Orange Conference 2019 was an incredible experience. The speakers were great, and included a surprise guest I was not expecting. Bernice King (daughter of Dr Martin Luther King Jr) joined Reggie Joiner and some others in a panel discussion. Their topic? Dealing with the issue of racism in ministry.
Here are the notes that I took during that session. Race is important. Racism exists. But having difficult, real discussions will help all parties involved.
Thoughts from Bernice King
- Be intentional about knowing people
- Even if you don’t know their story
- It’s about following Jesus for real
- Jesus didn’t spend much time in the temple
- He connected with people outside of church
- Be intentional about connecting with people from different: cultures, race, religion
- Do it in their places
- Eat their food
- Get to know them and who they are
- What they think
- What they experience
- It’s about following Jesus for real
- How do we not pass prejudice to the next generation?
- Look in the mirror, explore your own feelings and prejudice
- Every white ancestor was not a slave owner
- Every black ancestor was not a slave
- But some white ancestors were slave owners
- Some black ancestors were slaves
- The next generation may be able to teach us
- They see human more than they see color
- Even if you don’t know their story
- Have the hard conversations with people that are different
- If we can have those conversations, things can change
- Light doesn’t have a place with light. Light has a place with darkness, to dispel the darkness
- Beam of darkness doesn’t exist. Beam of light does. Be a beam of light in the darkness.
So what do you think about racism in ministry? How do you have those difficult discussions? Leave a comment and let us know.

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