BCNE News
The latest news from our network of New England churches. Looking for our New England Perspectives Articles? Click here.
An appeal to Heaven: Christ is the only hope for our nation
If we are to truly believe God’s Word, then we must realize that God created us “for such a time as this.”
We say this often, but do we live it out? These are definitely strange times in our culture, and the opportunity to serve God has never been greater. Being a Baby Boomer, I remember well the last big period of upheaval we saw in this nation. There was so much confusion during the 1960s that both a president and a godly man who preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ were assassinated in plain sight.
Helping parents discuss racial issues with kids
During the past few months we have been having many different types of conversations with our children, including some that have been especially challenging. With the start of the pandemic, we needed to find the best ways to help our kids understand what was happening and why things in their world were changing without notice. Just as the pandemic began showing signs of dissipation, the country was talking about race and social injustices with the public killing of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer. Public protests following Floyd’s death have given positive traction to issues we have talked about for some time with no substantial changes.
Thoughts from the white mother of a Black son
As I write this I am nervous. I’m nervous because some people can take words and twist them, misrepresenting the author’s intentions and using them against him or her. They do it with Scripture, they do it with tweets. There are very few safe outlets, so I want to be very clear about the things going through my mind right now.
BCNE board of directors issues statement on racism
In response to recent events in our nation, the Baptist Convention of New England Board of Directors issued the following statement after its quarterly meeting on June 4, 2020.
Our first steps toward a unified future: What Anglo pastors can do to build bridges with Black and brown Christians
This last week for me has been mentally exhausting, to say the least. On one hand, I have been pastoring during a global health crisis for the past three months. On the other hand, for last month or so I have been trying to shepherd black and brown people as we handle a myriad of emotions from seeing our people murdered in their homes and in the streets.
It has not been easy.
How should Christians treat illegal immigrants?
Caravans of migrants marching toward our southern border. President Trump promising to build a wall. Sanctuary cities refusing to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Politicians calling to decriminalize the illegal crossing of US borders. Congress’s frustrating failure to reform immigration laws, making a path to citizenship next to impossible for the 11.1 million illegal immigrants currently living in the US.
These events have pressed upon us a question that evangelicals need to answer: How should our churches treat the people who live in our communities without legal status?
A white man’s religion?
Ministry in the urban context comes with its own set of challenges. Among them are the objections to Christianity that run deep within inner-city communities of color. As I pastor in a neighborhood made up largely of ethnic minorities, it is not uncommon for me to hear someone dismiss the Christian faith purely because it is perceived to be “the white man’s religion, meant to oppress ethnic minorities.” It is important to note that this characterization of Christianity is not completely unfounded.