Church Swap Update

By Bob Province

A. Wednesday, May 4

1. Attended bible study.  We studied Daniel 12.  Had a visiting minister there who added at lot to the study.

B, Thursday, May 5

1. Attended Methodist Men meeting – several scriptures were read.  They had a regular business meeting mostly involving things they were doing for Bracks.  They are still trying to fix things caused by the recent break-in.  We then discussed current local and world events and how they call Christians to action.

C. Sunday, May 8

1.  Attended Sunday School – difficult lesson built around Revelations 4.

2. Church – had a good crowd for Mother’s Day.  Many stood and praised their mothers.  At the National Day of Prayer service Thursday at First UMC they passed out wrist bands that said “God Is BIG Enough”.  I brought some to pass out at Bracks.  Everyone seemed appreciative.  The pastor preached from Matthew about the woman coming to Jesus about demons in her daughter.  Jesus said he came for the Jews but the MOTHER persisted and Jesus healed her daughter.

Passover

By Bob Province

A. Thursday, April 21

1. Attended Maundy Thursday service.  I sent pictures earlier.  Corliss McBride, a church leader, went to great lengths to show us a Christian Passover meal and service.  She had a Jewish meal consisting of lamb, carrots, salad, matzah and haroset.  We followed the service according to the program that comes with this.  Very, very impressive.

B, Sunday, April 24

1. Easter Program – No Sunday school today.   They had an Easter Program put on mainly by young adults, teenagers and children.  It included a dance performed by children and then a play that included the rest.

2. Church – We had regular church service after the Easter Program.  Had a much larger crowd than usual.  Everyone was in high spirits and full of thanksgiving and praise for God and for the Resurrection.  Someone(s) broke into the church Saturday and did a lot of damage.  Broke a lot of windows and doors and stole the money collected at the Good Friday service.  We prayed for those people.  They had an Easter Egg hunt after the services.

Easter Sunday

My family and I went to our church home this Sunday to celebrate Easter. My sons had speaking parts in the annual Easter program. It was very nice to see everyone. Many people thought we have left Antioch forever. We explained to them that we are participating in a church swap.

We are also making good friends at our temporary church. We discovered  that several of its members have children at our sons' school. This became apparent at their Easter party where we saw two members of our Sunday School class. That was a pleasant surprise.

We are looking forward to going back next Sunday. So far, it has been a wonderful experience.

Church Swap - Second Visit

Our second visit provided a more realistic preview of our new church. We were able to hear the pastor preach and to go to the Sunday school class for married couples our age. We really connected with the members of this class who are very friendly and outgoing. The Sunday School teacher focused on the history of Israel and connected it with what is going on in the region today.

One of the major differences in this church is the number of opportunities offered to fellowship as a couple in small groups. On Sunday evenings, members of our Sunday School class have a potluck dinner, while our children attend a class at church. In addition, each month, college students offer babysitting on Fridays. This is a great idea!

We enjoyed the sermon, which addressed sin. The pastor discussed the importance of striving to do the right thing, but said humans are programmed to fail. However, when we sin, it is important to get back up. He used an analogy of a baby learning to walk, falling, and getting back up. It is important never to give up.

The music was awesome this week. The choir this Sunday included an orchrestra and percussionist. It sounds great!

--Mia Moody

Church Swap: Our First Visit

Be the change you want to see in the world.

                                             ~   Gandhi

Perhaps the scariest part of our visit to a new church was driving up to First Baptist Church of Woodway. I was overwhelmed by the size of the building; however, once we got inside, members were friendly and welcoming.

We met the pastor and many other people who welcomed us.  We didn’t get to witness his preaching style this week. He discussed the church's outreach efforts, which include donations to Haiti, Cuba, Japan and Chile. They are contemplating starting a local Hispanic church, which sounds very promising.

My sons, who were against switching churches, loved it. They saw several of their friends from school and really enjoyed the church’s Sunday school class. William even announced that he would love to join the church.

There are several changes worth noting. The choir’s singing style was very different. However, I found it relaxing. Perhaps the biggest difference in congregations is size. FBCW is perhaps 20 times larger than my church home. However, I see many opportunities for small group experiences.

My family and I enjoyed the first chapter of this adventure. We are off to a good start!

Let the Church Swap Begin

The Waco Church Swap officially begins today. I am a little nervous. However, my nervousness stems from going to a different church rather than from going to a church with a predominantly White congregation. I am accustomed to being one of the few black people in many situations. In fact, one of the reasons I chose a predominantly black church was to expose my children to some diversity.

I believe this project is very important because change should begin in the church. For the most part, society is desegregated everywhere else, including schools, jobs and neighborhoods. There is no reason for the 11 a.m. hour to be the most segregated hour there is.

My children were perhaps the most resistant to this church swap. Like me, they love their church family, and they did not want to leave it --even for three months. I stressed to them the importance of being a change agent. And discussed the fear the Little Rock Nine felt integrating schools in the sixties.

To alleviate their fears, I let my oldest daughter choose the church we will be visiting--First Baptist Church of Woodway. It has a very active youth department, and they are very excited about that. My husband is probably the least nervous. He joined my church last year, which was a “church swap” of sorts for him. He has always attended a predominantly white church. He made the adjustment very well, and has taken on an active role at our home church--Antioch Baptist Church Waco.

