BPFNA-Bautistas por la Paz stands with the Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) community in lamenting the deaths of the eight people killed in Atlanta and joins with others in demanding an end to AAPI hate, violence and discrimination. We condemn the increasing xenophobic and hateful attitudes and actions directed toward AAPI communities, families and businesses – especially throughout recent years where we’ve seen targeted rhetoric around the “rising threat” of China and fear mongering around COVID-19. We also acknowledge that this racism is not something new. As a nation founded on white supremacy and patriarchy – ideologies that are deeply embedded in our systems and everyday way of life – we also cannot ignore the history of racism in the United States against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and, as six of the victims were women of Asian descent, the history of misogyny against Asian women in particular.
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Throughout history, women in every part of the world have made great strides, sometimes in spite of a significant lack of equality. With the help of women such as Lucretia Mott, Rosa Parks, and Marsha P. Johnson, the gap in equality in areas such as gender, race, and sexual orientation has become more and more narrow. Currently, we are very fortunate that these women and so many more have made these strides, but we still have a long way to go - and part of it comes from the way we approach feminism even among each other as women.
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Antes de la llegada de la pandemia de COVID-19, asumí que Estados Unidos manejaría tal escenario de manera más efectiva que cualquier otra nación. Fui ingenuo. En contraste con las amonestaciones de Jesús en la Parábola del Buen Samaritano (Lucas 10: 25-37), no hemos amado a nuestro prójimo. No nos hemos ocupado de los enfermos. Hemos rechazado a aquellas personas que son diferentes a nosotros. En lugar de detenernos para ayudar a las personas necesitadas, hemos seguido pasando por el otro lado de la carretera. Nos negamos a implementar sistemáticamente el uso de máscaras y el distanciamiento social a nivel nacional. El individualismo que nos define se ha vuelto excesivo. A las personas que cuestionan esta falta de preocupación por el prójimo se les llama despectivamente "socialistas" o "corazones sangrantes" o "copos de nieve liberales". Estados Unidos es complicado y nuestras contradicciones se han manifestado plenamente en el mundo.
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Yesterday morning, I was preparing for the upcoming season of Lent and came across Jesus’ words in John 12, “Now my soul is troubled, and what should I say?” I carried these words with me as the events of the day transpired and domestic terrorists, far-right extremists, stormed our nation’s Capitol while Congress was voting to affirm our next President. Oh, how our souls are troubled, dear Highland family. And what should we say?
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Today news coverage has kept me captivated. Far-right protestors and supporters of President Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol as Congress certified electoral votes. A woman was shot and killed. This siege coincided with violent demonstrations at other state capitols throughout the country, including Ohio. That Capitol Police officers escorted the white perpetrators out alive without handcuffs (and even took selfies with them) demonstrates the fatal racial double standards of this nation's law enforcement system.
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What we see taking place in the US Capitol this evening may be shocking, but it is not terribly surprising. We’ve watched the ingredients of white supremacy, Christian nationalism, and conspiracy theories spread through social media eventuate in armed protesters entering the Michigan statehouse, the planned kidnapping of a Governor, and now the disruption of democratic processes. I am grateful to hear so many lawmakers from both parties denouncing these acts, but I am also wary of their messages that say something like, 'This is the type of thing that happens in other countries, not in the U.S.' This does happen here. It is happening here. We’ve watched the recipe taking shape over time. So, yes, shocking to watch, but not terribly surprising to see.
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Gail here on behalf of your Board of Directors of the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America, Bautistas por la Paz, bringing you Advent greetings, a brief year end reflection and an announcement. I don’t know about you but this whole year has felt like the season of Advent. A waiting in the dark for light to be birthed once again. So from this year-long preparation, what do we want to remember from it?
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Founding BPFNA board member, Olive Tiller, will celebrate her 100th birthday on December 13, 2020! A life-long peace activist, she has supported BPFNA since its inception, and even before as she was active in the Baptist Pacifist Fellowship, which later transformed into the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America. Olive and her late husband Carl Tiller were also the co-recipients of ABCUSA’s Dahlberg Peace Award in 1991, which recognizes those for their significant efforts in working for peace and justice over a period of time. As we celebrate this significant milestone in the life of Olive Tiller, we also remember how she helped BPFNA celebrate a historic birthday of our own almost 27 years ago. On July 5, 1994, when BPFNA celebrated 10 years as an organization, Olive gave a recorded speech to those present in Granville, OH at that year's Summer Conference. In it, Olive shares some history of BPFNA as well as her future vision for what she hopes the organization will become.
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Today and in those to come, we are called to live in the fullness of our commitment to our Christian values and our humanity. We are called to be Be more, to Be patient, to Become peacemakers in the midst of a difficult time. In this moment know that the power of the Spirit moves among us even in chaotic situations. As we continue to monitor inconclusive election results this morning, it’s even more important to make sure every voice is heard. As peacemakers, we must demand that all votes are counted as it is a matter of justice.
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We have seen with dismay, pain and horror the destructive mark of racism on the soul of the U.S. Throughout our history, racism being the backbone of this nation’s development and unjust enrichment of many has become the choking source of Black communities and people of color affecting every aspect of our collective life. The coronavirus pandemic has exposed these racial inequities that hurt Black and brown communities by hindering their access to health but also their development, freedom, and pursuit of happiness. George Floyd’s words became prophetic for as a nation, we can’t breathe anymore.
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Although our building is closed, the church as a helping people is still wide open. In this time, people are hungry and they are scared that they cannot feed their kids. Faith communities and faithful people have an opportunity to respond. And so, a local restaurant owner and an Imam have come together to “saddle up” and make sure everyone eats. My brother-friend, Imam Azhar Subedar, of the Islamic Association of Collin County Plano Masjid and Ram Mehta, the owner of In-Fretta Pizza and Pasta in Plano, saw the hunger in our communities and it scared them. Those on the edge of poverty are having to choose between paying rent or putting dinner on the table. These two friends, a Sikh and a Muslim, had the courage to remedy one of those choices. They decided that everyone eats. They decided to begin distributing thousands of free meals to anyone who needed it.
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Embracing a world where peace, equity and justice prevail is to provide a stronghold amidst the tremors and earthquakes that bring death, despair and injustice in our communities. How we face these tremors will define our witness and our legacy for those following in our footprints.
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There are no words in the English language adequate to confess the impacts of white settler colonialism on the Indigenous People of this nation and this world. The first step in the twelve steps of Alcoholics Anonymous is to admit that we have a problem.
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Columbus Day has a controversial history in the US, despite being one of the newer federal holidays. In 1992, Berkley, CA, became the first city in the United States to reject Columbus Day in favor of Indigenous Peoples Day. Twenty-five years later, as of Oct. 9, Time reports a list of 55 cities which have done the same—as well as three universities, three states, two cities which celebrate both, and South Dakota, which replaced Columbus Day with Native American Day in 1990. More communities are considering the same, including Washington, DC itself. As of October 2017, Oberlin, OH, is on the list, and Cindi and Jeriel Byron-Dixon can tell you why.
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