Black college seeks to recapture social justice voice
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — More than half a century ago, a small Baptist seminary in Middle Tennessee was a fertile seedbed of social justice that produced several giants of the civil rights movement.
But American Baptist College, formerly American Baptist Theological Seminary, has largely slipped into obscurity in the decades since John Lewis, Bernard Lafayette and other national civil rights leaders emerged from its ranks. Now the historically black college is seeking to return to its social justice roots, but the effort has become complicated after a lesbian bishop was invited to speak at the college last month as part of a lecture series.
Some pastors affiliated with the college threatened to withdraw financial support. The move has revived a debate that has roiled the Baptist church for years over the question of whether gay marriage and homosexuality comport with Biblical teachings.
For American Baptist College President Forrest E. Harris, the answer, at a school with such a strong civil rights legacy, is obvious — and so is the right thing to do. ...
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