connections - December 2009
December connections - Who is that Baby?
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Mary Andreolli, Minister for Outreach & Communications
“A herald’s voice in the desert, crying,
‘Make ready the way of Our God;
clear a straight path.
Every valley will be filled,
and every mountain and hill will
be leveled.
The twisted paths will be made straight,
and the rough road smooth —
and all humankind will see the salvation of God’”
The Inclusive Bible Luke 3: 4-6
That voice. There’s just something about a voice that shatters silence in a desert to announce a coming. The picture in my mind is of a disheveled little man with a voice that made even the Pharisees pause. As I prepare for the third Sunday of Advent I’ve decided to spend intentional time listening for those voices that cry out in the wilderness — the voices of those spending Advent serving in hospitals, in the military, in schools and universities, in pulpits and in countries all around the world. These are the prophetic voices of healing, reconciliation, peace, justice and love. These are the voices of the Alliance of Baptists. And, of that baby whose first shrill cry in some kind of manger said, “I am here and do I have some good news for you.”
This last issue of connections in 2009 is dedicated to all those whose voices have birthed the Alliance’s story, a story still in the making. You’ll find stories of the birthing of babies, of the 2010 Convocation, of those we pray with, of Seeds of Hope Publishers — an Alliance mission partner in Texas — and of the Alliance’s new quarterly publication, VOICES. I pray as we continue in the work of preparing the way we will all take time to listen to the voice that cries out. Peace.
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A Reflection on Birth and Spirituality
Mandy England Cole, Alliance board member; associate pastor for Alliance-affiliated Sardis Baptist Church, Charlotte, N.C.
Early in my pregnancy there was a pivotal moment that began a holy passage. After learning we were pregnant with our third child, I was ashamed to admit that I wasn’t entirely happy. It wasn’t happening according to my plan. I was well aware of how my life, and sanity, stood in precarious balance where all of the resources within me were occupied with the work of mothering and ministering. Quite honestly, I was doubtful I had anything left to give to another. It was shameful, but it was my truth — a truth a dear friend received with grace.
How freeing it was to name those feelings to my friend as she lovingly listened. In her wisdom she encouraged me to visualize myself working through those feelings and living into the transition moment in partnership with the unborn child within me. With my hands placed over my stomach and tears rolling down my face, I began a relationship with my son Carter.
From that moment my pregnancy became the most sacred spiritual journey not only toward his birth into this world, but also to the birth of something new and wonderful within me. Over those months he was growing and developing within me, new life was also being formed in wonderfully poetic and figurative ways as God breathed clarity and light into places that had become clouded and dark. It became for me a reconnection with God’s generative spirit, a renewal of intentionality with how I serve and honor God’s calling on all aspects of my life. I had always thought of pregnancy as a time of a mother forming and sustaining the life within, but this was a completely different experience. He was forming me as much as I was forming him. Read more.
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Mary Andreolli, Minister for Outreach and Communications
Whether you have seen this baby in your mailbox or on your church's welcome table I hope she is becoming familar for she represents the birth of the Alliance of Baptists' new quarterly publication, VOICES.
The purpose of VOICES is to create space, in print media, for progressive Christians around the world to share their voices through articles, essays, art, and photographs.
In this first issue you'll hear the voice of social justice, progressiveness, and the next generation. You'll hear the voice of those who prepare the way with women, men, and children in El Salvador, and Morocco, in hospice centers with those who face the end of life, and in ministry settings with those who are wounded wounders. VOICES is inspired by the historic work of Walker Knight, founding editor of Baptists Today, Alliance member and member of Alliance-affiliated Oakhurst Baptist Church in Decatur, Ga. It is the vision of many who grew up with the Alliance and feel passionate about sharing the Alliance's story. "Who is that baby?" I hope she represents all the little babies who will grow up and grow old with the Alliance of Baptists.
If you would like to receive a copy of VOICES or would like to share one with a friend, please send an email to: info@allianceofbaptists.org
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Mission Partner Highlight
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Katie Cook, editor; Alliance mission partner, Seeds of Hope Publishers in Waco, Texas
At Seeds of Hope Publishers the biblical mandate to feed the poor is not optional. Because of that belief, this tiny nonprofit works tirelessly to provide resources to help churches and Christians engage in the ministry of healing hunger and poverty. And, the Alliance helps make that happen.
"At Seeds of Hope Publishers we are working hard to provide a rich, accessible diet of ideas, information, and inspiration to nourish Christians who are working for the day when all God’s children will enjoy enough to eat and the physical and spiritual resources to pursue happy, healthy, productive lives."
The Seeds ministry was born in the late 1970s at Oakhurst Baptist Church in Decatur, Ga. For more than 15 years, the group produced Seeds Magazine, a trailblazer in the area of involving Christians in hunger issues. In 1991, a group in Waco, Texas, adopted the magazine and continued producing it quarterly, along with the bi-monthly supplement, Sprouts. In 1998, the ministry replaced the magazi ne with Sacred Seasons and Hunger News & Hope.
Sacred Seasons, which has been described as “worship resources with an attitude — toward peace, justice and food security — for all of God’s people,” is produced each year for Lent and Eastertide, Advent and Christmastide, with another dedicated to Hunger Emphasis. Through prayers, litanies, art, drama, liturgy, poetry, sermons, children’s sermons and youth activities, Sacred Seasons helps church leaders keep the issues of hunger and poverty in the minds of their congregations. Read more.
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Born of Wind and Water
Brian Dixon, Alliance board member; pastor for
Alliance-affiliated congregation, formerly known as Dolores Street Baptist Church, San Francisco, Calif.
