work at St. Louis University, its church, and St. Stanislaus Seminary. Read full
Nettles: Celebrate ‘Providence’ that Brought Gospel Through Slavery
A prominent Southern Baptist theologian who sparked controversy for defending the slavery of the founders of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary doubled-down in another essay praising “the wisdom of Providence” that saw the evangelization of enslaved persons through the institution of slavery.
Search for Roots of Historic First Baptist Church in Williamsburg Begins with Song & Prayer
The prayer vigil Sunday served to bless an archaeological project that hopes to unearth signs of that building — First Baptist’s first physical home. The church was organized in 1776 as a congregation of free and enslaved Blacks. Read full piece
Iowa Catholic College to Remove Statue of its Bishop Founder over Slavery
A private eastern Iowa college has announced it will remove a statue of the school’s founder after officials there learned new details about his slave-owning past. Read full piece
Why Should I Reparate?
I didn’t eat the fruit. There is no way I would have eaten the fruit. Everyone says the same thing when it comes to slavery. Read full piece
White Christians Grapple With Their Faith’s Racist Past — & Present
How are white supremacy and white Christianity entangled? And what work is being done today, by Christians inside and outside the church, to break those ties? Listen to the conversation on 1A — including comment by Word&Way Editor Brian Kaylor (at the 14:12 mark) Listen to
Records Reveal Buckner was a Slaveholder
Buckner International, a Baptist charitable organization based in Texas, recently learned 160-year-old records show its long-revered namesake founder, R.C. Buckner, was a slaveholder. The 1860 “slave schedule” for Lamar County, Texas, revealed Buckner as the owner of an enslaved 16-year-old Black female.
Vermont Religious Leaders Ask State to Remember Enslaved
Some Vermont religious leaders are asking the state to confront its role as a location where Black people were once held as slaves and remember those individuals — like Lavinia and Francis Parker, a mother and son enslaved by Ethan Allen’s daughter Lucy Caroline Allen Hitchcock.
William & Mary Approves Design for Memorial to Those the School Enslaved
At least 180 individuals were enslaved by William & Mary from the college’s founding in 1693 until the Civil War. On Tuesday (Aug. 25), the school approved a final design for a memorial to them and announced that it had secured all of the funding