by James Melson | Sep 29, 2020 | 2020, Weekly Reflection
An event that happened 353 years ago this month played a major part in establishing the roots of racism in our nation and in the American church. On September 23, 1667 the Virginia General Assembly passed a law that baptism does not change a person’s status related to...
by James Melson | Sep 22, 2020 | 2020, Weekly Reflection
The Rev. Robert Graetz, one of the early white allies of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in Montgomery, Ala., with the civil rights icon in an undated photo. (AP Photo/Gene Herrick On September 20, the Rev. Robert Graetz died at the age of 92. His name is probably...
by James Melson | Sep 15, 2020 | 2020, Weekly Reflection
Today is the 57th anniversary of one of the most tragic chapters in our nation’s struggle for racial justice. On September 15, 1963 four girls were killed when a bomb exploded at 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, AL. They were in a downstairs room preparing...
by James Melson | Sep 7, 2020 | 2020, Weekly Reflection
For many people, Labor Day marks the official end of summer. Yet the reason it is a national holiday is not to mark the change of seasons. Rather it is to commemorate and celebrate the many contributions of workers and systemic changes that have made life for workers...
by James Melson | Aug 31, 2020 | 2020, Weekly Reflection
Over the past several weeks, a variety of professional sports started up again and developed plans for continuing during the pandemic. However last week the Milwaukee Bucks basketball team boycotted one of their playoff games to focus attention on the killing of Jacob...
by James Melson | Aug 24, 2020 | 2020, Weekly Reflection
Removing the Stonewall Jackson Monument in Richmond, VA Removing the JEB Stuart Monument in Richmond, VA Last week I did not write a Weekly Reflection, because Vickie and I were in the process of moving to the Richmond, VA metro area after 30 years in the Washington,...
