Barnabas File

Reading:  Acts 10:34-43 “We have inherited a large house, a great ‘world house’ in which we have to live together—black and white, Easterner and Westerner, Gentile and Jew, Christian and Protestant, Moslem and Hindu—a family unduly separated in ideas, culture, and interest, who because we can never again live apart, must somehow learn to live with each other in peace.”—Martin Luther King, Jr., A Testament of Hope A friend had recently seen the film Selma , depicting the civil rights marches in 1965, and asked me, “Where were you when this was going on?  Were you marching?”  No, actually, I was in my final semester at an all-white college in the South, preparing to get married, and about to receive a commission as an officer in the U. S. Army. To be honest, I was more concerned about being sent to Vietnam (which eventually happened) than in the marches led by Dr. King in my native state of Alabama. To be very clear, I was not hostile to equal righ...

A university is our state is involved with a massive lawsuit that alleges the perpetuation of “a hostile environment for women” in its sports program.   The examples cited in the charges include sexual harassment of both female staff and students, sexual assault, covering up sexual assaults, and indifference to complaints.   Even in our supposedly enlightened times, it seems that some of us still need guidelines to explain right from wrong. When I was in an administrative role with a religious denomination several years ago, I received a call from one of our staff who was assigned as a minister to a particular college campus.  A student had come to him with a complaint that someone on campus was stalking her.  She had made contact with a couple of professors and one administrator, but they did not seem to take her concerns seriously.  She was both scared and angry.  She had approached this minister to seek his help as an outside party.   I d...

I n a recent interview in Report from the Capital, a publication of the Baptist Joint Committee, the interviewer asked Dr. Molly Marshall, the president of Central Baptist Theological Seminary, this question:   “You’ve spent more than 30 years dedicated to theological education.   Why did you choose this path rather than a full-time career in ministry and preaching?” In response, Dr. Marshall said, “Actually, I believe I have chosen the path of full-time ministry!”  She went on to discuss the value to the church of the ministry of theological education and the joy of forming students for ministry.  She had responded to “the unique call of God” for her life. I spent most of my ministry working with college students and their leaders and was often asked, “When you are going to ‘get’ a church?”   I believe in the church in its many expressions and activities.  Jesus created the church and gave his life for it.  We are called to be part of the chu...

In April 1961, I was about to graduate from high school.  Seniors were given a school day to hold a beach party. What I remember most about that day, however, was listening to a portable radio as Cuban paramilitary forces supported (somewhat) by the CIA invaded their island and were repulsed at the Bay of Pigs. This set the stage for the Cuban missile confrontation with the Soviet Union when some of my friends in the National Guard were mobilized and positioned to Florida and we watched to see how our young President Kennedy would deal with the crisis. Since then, the governments of the United States and Cuba have agreed to disagree and watch each other warily across a narrow stretch of water. Today, President Obama is in Cuba, attempting to reopen relations with our neighbor.  He was not even born when this division began, so he can bring a fresh perspective to the relationship.  This is a good thing.  To all reports, the Cuban people desire...

Last year at this time I was dealing with some severe back problems.  During that period, I devoted most of my efforts to getting over that condition through exercise and physical therapy, so some other activities took a back seat. I thought about this in recent days as I began preparing for a class where we would discuss vision.  There are many different understandings of what vision is but, at the core, vision is the preferred future for a person, group, or organization.  It provides focus, commitment and a wise use of resources. Much is made in larger churches of the need to have a well defined vision and this is certainly true if the church is to be effective.  Having a clear vision is even more important in a smaller congregation. The small congregation is somewhat in the situation I was in last year with my back problem.  I only had limited resources, so I devoted most of them to getting better.  A smaller congregat...