Lent: Reflections on Anti-Racism

We are in the midst of the season of Lent alongside followers of Jesus worldwide.

As a way to continue our commitment to be anti-racists and raise our awareness, we will be sharing video messages during Lent from a diverse group of CBAC students and leaders. Starting March 2nd, join with us as we reflect and listen in both an individual and collective way. We’re praying that God will speak through these videos.

This series of videos will feature the voices of leaders and students from CBAC ministries and partner organizations. These individuals represent the diversity of our family, and their voices are vital for us all to hear.

At the heart of it is a desire to see this season of Lent as a part of our journey to deeper relationship with Jesus, celebrating diversity in God’s family, and drawing attention to critical issues for us to think through.

You’ll hear devotionals shared around themes of love, justice, reconciliation, equity, forgiveness, and family.

This project has been spearheaded by the CBAC’s Anti-Black Racism Task Force—a group comprised of leaders from our denominational staff, the African United Baptist Association, and from within our churches.

VIDEOS

April 14 – Rev. Dr. Peter Reid, Rev. Dr. Rhonda Britton, Deac. Anthony Riley

April 13 – Rev. Dr. Harry Gardner

April 12 – Rev. Deane Proctor

April 11 – Maya McCormick

April 8 – Rev. Dr. Elias Mutale

April 6 – Carys Jelley

April 1 – Rev. Dr. Richard Jackson

March 30 – Rev. Dr. Anna Robbins

March 25 – Tyler Proude

March 23 – Rev. Linda DeMone

March 18 – Kalkidan Burke

March 16 – Laura Bennett

March 11 – Rev. Joe Green

March 9 – Ruhamma Zaheeb

March 4 – Rev. Allister Johnson

March 4 – Transcript

Hello everyone, I’m Rev. Allister Johnson of North Preston Nova Scotia. And I’d like to share with you on the topic of blessed family connectedness. And I will start with Scripture: Genesis 10:1a and 10:32a. And it reads, “Now this is the genealogy of the sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. These were the families of the sons of Noah according to the generations in their nations.” Matthew 1:1a and 1:17: “the book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. So the generations from Abraham to David are 14 generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are 14 generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until Christ are 14 generations.”

These two short passages of scripture portray the Biblical era importance of family and genealogy. Family and genealogy is as important today as it was in Biblical times. The nuclear family provides a sense of a home base where members can feel a sense of homestead belonging.

Genealogy on the other hand implies extended family. Extended family provides a broader sense of belonging. It provides a sense of identity to a people beyond the nuclear family, such as aunts, uncles, and cousins. Genealogy connects family members across generations also: past, present, and future.

Now these passages of Scripture show the ancestral genealogy of Jesus; they also portray the pride in which Moses and Matthew had in the genealogical Hebrew family. We too must have that same sense of pride in family. Each and every one of us must embrace our connectedness to family: nuclear, extended, and ancestral.

I encourage each and every one of you to connect with family from time to time, either in person or virtually. Equally so, let us, the saved in Christ, embrace our blessed connectedness as members of the eternal family of God in Christ. To God be the glory.

March 2 – Rev. Dr. Peter Reid, Rev. Dr. Rhonda Britton, Deac. Anthony Riley

March 2 – Transcript

We are the Anti-Black Racism Group of the Canadian Baptists of Atlantic Canada. The group is comprised of leaders from the CBAC and the African United Baptist Association, one of our 20 member associations of the CBAC. Anti-Black racism persists in our society and sadly, in our churches. Racism of any kind is not in keeping with discipleship in Christ Jesus. Racism is an ongoing pandemic—a sin that is antithetical to Christ’s teachings on love. Our aim is to eradicate racism in our churches, in all its forms. The Church must teach the world.

The goal of this project is to help people make the commitment to become anti-racist. Anti-racists challenge the racist policies that have built the systems of the world. Anti-racists seek reform in those systems so that all persons may participate fully in all aspects of society. Anti-racists seek equity and justice for people on the margins that face barriers to that full participation. Lent is the season of repentance and waiting as we journey with Jesus to the cross. In seeking to raise awareness of racism and challenge each of us in our own beliefs and actions, we will be sharing video messages during Lent from a diverse group of CBAC students and leaders throughout Atlantic Canada.

Racism affects all of us and poisons our world. Let us strive to be true disciples of Christ Jesus. We pray everyone in the CBAC will be a part of the solution

We want to challenge you to become allies and to embrace our African descended sisters and brothers. Each of us can make a difference. It is not enough TO NOT be racists; we must be ANTI-racists.

Videos will be posted on the CBAC website and distributed via email. Tune-in and join us in our efforts to wipe out racism once and for all.