I will keep you guys posted as we embark on this adventure!

The Civil Right's Fight - Little Rock, Arkansas

Church Swap - Second Orientation

Church Swap - Civil Rights Tour - Tulsa Riots

Waco's Church Swap group went on a Civil Right's Tour this past weekend, which featured visits to Memphis, Tenn.; Little Rock, Ark. and Tulsa, Okla. I joined the group in Oklahoma. We visited The Department of Special Collections and University Archives of the McFarlin Library at The University of Tulsa. It was there that I learned for the first time of the Tulsa Riots.


The event seems almost impossible to believe. During the course of18 hours, more than 1,000 homes in "Black Wall Street" were burned to the ground. Practically overnight, entire neighborhoods were suddenly reduced to ashes. In less than 24 hours, nearly all of Tulsa's African American residential district -- some 40-square- blocks in all -- had been laid to waste, leaving nearly nine-thousand people homeless. The area featured two theatres, several grocery stores, hotels, skating rinks, schools, churches, etc.


The riots began after black men, who were WWI vets, tried to protect a 19-year-old black man accused of "bothering" a white women. This is one account of how the event unfolded: Sometime around or after 4 p.m. Dick Rowland, a black shoeshiner employed at a Main Street shine parlor, entered the elevator at the rear of the nearby Drexel Building at 319 South Main Street en route to the 'colored' washroom on the top floor. Upon entering the elevator, he encountered Sarah Page, the 17-year old white elevator operator who was on duty at the time. A clerk at Renberg's, a clothing store located on the first floor of the Drexel, heard what sounded like a woman's scream and observed a young black man hurriedly leaving the building. Upon rushing to the elevator, the clerk found Page in what he perceived to be a distraught state. The clerk reached the conclusion that the young woman had been assualted and subsequently summoned the authorities. She later admitted he was innocent.


Many of the members of the Church Swap group became emotional as they learned of the lost potential of the thriving black settlement, which was called "Black Wall Street" because of the many successful African-Americans who lived there, including attorneys, teachers and the a top surgeon.


Tulsa African-Americans received a formal apology for the riots a few years ago. They were also promised reparations. However, they have not collected them. The city also funded scholarships and a multi-purpose center in the area.

Michael Emerson

Michael Emerson author of "Divided by Faith" kicked off the Waco Church Swap in a mighty way on Monday, Feb. 28. His talk, held at Baylor's Kaiser Auditorium, was well received with more than 75 students and Church Swap participants in attendance.

Emerson autographed his book, discussed his personal experiences in diverse churches and spotlighted his research. Following the event, he joined Church Swap participants for dinner.

To view video clips from his talk, click this link:
http://churchswap.blogspot.com/2011/03/divided-by-faith-author-michael-o.html

Church Swap participants eat dinner with Michael Emerson, author of Divided by Faith.

Michael Emerson

Ramona Curtis

Divided by Faith Author Michael O. Emerson Kicks Off Church Swap

Divided by Faith author Michael O. Emerson speaks at Baylor Leadership Series

Church Swap: A Grassroots Approach to Dismantling the Most Segregated Hour in America

Mia Moody, Faculty Researcher; Jo Welter, Community Race Relations Coalition; and
Ramona Curtis, “Church Swap” Project Director and director of Leader Development & Civic Engagement, Baylor University.

I am excited to work on a new, worthwhile project with long-time friend and colleague, Ramona Curtis, “Church Swap” Project Director. The project titled "Grassroots Approach to Dismantling the Most Segregated Hour in America," will document what happens when participants of various races switch churches for three months with a person of another race.

     

Curtis’ goal is to dismantle what Martin Luther King, Jr. called “America’s most segregated hour” -- the 11:00 hour on Sunday morning when people go to church.

“Our world is growing more and more diverse,” said Curtis, “I’ve never understood why we are so segregated during that 11:00 hour on Sunday morning.”


Participants will read Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America  by Michael Emerson, and United by Faith: The Multiracial Congregation as an Answer to the Problem of Race


After three months, they will return to their home church where they will spend another two months writing about what they have learned. Using this information, project managers will produce a research paper, Web site, a video documentary, and a research paper detailing their experiences.


Curtis says going to a church that is predominantly white has helped her to see things differently.


“I think they will gain a lot based on my experiences. I have grown tremendously because of my open-mindedness,” she said, “I am challenged to be able to be comfortable and see people as people and not the color of their skin.”


A $10,000 grant from the Kellogg Foundation’s Racial Healing Initiative allowed Curtis and the Community Race Relations Coalition to challenge the segregation stronghold.  Jo Welter, owner of Persnickety Tim's and member of the Community Race Relations Coalition, helped secure funding for the project.


The ultimate goal of the initiative is to encourage people to think more critically about racial divisions, and to look for ways to create partnerships and open a dialogue. If participating churches become multiracial as a result, that will be “icing on the cake."


Curtis also hopes the project will yield a tool kit for other organizations.  For example, historically black universities may exchange students with predominantly white ones.

