The First Progressive
Submitted by scharrison on Thu, 12/13/2007 - 8:02pm
As we gear ourselves up for full-on campaign mode, while also preparing to celebrate the birthday of Emmanuel (JC for short), I thought I would reflect a little bit on the words of the Man I consider to be the first progressive to walk the Earth.
And yes, I am a Christian, albeit of the seriously backslidden Southern Baptist variety, and you'd be hard-pressed to find much proof of this if you observed my behavior past and present or (God help you) were able to read my mind. But that's beside the point. :)
There has been much debate about the use of religion by candidates as a way to establish a level of trust with the electorate, over and above (or in the absence of) previous behavior. Some consider any public declarations of religiosity by a candidate to be wrong, while others consider this information to be relevant (and possibly critical) to their decision-making.
Whatever the case, we should all remember:
Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves...by their fruits ye shall know them.
By even the most critical analysis, we Americans are part of an extremely advanced society. We have tackled some of the most difficult social problems such as racism and sexism and have made great advances in these areas. We still have a long way to go, but most of us realize that, which is really the most important part of the solution. But along the way, many of us have lost our humility, and have set extremely high standards for acceptance in our society, substituting pity in the place where empathy belongs:
The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
That's right, he was homeless. He could have had all the riches of the world and the physical comforts that go along with that, but he chose a life of abject poverty. He wasn't crazy or lazy, he was humble. Remember that the next time you see one of the people we choose to ignore.
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
This world is rich with both love and hate. On any given day, thousands are sheltered and saved, while other thousands die at the hands of others or perish from sickness or starvation. Wars are waged relentlessly, most often under the guise of "liberation" or "improving the human condition", but the fruits of this folly always include wholesale suffering and death. But we still allow ourselves to be consumed with anger and drenched in self-righteousness, and consider diplomacy the realm of cowards and weaklings:
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
We, as a nation, have lost our way. We built this country on some strong tenets and principles, and have provided an example of justice, equality and hope for billions of people throughout the years. But we're allowing the dream to die. Not just for us, but for the entire world of today and tomorrow. We've set ourselves above not only international laws and moral standards, but our own as well. We are not an empire, although we seem to be aspiring to such. We are merely a collection of dreamers who followed the path to enlightenment with joy in our heart for many years. But we have strayed, and we must get back. Whether we deserve it or not, the world is counting on us:
Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
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Nice comment
And though I am properly described as an agnostic, I have great respect for Christian philosophy and Buddhist philosophy. I would probably have great respect for others if I were familiar with them, but these are the ones I know best, and of the Christian faith, I am most familiar with the Roman Catholic and Anglican denominations.
The Baptists have a special place in my heart, though because of what they have represented historically, which was at one time best described as liberalism. They were at the forefront of the abolitionist movement in this country. Sadly, that's where the divergence occurred that resulted in the designation "Southern Baptist." However, it should be noted that in addition to our good friend ScHarrison, the late, great W. W. Finlator was a Southern Baptist.
W. W. Finlator (1913-2006): The Passing of a Southern Baptist Progressive
Last week witnessed the death of W. W. Finlator, one of the most prominent Southern Baptist liberals during the 20th century. Rev. Finlator was a native of the Raleigh, North Carolina area who spent most of his ministry in that city. From 1956 to 1982, Finlator served as the pastor of the Pullen Memorial Baptist Church in Raleigh. Pullen, long one of the most progressive churches in the SBC, had been an openly liberal congregation for decades; Finlator's predecessor, Edwin McNeal Poteat, was perhaps the best known SBC liberal of his generation. Pullen Memorial is probably most famous for being one of two churches disfellowshiped from the SBC in 1992 for the congregation's endorsement of homosexual practice.
During the SBC Controversy, it was commonplace for conservatives to label denominational progressives as "liberals." In reality, the liberals (or "moderates," as they preferred to be called) were a coalition of Baptists comprised of loyalists to the denominational status quo, champions of a leftist social agenda, proponents of Neo-Orthodox theology and a handful of what might be called "classical" theological liberals. Finlator was certainly no denominational loyalist, and much of his theology was to the left of Neo-Orthodoxy. But doctrinal formulations are not what Finlator is most known for. Rather, he is known for his advocacy of liberal politics and his relentless call for Southern Baptists to embrace a public theology akin to the Social Gospel of the early 20th century.
Finlator's understanding of Baptist identity was rooted in a view of freedom strongly influenced by enlightenment individualism. As such, he believed that every Christian was free to interpret the Scriptures according to the dictates of his own conscience. Sometimes this meant an individual's interpretation contradicted or redefined some of the teachings of Bible. Often this meant that the Bible was better understood as a "prophetic" indictment of cultural ills than a message of God's redemption of individual sinners through the person and work of Jesus Christ.
