Furman looks at the slave holding founders; Baptists again in play
For the last year Furman has taken a strong look at the founders Richard and his son James Clement, the first president, and their slaveholding and the theology and cultural apologies they developed to influence the south into righteous satisfaction they were doing God's will.
I will post a link from circa Oct 17 Greenville Journal that will do justice to the initiative. This blog will focus on some of the drama that has become part of the conversation and the possibility of a poison pill in the report that has raised the suspicions among some pockets, precincts of the community, myself included.
I want to say at the outset, face value this looks to have been a very worthwhile endeavor. There is some peer pressure from the likes of UVA, Harvard and others caught up in diversity--not a bad word--movement in higher education, but I have learned a good bit from the 40 page report and the nuances and frames, insights have been invaluable as Furman is not only my alma mater but Gaffney SC my hometown thus state as from third grade in 62 to the families leavetaking in 78 Ich bin Carolina Cracker!
The poison pill is underdiscussion. I'd heard chatter but I understood clearly in a rollout Sat morning on campus library Homecoming day with about 15 folks in the room there is some discussion with the recommendations the longtime seal For Christ and Learning may be replaced with Furman's sister Judson College Seal that does not have Christ in the motto in any form, on the Cross or Resurrected.
What follows for now are copies of some facebook posts I have made beginning with this morning on Furman's Main Facebook wall.
Greenville Journal article should google up for Unearthing the Past, Furman reckons .
And here are my posts on Furman facebook wall this morning.
I will post a link from circa Oct 17 Greenville Journal that will do justice to the initiative. This blog will focus on some of the drama that has become part of the conversation and the possibility of a poison pill in the report that has raised the suspicions among some pockets, precincts of the community, myself included.
I want to say at the outset, face value this looks to have been a very worthwhile endeavor. There is some peer pressure from the likes of UVA, Harvard and others caught up in diversity--not a bad word--movement in higher education, but I have learned a good bit from the 40 page report and the nuances and frames, insights have been invaluable as Furman is not only my alma mater but Gaffney SC my hometown thus state as from third grade in 62 to the families leavetaking in 78 Ich bin Carolina Cracker!
The poison pill is underdiscussion. I'd heard chatter but I understood clearly in a rollout Sat morning on campus library Homecoming day with about 15 folks in the room there is some discussion with the recommendations the longtime seal For Christ and Learning may be replaced with Furman's sister Judson College Seal that does not have Christ in the motto in any form, on the Cross or Resurrected.
What follows for now are copies of some facebook posts I have made beginning with this morning on Furman's Main Facebook wall.
Greenville Journal article should google up for Unearthing the Past, Furman reckons .
And here are my posts on Furman facebook wall this morning.
I was in a group of about 15 folks in the Library Saturday morning for the rollout of the Slavery Justice initiative. Fascinating report but I fear there is something of a poison pill in the recommendations that would in effect remove Christ from the University Seal. I posted my concerns on the facebook wall of Brandon Inabinet. We remain facebook friends but he deleted my comment. I also shared my concerns on the wall of the New Baptist Covenant which had their tenth annual gathering last week. You can click over to their wall and see my comment in the Ruby Sales thread. Furman certainly is part of a big historical movement as Ms Sales is quoted with the following: “I submit to you today that the story has not been told – that the South has a rendezvous with destiny, that the whole struggle for human and civil rights will be fought in the South,” said Sales. “It will be the battleground for human and civil rights in the 21st century.”
Stephen M. Fox And at Furman, you can not disconnect Civil Rights from names like TC Smith, Marshall Frady, Martin England, LD Johnson, Will D. Campbell and Carlyle Marney and I see NO enthusiasm for celebrating their contributions as Baptists in the current Furman conversation and that saddens me..
Stephen M. Fox And at Furman, you can not disconnect Civil Rights from names like TC Smith, Marshall Frady, Martin England, LD Johnson, Will D. Campbell and Carlyle Marney and I see NO enthusiasm for celebrating their contributions as Baptists in the current Furman conversation and that saddens me..
Interest elevates at Furman
Latest post on facebook quoting myself
There seems to have arisen a misunderstanding of my use of the term poison pill. The term was never uttered in the meeting Saturday morning or in any conversation I can remember to date about the report. The term is mine after Ive thought about the presentation Sunday and the many conversations I had since then and a few before to describe the concern about the seal. I wanted to do my best to be as clear as I could about that. Thanks. Looking to see how this concern plays out with the New Baptist Covenant and wider Baptist progressive Movement given well aware of the 1990 breal with the SC SBC, Furman will forever be known as a Historically BaptistCollege and the virtues of that history should be proclaimed as broadly as the current gut wrenching over the apologists for slavery of the founding fathers. Going forward maybe somebody can channel Marshall Frady much better than my capacity, in the interest of Transparency and I find many suspicions about that in the chatter this process has evoked. Thank you, Proud to be a Paladin and Jesus knows that and many Furman folks now in heaven if I could be so retrograde at this juncture to utter such arcane phrases, callin on the name of the Lord and what not.
There seems to have arisen a misunderstanding of my use of the term poison pill. The term was never uttered in the meeting Saturday morning or in any conversation I can remember to date about the report. The term is mine after Ive thought about the presentation Sunday and the many conversations I had since then and a few before to describe the concern about the seal. I wanted to do my best to be as clear as I could about that. Thanks. Looking to see how this concern plays out with the New Baptist Covenant and wider Baptist progressive Movement given well aware of the 1990 breal with the SC SBC, Furman will forever be known as a Historically BaptistCollege and the virtues of that history should be proclaimed as broadly as the current gut wrenching over the apologists for slavery of the founding fathers. Going forward maybe somebody can channel Marshall Frady much better than my capacity, in the interest of Transparency and I find many suspicions about that in the chatter this process has evoked. Thank you, Proud to be a Paladin and Jesus knows that and many Furman folks now in heaven if I could be so retrograde at this juncture to utter such arcane phrases, callin on the name of the Lord and what not.
posted by foxofbama | 11:46 AM
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