Black farmer, Black Indian forum

The forum came off well, or so it seems to me. The participants were well prepared. Dr. Mills, Chair of the Department of Agriculture here at ACU, painted a graphic picture about the complexities of farming, the economics of the industry, the contribution of farming to our
American way of life, the system of USDA/FSA from DC to the county level, and his own stories of his family's engaging of people of color even before the Civil Rights Movement. Thanks, Foy, for your competence and for your heart.

Dr. Wes Crawford, faculty member at Lubbock Christian University, Lubbock, Texas, with expertise in race relations among Churches of Christ, spoke meaningful words and challenging words over us from the prophets and how God's clarion call to us via them is summed up in "no other gods but God," and "treat your neighbor well." Perhaps my words, and not Wes' words, but pretty close. Thanks, Wes, and I look forward to more conversation around these and other areas of social justice.

Dr. Edward Robinson, faculty member here at Abilene Christian University, spoke meaningful words over us and to us from the mouth of Jesus of Nazareth and how he did not come to destroy the Roman government but to bring peace and release from oppression to the people. He was also able to give us an interesting perspective as to why African American members of Churches of Christ were reluctant to march with Dr. King in the '60s. Thanks, Edward, for your insights, and for your commitment to the cause of the Black farmer.

Sara Blakeslee, MFT graduate from ACU, and doctoral student at Texas Tech University, spoke personally and provocatively about the plight of the Black Indians in Oklahoma, Cherokees in particular, as they are disenfranchised by their tribal group despite the treaty of 1866 and the Dawes Commission Roll which gave them membership. A complicated set of issues, but presented competently by Sara. Thanks, Sara, for your competence and the quality of your life.

My charge was to outline the larger Christian Social Justice Tradition, to look at its theological underpinnings, and then to raise the question, "So where did churches of Christ lose our emphasis on making a difference in the world?" We looked briefly, and had good responses from Drs. Crawford and Robinson, with regard to the theological split in the restoration movement between Barton W. Stone's apocalyptic vision of God's kingdom in the world versus Alexander Campbell's view of things and how when those two visions collided, especially in the applied theology of David Lipscomb, that Stone's receded and Campbell's prevailed. Thus, we dismissed various efforts as "social gospel," as a bad thing in the '60s, and Dr. King marched without us, Black or White.

Then MFT students at ACU, past and present, Tim, Josh, and David Todd, graduates of the class of 2007, and members of the class of 2008, Michelle, Sarah, Kimberly, Brian, Scott, and Rebecca, contributed significantly to the intersection of farmers and Indians in view of the gospel and its message of hope for the oppressed. With regrets that Heather's health issues kept her from coming because she would have contributed seriously to the burden of land loss among African Americans. Thanks to each of you. I especially was moved by your comment, Michelle, "By working with Dr. Hinson on his research project, his passion has become our passion." All of you give me encouragement for a brighter future in dealing with things that matter.

Then, the flow of questions, comments, observations, and stories between and among all of us, audience included, made for an amazing time of dialogue. As I commented to one of the participants, something to the effect that "we've only got 2 1/2 hours, and this could easily take up 8, if not more." Thanks for coming and participating in the midst of your busy schedules and especially when the lectureship was packed with amazing opportunities.

At the end of the day, what was accomplished? More commitment to the cause of justice in the world? More information about these things that matter? More appreciation for the complexity of things that we'd consider simple? More simplicity about things that we consider complex? More deeply moved at stories of how institutions take on a mind of their own and marginalize people based on color of skin? Maybe those and more.

Either way it's shaped by our internal and external dialogue, it was an amazing group of people, faculty and students, younger and older, experienced and inexperienced, Black and White and American Indian, and all......yes, all.....deeply committed to things of God. We are called to be faithful with the gifts we've been given, and we respond to the call of God to make the world a better place in each and every conversation, advocacy effort, speech, presentation, therapy session, written report, and power point presentation because Jesus is Lord and because our calling is in our prayer, "Thy Kingdom come; Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."

And, then, to wrap up the day, the Wednesday evening lectureship speaker spoke words of hope from the book of Micah. One of the things that caught my attention was his prayer and hope that some day people from all extremes could sit in the same pew and worship God. Among them was "those from the 'hood and those who once wore hoods." Now, that would be an amazing thing to see and experience. I want to be there when that happens. Maybe it already has and I wasn't paying attention.

Finally, these provocative words from Dr. Martin Luther King, "Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."