“This will definitely provide an interesting, educational exchange,” she said. “We will document our experiences and provide guidelines for other organizations.”


Curtis enlisted my help to document their journeys via video interviews, a personal blog and Facebook posts. The results should be very interesting. Stay tuned.


For more information, visit: http://newamericamedia.org/2010/05/kellogg-foundation-awards-75m-anti-racism-grant.php

Lariat Article

Changing the face of the congregation

By Jade Mardirosian
Staff Writer

Baylor’s Academy for Leader Development and Civic Engagement is partnering with Waco’s Community Race Relations Coalition on a project that will work toward racial healing in the community through “swapping churches.”

The project is “A Grassroots Approach to Dismantling the Most Segregated Hour in America,” or “Church Swap” for short, and works by having its participants attend a church of their same religious denomination, but of a race other than their own.

Ramona Curtis, director for the Academy for Leader Development and Civic Engagement, is the driving force behind the project, which is being funded by a grant from the Kellogg Foundation.

To read the rest of the article, click this link http://baylorlariat.com/2011/02/02/1990/

Church Swap Orientation

The Church Swap is off to good start. We had an orientation on Feb. 13 to discuss the project with participants. Ramona Curtis led several ice breakers and discussed perceptions people have of other races. Participants range from a Baylor student to high school teachers and retirees. In a discussion about participating in the Church Swap, fears include: being rejected, not dressing properly and having to attend long services. On March 4, the group will go on a Civil Right's tour of various places in the South such as Memphis, Tenn. and Little Rock, Ark.

Ramona Curtis, Jo Welter and I are working on a tool kit to help other organizations and institutions create dialogue among people of all races using a church swap. The tool kit will describe the group's grassroots approach to dismantling the most segregated hour in America -- Sunday morning. Its contents may be modified and adapted to meet each group’s personal needs. Its contents include:

1. Suggested Timeline
2. Sample news releases
3. Facilitator instructions
4. Suggested Civil Rights Tour

We will chronicle this journey and their reactions and keep you posted. Ramona's Interview

Orientation Interviews

Ramona Curtis, Church Swap Director

Lilly Ettinger

Ashley Thornton

Eileen Smith

Kenneth and Rosalyn Anderson

Craig Thornton

Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America

By Michael O. Emerson, Christian Smith

From Publishers Weekly

Evangelicals, argue sociologists Emerson and Smith, have gotten serious about racial reconciliation. This, they suggest, is a break from tradition in the 19th century, many white evangelicals supported slavery but then upheld Jim Crow laws through the postwar years. Over the last half century, however, evangelicals have increasingly found racism unpalatable, a transformation culminating, symbolically at least, in the Southern Baptist Convention's 1995 proclamation that it repented for its role in slavery.


Today, the Promise Keepers call for reconciliation, while evangelical theologians and publications explore what reconciliation means. But white evangelicals, though well-meaning, often unwittingly contribute to racism, say the authors. Smith and Emerson explain this seeming contradiction by drawing on Smith's earlier work, in which he argued that evangelicals have a piecemeal approach to social justice: they are inclined to fix immediate problems, such as feeding homeless people at a soup kitchen, rather than address systemic crises such as the unequal distribution of wealth. Smith and Emerson recycle the same argument, tweaked ever so slightly, here.


The tools evangelicals use to combat racism socializing more with members of another race, or integrating churches and racially segregated neighborhoods are well-intentioned but ultimately not adequate to the task of eradicating deeply entrenched racist patterns. This is a valuable critique of evangelical approaches to social change, although those familiar with Smith's previous work will learn little. (June)

Book Synopsis: United by Faith: The Multiracial Congregation As an Answer to the Problem of Race

United by Faith: The Multiracial Congregation As an Answer to the Problem of Race
By Curtiss DeYoung, Michael O. Emerson , George Yancey, Karen Chai Kim 

Review from Publishers' Weekly

As America grows ever more ethnically diverse, Christian churches remain racially homogeneous. This state of affairs must end, argues this earnest blend of religious moralizing and social science; indeed, church integration is so central both to the Christian mission and to racial equality at large that "the twenty-first century must be the century of multi-racial congregations."

The authors, professors either of sociology or "reconciliation studies," base their claims on theology, church history and sociology. They look back to the diversity and cosmopolitanism of the early Church as a model for contemporary Christians, and trace the legacy of racism and segregation in American churches and attempts to overcome them. Drawing on questionnaires, interviews with church members and leaders, and on-site studies of four racially mixed congregations, they probe both the promise and pitfalls of church integration.

The authors respond to minority critics who value uniracial churches as hothouses for distinctive worship styles, rallying points for activism and refuges from white social hegemony, and stress that integrated churches can and should guard against assimilationist pressures, preserve the unique cultures of all racial groups and cultivate a racially diverse church leadership. They never quite demonstrate the world-historical centrality of racially mixed congregations, and they concede the aura of awkward dutifulness that accompanies self-conscious attempts at church integration, observing that congregations are not truly integrated until all the racial groups feel somewhat uncomfortable in the resulting milieu. Still, the authors make a good case that this is a cross that Christian churches should take up.