(Photo from Pastor Philip Pham)
“This week, a Vietnamese Southern Baptist church was burned to the ground amid race riots in Philadelphia. According to Kentucky Today, ‘Pastor Philip Pham received a call Tuesday night from a church member whose friend had seen the flames and seven fire trucks surrounding the church.’ He said the facility is a ‘total loss.’ Incidentally, in recent weeks, Southern Baptist leaders have called on Southern Baptists and Evangelicals to sympathize with the rioters and try to ‘understand’ why they are doing what they are doing. In June, a group of staff from one of the denomination’s most prestigious seminaries, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (SEBTS), along with pastors from Southern Baptist churches, held a discussion where they justified the actions of rioters and anarchists while pointing to ‘white supremacy’ as the underlying cause of their disorderly conduct. In the video, you can hear Wesley Price say, ‘Rioting makes sense. It’s not right, but makes sense. Everyone can get to the point where you’re going to rage out. It’s the voice of those who had their voice taken away.’”
“Vietnamese Southern Baptist Church,” Reformation Charlotte, Oct. 29, 2020
CONCLUDING NOTE: The idea of “systemic racism” in 21st century America is nonsense. No one has taken away the “voice” of the rioters. They have opportunities in America today that were not even dreamed of in former times in human history and are not enjoyed in the vast majority of the world even today.
(Friday Church News Notes, November 6, 2020, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)