Cooperative Baptist Fellowship
As we go about our lives conveniently putting each other in neat, little boxes, sooner or later we notice that others are putting us in their neat, little boxes, too. Read more
As we go about our lives conveniently putting each other in neat, little boxes, sooner or later we notice that others are putting us in their neat, little boxes, too. Read more
By Andy Hale Imagine what it would look like to dismantle the mega-church you started. You are not starting satellite campus or birthing new churches. Rather, you have decided to begin preaching and practices a gospel that is not intertwined with the American political evangelicalism that dominates the Christian landscape. This is the journey of pastor and author Brian Zahnd. “I was pastoring a church that met every metric of success for the American Church. We had money, the numbers,... Read more
While I am protesting and pointing out the sins of other people as they try to protect their sacred monuments, I should recognize that I may have the tendency to do the same things they do, just for other monuments. If we all would be honest and think deeply, we could each identify monuments in our lives, as well. We all hold on to some things that, if someone challenged them, we would likely respond in ways that would cause us not to be mistaken for children of the king. Read more
I accept that thoughtful Christians may disagree on public policy, and I certainly acknowledge my limitations in comprehensive immigration reform discussions. Yet, on this one point I would challenge my fellow believers: All people (documented and undocumented alike) are created in the image of God. They are our neighbors. Jesus modeled loving his neighbors, and he challenged all his followers to love our neighbors just as he expected us to love ourselves. It is my hope that we Christians will become informed about immigration issues and immigrants’ needs in our communities and seek to explore this issue using Jesus as our guide. I pray that as we discuss this complicated issue we will remember we represent Jesus and that when we speak on either side of this issue, our “attitude will be the same as Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 2:5) Read more
The pursuit of religious freedom extends beyond the boundaries of American Evangelicalism. The quest for religious liberty is fundamentally concerned with loving our most neglected and marginalized neighbors, regardless of faith or creed. Therefore, religious liberty must be extended to all, not just those with privilege. In the midst of bigotry and religious zealotry, education and the continued advocacy for religious freedom must be the primary focus for those with a platform to speak. Read more
When we love our heritage, our flag, or our statues more than we love our neighbors – neighbors whom we felt the need to remind that we see ourselves as superior to them, as favored by God over them, that they once belonged to us, and that if we had succeeded with our Southern cause, in our possession they would still be – then we deny our neighbor's inherent dignity and value as children of God; our flag and our statues and our heritage become idols of our own making which we worship with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Read more
The events in Charlottesville, Va., this past week were horrendous, and the outpouring of resistant voices has been important. It is good to hear from white people that many of them condemn the ideology of white supremacy and white nationalists and other evil hate groups and the thought that gives them a foundation. It is good to see how many white people have taken to digital media to condemn the actions of these misguided children of God, and declared that silence is compliance. I agree. But voice is not enough. Read more
The problem, however, is that the very monuments that embody white Southerners necessarily disembody people of color. ...The presence of Confederate monuments in public squares is a tacit demand that we dismiss the bodies, families, wills, and dreams of African Americans — the same kind of disgrace perpetrated against over four million of our brothers and sisters on the eve of the Civil War. Read more
Sometimes pastors are cautioned about bringing politics into the pulpit. We must remember that the gospel is necessarily political as it impacts our world, but it doesn't have to be partisan. This is not a 'right or left' issue but rather a 'right and wrong' issue. There are times for the church to speak up as to let our nation know we aren't asleep at the wheel and that we see what's going on. Not talking about something doesn't make it go away or mean it isn't there. Silence from the church can imply complicity and sympathy. We must not allow that. Read more
They say that confession is good for the soul. I pray that my confession may lead to my repentance and to a deeper commitment to God’s work of justice for all human beings. Read more
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