“You must be born of wind and water...” is essentially what Jesus said to Nicodemus in the third chapter of John. To which Nicodemus responded “Huh?!?” Okay this might be a bit of a translation. But you get the point. As is the case with most people when it comes to these obtuse sayings in John, Nicodemus didn’t understand what he was being told. How can one be born of both wind and water? The water part makes sense — the human body is made up mostly of water. But wind? The wind doesn’t deliver us into our parent's arms any more than a stork does. These words make no sense. They are paradoxical. Ah, yes, paradox. How often in our faith tradition are we brought right to the water's edge of paradox; are we caught up in the wind of mystery; are we surrounded by the swirling vastness of the Spirit.
Outside of being born, I’ve had very little experience with giving birth. The closest I’ve ever been to an actual birth was sitting in the hallway waiting for my friend Shannon to deliver her son, Liam. But what I do know is that birthing something new is hard — they don’t call it labor for nothing — and we often don’t see the results until after that truly hard work is over. That is the nature of any birth, not just the ones that produce a baby, like the one we anxiously await in this season. And like childbirth, those doing the birthing are presented with both challenge and gift.
Change Your Life in the Summer of 2010 at the Alliance of Baptists Convocation in California and the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America Summer Conference in New York. To learn more about 2 great gatherings in 2 stunning settings, please visit bpna.org and allianceofbaptists.org.
Wind and water can be incredibly dangerous — think hurricane or tsunami. But they are also life giving. It is the wind that delivers the seed that gives rise to the new flowering plant and it is the water that nourishes that bud. The bird rides the wind southward every winter and northward every summer to preserve and create new life. Our very human survival is dependent on water. Read more.
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Why I Give to the Alliance
Laura Barclay, Alliance member;
Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Ministry Support Manager
By 2004, I had all but sworn off church forever. After a brief stint in an SBC church in rural Kentucky where women couldn’t preach, serve as deacons, or even usher, and a conservative Christian high school experience on par with the movie Saved, I found myself at the University of Louisville and free from exclusionary rules and religion. Yet, nearly every conversation I had found its way to God and the idea that churches had forgotten about God’s love. The boiling point came one day when my friends and I were walking across campus and saw a fundamentalist preacher yelling that “fornicators and homosexuals are going to hell.” What followed was a debate — and probably my first sermon — on God’s love. My group finally walked away asking ourselves, “Are we the only ones who think that God is love?”
To hear more from Laura, visit revlaurabarclay.blogspot.comand, "The Winding Labyrinth." "Where faith, current events and human issues intersect on the path toward God."
My sister convinced me to try one more church. That Sunday, I stepped through the doors of Highland Baptist Church and heard Joe Phelps preach a wonderful sermon on God’s love. Redemptive tears welled in my eyes. Finally, I could throw off the shackles of idolatry — as the God previously presented to me symbolized the human idols of selfishness and fear. I made an appointment to see him. The discussions that followed on worldview, theology, and personal experience revealed a calling to share the message of God’s love and justice with others. Entering Wake Forest University School of Divinity, I found mentors in Alliance ministers Richard Groves and Susan Parker at Wake Forest Baptist Church. While interning at the Baptist Joint Committee in D.C., I visited Stan Hastey and Jeannette Holt who welcomed me with open arms, provided me with research material for a divinity school project, and invited me to the next convocation as I asked questions and became an individual member. Read more.
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Survey request
from BTSR student
Prior to becoming a student at Baptist Theological Seminary in Richmond, Jonathan Groves taught Special Education in public schools. He also helped start a Special Needs Sunday School class at Wake Forest Baptist Church in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Jonathan is living out his commitment to serving Special Needs persons in the context of Christian community through his studies at BTSR, and he needs your help.
If your church has a ministry with Special Needs persons, Jonathan wants to know about it.
Please respond to this survey, or email Jonathan. And yes, for those who are wondering, Richard Groves, former board member and president of the Alliance, is his father!
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Shop @ amazon.com for the Alliance
Now when you buy items on amazon.com you can support the Alliance of Baptists by shopping in the Alliance Amazon Store. For every purchase you make in the Alliance Store the Alliance receives between 5% - 6.25% of the sale. At the end of each month the Alliance gets a check from Amazon for the purchases you made.
Can't find what you're looking for in the Alliance Store? Simply use the search box on the store page and select any items you wish to purchase. Don't miss this chance to support the Alliance with each purchase!
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Mark Your Calendars!
March 19 - 22, 2010 — Ecumenical Advocacy Days conference
sponsored by the Justice and Advocacy Commission on the National Council of Churches of Christ will be held at the Double Tree hotel in Crystal City, Va., just outside Washington, D.C.
April 23 - 24, 2010 — Regional Gathering of the Alliance of Baptists
at Glendale Baptist Church in Nashville, Tenn. More information coming soon!
If your congregation is looking for preachers, worship leaders, retreat facilitators and/or teachers, please contact the Alliance of Baptists Leadership Team. We love spending time in Alliance congregations!
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If you received connections from a friend or family member and would like to learn more about the Alliance of Baptists, please subscribe to our monthly newsletter. We look forward to hearing from you!
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Leadership team
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Stay connected!
Now connect with the Alliance of Baptists online to discover the latest happenings in our changing world.
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The Alliance of Baptists is a movement of progressive Christians — individuals and congregations — seeking to respond
to the continuing call of God in a rapidly changing world.
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Atlanta, GA 30084
866.745.7609, allianceofbaptists.org
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