Articles for tag: Racial Reconciliation

September 29, 2013

Christian Standard

When ‘Les Mis’ Comes to Life

By Dave Smith I remember the first time I heard songs from Les Misérables. It was 1988, and I was riding in a van to Chicago with Tim Streett and a couple other guys. Tim and I were interning at our home church, East 91st Street Christian Church in Indianapolis. We were on our way to Chicago for a conference. Tim did not say much that day. He just kept playing songs from Les Misérables, over and over again. Many know Les Misérables as a powerful story of grace and forgiveness: but no one knows this better than Tim. Late

October 3, 2010

Christian Standard

Reconciled

By Bruce Koblish I”m a child of the “60s, and my generation is no stranger to racial tension in our country. So I guess I should not have been surprised that when I became the president of the Gospel Music Association, I faced these same issues within the world of Christian music. The second day on the job I found myself in a room with 30 African-American members of the gospel music community, from artists to managers to attorneys. I may have been ill prepared to deal with such a setting, but I listened intently and resolved early in my

September 30, 2010

Christian Standard

“˜Forcing This Issue Is a Waste of Time”

By Darrel Rowland We don”t all agree that God wants his churches to be multiculturally diverse, even in communities where such a goal can be achieved. “I think the issue of racial reconciliation is borderline irrelevant,” said Brian Jones, founding pastor of Christ”s Church of the Valley in suburban Philadelphia. “Forcing this issue, trying to create forced “˜reconciliation gatherings,” is just a waste of time and 99 times out of 100 stems from white guilt.” Fernando Soto, Hispanic minister with First Christian Church in Anaheim, said the vision of whites, blacks, Hispanics, Asians, and others coming together for church services

September 29, 2010

Christian Standard

White as Snow? Guilty as Sin?

By Darrel Rowland Some 50 years ago Martin Luther King Jr. pierced the church”s soul by pointing out that the most segregated hour in America was 11:00 Sunday morning. Things sure have changed in the five decades since, haven”t they? I mean, we gather at all sorts of hours other than 11 am Sunday these days. But about that other part . . . Let”s just ask ourselves a brutally honest question: Why are Christian churches and churches of Christ among the last bastions of society to remain predominantly white? Once we answer that one, we must tackle an even

September 22, 2010

Christian Standard

2010 NACC: We Can”t Say We Weren”t Warned

By Darrel Rowland First night, first message at this year”s North American Christian Convention, President Ben Cachiaras let us know that the week would be more about “afflicting the comfortable” than comforting the afflicted. Many of us had thought those square pieces of netting on our chairs that opening night at the Indiana Convention Center were some weird Hoosier way to save seats. Instead, they were a visible reminder from Cachiaras of Jesus” radical call to the first disciples to drop their nets and follow him to a place “beyond”””the convention”s theme””and of our need to do the same today.

December 30, 2009

Christian Standard

Leading the Discussion

By Mark A. Taylor As the new year begins, here at CHRISTIAN STANDARD we”re gearing up to serve you with 48 issues full of thoughtful insight, encouraging news, and prodding analysis. We”re committed to leading the discussion among Christian church readers about what”s happening in our movement and what it means to all of us. For starters, we”re once again planning 12 special, thicker issues to deal with timely themes: January 10: Vacation Bible School and Children”s Ministry February 14: NACC Preview March 14: Christian Colleges April 11/18: Megachurches May 9: Family June 6: Preaching July 18/25: “Beyond”””NACC Theme Issue

August 16, 2009

Christian Standard

Ideally

  by David Faust Great enterprises are not built on deals; they are built on ideals. And it”s hard to think of more noble ideals than these: “¢ “No book but the Bible, no creed but Christ.” “¢ “In essentials, unity; in opinions, liberty; and in all things, love.” “¢ “Where the Scriptures speak, we speak; where the Scriptures are silent, we are silent.” “¢ “We are not the only Christians, but we are Christians only.” I heard these slogans when I was a child. I”ve analyzed and admired their truth as an adult, and I”ve found them useful over

April 12, 2009

Christian Standard

This Is the Church”s Moment

By Ethan Magness The fifth chapter of 2 Samuel records three pivotal events in the life of David and the history of Israel. First, David is acknowledged as the king of all Israel. Saul and his legacy are rejected, and David is established as the unquestioned ruler. Politically he has arrived. Second, David conquers Jerusalem and establishes a new capital. Geographically (and strategically) he has arrived. Third, David defeats the Philistines. From Gibeon to Gezer he strikes down the powerful Philistine army. Militarily he has arrived. He has one more important task. He must retrieve the ark of the covenant

February 8, 2006

Christian Standard

More Than One Month

By Mark A. Taylor Hollywood star Morgan Freeman is against the idea of Black History Month. Interviewed on CBS TV’s 60 Minutes, the African American Academy Award winner said, “We don’t have White History Month or Jewish History Month.” Why not include the role of black Americans whenever American history is studied? But Denzil Holness, minister with Central Christian Church in Atlanta, does not agree. In his four page quarterly paper, A Voice in the Wilderness*, he wrote, Black History Month (February), a time set aside to tell the story of African Americans and to highlight their achievements, presents our

Secret Link