Blog
Blog 
Stephen V. Sprinkle introduces the ethos of Unfinished Lives by quoting Minerva from Midnight in The Garden of Good and Evil: “Boy! Take these words to heart. To understand the living…you got to commune with the dead.” Sprinkle, an ordained minister endorsed by the Alliance, delves into 14 life stories of people who share a powerful common bond: Hate crimes robbed each one of a full life. The perpetrators of these crimes justified their actions by citing the victims’ actual or perceived deviation from expected gender and/or sexual norms. Sprinkle frames these painful, all-too-familiar stories in theological terms: The perpetrators are guilty of deliberately desecrating the image of God inherent in every human being.
Jim Hopkins, pastor, Alliance congregation partner Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church, Oakland, Calif.
In the Baptist Church I grew up in, Ash Wednesday was neither mentioned nor observed. Because some of my Catholic friends would show up for school with smudges on their foreheads, and explain that the smudges came from the ashes they had received at church before coming to school, the words Ash Wednesday were not completely foreign to me, they simply referred to some strange rite foreign to the pure faith I was so fortunate to have in my heart.
A Review of Richard Groves Book of Sermons
Tim Moore, Alliance member & pastor of Alliance affiliated Sardis Baptist Church, Charlotte, N.C.
Upon his retirement from Wake Forest Baptist Church in Winston-Salem, the church published a collection of Richard Groves’ Wake Forest sermons. It is a welcome sight for those who value the liturgical role of the sermon. Groves’ collection dares to speak of Jesus in the public square, bearing witness that preaching remains a transformative word. In a thematic verse for the whole collection, the former Alliance of Baptists leader wrote, “I am not prepared to relegate Jesus to the private domain of interpersonal relations.”
Craig Davis Johnson, Alliance board member & member of Alliance-affiliated Immanuel Baptist Church in Portland, Maine
Why am I active in the Alliance? The short answer is easy. The Baptist principle of "Soul Liberty" to me is less a matter of defending my own conscience than a matter of protecting everyone's freedom to interact. I take a lot of pleasure in that interaction; it's like a dance. The dance of people's beliefs, opinions and dreams sometimes gets a bit sloppy. It also can be a joyful and refreshing way to understand our self and others better.
Carol Blythe, President, Alliance of Baptists
It is a time of year when it is easy to get discouraged, short dark days, cold weather, gray skies. The sweet story of the baby born in the manger is followed by the horrific story of babies killed and mothers crying. That story echoes in our world today, where too many Afghan, Iraqi and American families cry over lives lost in wars and violence.
Mary Andreolli, Minister for Outreach and Communications
When I landed in the Detroit airport, I was greeted by a smiling and determined Sharae McCreary. Barely 22, Sharae has already served as a deacon in her church, Nu-Vizion United Church of Christ in Toledo, Ohio. She is but one of many lay leaders who faithfully serve the Nu-Vizion community and thereby Toledo. Nu-Vizion UCC was also a placement site for two Summer Communities of Service volunteers, Cassandra Howe and Karen Lewis. Thanks to Will Stuart, Nu-Vizion pastor, I was invited to spend the weekend with the Nu-Vizion community to share the good news of the Alliance of Baptists and what it means for to be in partnership. Little did I know I was parachuting into what can only be called a mission field—embellished by homelessness, joblessness, crime, mental illness and an array of addictions. It is this mission field that the Nu-Vizion community embodies, embraces and serves.
Mandy England Cole, Alliance vice-president, associate pastor, Alliance-affiliated Sardis Baptist Church in Charlotte, N.C.
There is this tension knot in my shoulder that is my constant companion. For years it has been reliable and predictable. As my schedule becomes chaotic, as unexpected stress creeps up, as I butt up against all the things that are frustratingly out of my control, the knot radiates its pain and beckons me to pay attention to this body that I am.
Carl Gregg, Alliance secretary, pastor of Alliance-affiliated Broadview Church in Calvert County, Md.
After a two-year hiatus from the Alliance board, I was excited to board a plane to Charlotte for the recent board meeting at the Oratory in Rock Hill, SC. I have heard nothing but praise for Brooks Wicker’s enthusiastic leadership over the past two years, and the board continues to be in capable hands with Carol Blythe at the helm.
On a September evening a group of men sit eating pizza and drinking soda as they laugh and talk. One is the group’s therapist (myself), another a former intern who has come back especially for this evening. The rest are men who have been involved in Justice and Healing Center for Trauma and Addiction Recovery’s sex offender treatment program. Four of the men are still in treatment; the rest have come back to share their post-treatment experiences, provide support to one another, and to ask for the group’s feedback on some situations of their own. Their offenses ranged for exhibitionism to rape. Some had gone from trial to probation, some had done hard time. What they have in common is a desire to live positive, offense-free lives moving forward.
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