While serving as the pastor of the Pullen Memorial Church, Finlator became well known for his commitment to a liberal socio-theological agenda. He was a leading Southern Baptist proponent of the Civil Rights movement. He was also a committed pacifist, opposing the Vietnam War in particular and military force in general. Finlator was an outspoken defender of women's rights, inviting the National Organization of Women to meet at Pullen Memorial. As a progressive Baptist, he was also a fierce advocate of church-state separation of the ACLU type; in fact, the North Carolina chapter of the ACLU was formed at Pullen Memorial. Finlator also spoke out against poverty, defended workers' rights, advocated the homosexual agenda and was a fierce opponent of the death penalty.
Finlator's views were not without controversy, even within his own progressive congregation; in 1982, Finlator was encouraged to retire by members of his church who felt like he was spending too much time championing political causes. In retirement, the Finlators became members of the Binkley Memorial Baptist Church in Chapel Hill, also an openly progressive congregation (and the other church to be disfellowshiped in 1992 for its pro-homosexual posture). In retirement, Finlator frequently contributed articles to the Raleigh News and Observer, often championing the liberal causes so dear to him.
Despite a firm belief in a leftist view of Baptist distinctives, Finlator was a leading proponent of downplaying many crucial tenets of Baptist identity. Pullen Memorial became one of the most prominent Southern Baptist churches to practice open communion, and by the early 1970's the congregation had embraced a view of open membership that did not require baptism by immersion of potential church members. This progressive view of the ordinances is directly tied to Finlator's criticism of what he believed to be Baptist sectarianism. A champion of the Ecumenical Movement, Finlator tirelessly (and unsuccessfully) encouraged SBC involvement in the National Council of Churches.
As an outspoken progressive, Finlator was a critic of the Conservative Resurgence, especially when it was brought to bear in his own city. He was especially opposed to the conservative redirection of Southeastern Seminary that occurred in the late 1980's, writing several columns critical of the seminary in the News and Observer. Finlator eventually gravitated away from the SBC orbit; both Pullen Memorial, where he pastored, and Binkley Memorial, where he worshiped in his later years, are affiliated with the liberal "shadow-denomination" the Alliance of Baptists, an organization that embraces many of Finlator's social causes, including openness to homosexuality.
W. W. Finlator was an outspoken liberal in an overwhelmingly conservative denomination. As a pastor, he challenged traditional Baptist polity. As a public theologian, he challenged traditional southern culture--sometimes rightly so, as in the case with racial issues. As a political activist, he challenged traditional American values. Finlator was a Baptist gadfly without parallel, one who was always honest about his progressive beliefs and always willing to buck the status quo. Many of his convictions prefigured the leftward drift of a later generation of "moderate Baptists" who continue to champion some of the same leftist causes that Finlator publicly defended for the better part of sixty years.
Posted in Baptist History Submitted by nfinn on Tue, 2006-07-11
All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing
-Edmund Burke
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Good food for thought.
Very interesting.
I remember the Baptist church we attended in Florida when I was little had black members, even though racism was rampant elsewhere.
Thanks for the history on this man. Wish there were more like him...
Beautiful, sc.
Thank you for reminding of what I learned long long ago.
Back in Rutherford County they called us Whiskeypalians.
We were Episcopalians; an odd but happy people who took communion every Sunday, used real wine, and all drank from the same cup that we called a chalise. Our little stone church, St. Francis, had Palm Sunday service with real palms and a full procession that crossed the street and stopped traffic, Ash wednesday service, Good Friday stations of the cross service, a gorgeous joyful Easter service and a true midnight Eucharist on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve.
Christmas Eve service was always totally packed out every year. It was a breathtakingly beautiful, serene and inspiring high church service with incense, gorgeous music, meaningful silence, a chanting priest, and a fully greened out sactuary that non-Whiskeypalians and non-practicing Christians from all over came to witness and be a part of. When Father Haines was there, everyone, no matter their affiliation or faith, was always welcomed at the communion rail.
That is the Christian faith I love. That is the Christian faith to which my heart belongs. It was full of good works, and it was open, welcoming, faithful, gracious, merciful, forgiving, charitable, beautiful and longsuffering; and to this day I am in love with my memories of every moment spent there, at that little stone church just outside of a small town in the NC foothills. I still carry the tenents of the faith I learned there in my heart.
My travels through life took me to harsher places of worship and religion, where stern doctrine was fixed and unquestionable, cloaked in the guise of "true freedom through salvation", yet in my mind now, not fit for comsumption by authentically Free Peoples.
SC, you and so many friends and fellow netizens here remind me daily that good people of every faith and tradition -- (EVERY tradition) -- are joined together by threads (wonder, awe, reverence, curiosity, integrity, fairness, decency, charity) that are far stronger that the barriers which spring up from time to time to separate us.
Amen. And Blessed Be. And Namaste. And May the Lord be with You.
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"I have learned two lessons in life ... One; there will always be heartache and struggle. The other; people of strong will can make a difference. One is a sad lesson; the other an inspiration. I choose to be inspired." -- JRE