In recent years, the United States has experienced the resurgence of radical and racist ideologies known as neo-Nazism and white nationalism. In this pathway, we examine white supremacy, its threat to a peaceful society, and how Churches of Christ and related institutions should respond to it.

PATHWAY GUIDES

Dr. Jerry Taylor and Tryce Prince. In collaboration with the Carl Spain Center on Race Studies and Spiritual Action.

GUIDEBOOK

Click below to flip through a digital guidebook, view recordings of each session, and explore resources to extend your learning. Additionally, the session videos are accessible in the Summit 2020 playlist on the Siburt Institute’s YouTube channel.

SESSIONS

SOLDIERS OF GOD: White Supremacists and Their Holy War for America

Tryce Prince
Panelists: Dr. Archandria Owens and Dr. Douglas A. Foster

The modern movement of white supremacy is built on a fear of losing the social, political, and religious devices of power that have historically been in the hands of white citizens in predominantly white countries. With the help of the book Soldiers for God: White Supremacists and Their Holy War for America, written in cooperation of groups such as the Aryan Brotherhood and the Ku Klux Klan, we discuss the disturbing report on the activities, organization, and beliefs of America’s white supremacists today, their threat to a peaceful society, and how Churches of Christ and related institutions should respond.

SIEGE

Dr. Alvin Curette
Panelists: Dr. Kristina Campos-Davis and Amy Boone

In the early- to mid-1980s, James Mason wrote for Siege, the newsletter of the National Socialist Liberation Front. In his articles, Mason honored figures like Adolph Hitler and Charles Manson. His writings were later edited and published in book form, and this book continues to inspire militant neo-Nazi groups in the United States. This panel examines the beliefs, values, and philosophies presented in Mason’s writings, with the goal of helping us better understand modern white supremacy in the United States. Moreover, panelists provide insights about what the Christian community – across racial lines – needs to do to combat the evil spirit of white supremacy.

HITLER’S AMERICAN MODEL: The United States and the Making of Nazi Race Law

Dr. Theodore Francis

During the era of rising fascism that preceded World War II, President Roosevelt's United States was heralded by many as a beacon of democracy and tolerance. Meanwhile, Adolf Hitler’s Nazi regime was infamous for their embrace of the ideology of white supremacy and violent antisemitism that resulted in the killing of over six million Jews. Yet in spite of their apparent differences, the two countries were joined by a problematic penchant for white supremacy. This session explores the underlying relationship between American racism and the Nazi regime. It seeks to determine the ways in which American racial oppression inspired Nazi Germany’s program of racial purity. Its focus extends from southern Jim Crow segregation in the U.S. to Nuremberg Laws of Germany. This session explores the transnational dimensions of white supremacy through the history of U.S. and German racism.

FROM THE BIBLE BELT TO THE SUN BELT

Lawrence W. Rodgers

Why did Evangelical Christians become champions of the modern Republican right? The answer lies in the dramatic and largely unknown story of “plain-folk” religious migrants: hardworking men and women from Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas who flocked to the suburbs of Los Angeles during World War II, seeking defense jobs and a new “City on the Hill.” This session explores award-winning historian Darren Dochuk’s account of a people who descended from pioneers and populists who sought deliverance from the Great Depression through God and capitalism.

Speakers and Pathway Guide

AMY BOONE

Amy Boone is the teaching and learning specialist at ACU. As part of her work at the Adams Center for Teaching and Learning, she has gotten to lead faculty in allyship work and through books about racial justice. Amy also serves on the advisory team for the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. She is married to Grant, and they have three children.

KRISTINA CAMPOS-DAVIS

Dr. Kristina Campos-Davis is the executive director of communications for the Texas State Technical College system. She has extensive public relations and communication experience. She has been in the higher education industry for over 20 years. She is also currently leading a community-wide conversation about race and equality in Abilene with more than 50 community leaders commissioned by the mayor of Abilene.

ALVIN CURETTE JR.

Dr. Alvin Curette Jr. is a proud husband and father, and he currently teaches at the University of Texas at San Antonio. His experiences include diversity and social justice education, TRIO programs, leadership development, housing and residence life, student conduct, research, and teaching. He also presents on topics related to critical race studies in education.

DOUGLAS A. FOSTER

Douglas A. Foster is university scholar in residence at Abilene Christian University, where he taught church history and directed the Center for Restoration Studies from 1991-2017. His scholarly work has centered on the Stone-Campbell movement, the idea of Christian unity, and the history of white supremacy and racial oppression in American Christianity. Married in 1979, Doug and Linda have two children and two grandchildren.

THEODORE FRANCIS

Dr. Theodore Francis is an assistant professor of history at Huston-Tillotson University in Austin, Texas, where he teaches courses on African-American, Caribbean, and United States history. He has lectured widely in the U.S. and been interviewed on TV and radio on subjects such as the history of racism in the U.S. and the Caribbean, Juneteenth and emancipation celebrations, and civil rights in the U.S. and the diaspora.

ARCHANDRIA OWENS

Dr. Archandria Owens is a licensed psychologist and the associate director of the Student Counseling Center at Rhodes College, where she serves as the group services coordinator and the training coordinator. Archandria is also the founder of Healing Black Narratives, an initiative begun on Instagram that makes more accessible the work that she does inside the therapy room towards healing racial trauma.

TRYCE PRINCE

Tryce Prince is a Ph.D. student at the University of Illinois-Chicago, where his research focuses on the intersection of race and religion within Christendom. He hopes that his work will aid black Christians as they navigate predominantly white spaces and assist the collective body of Christ in taking its place at the forefront of the pursuit of racial unity and justice in the world today. He is married to Erin.

LAWRENCE W. RODGERS

Lawrence W. Rodgers is the senior minister of Westside Church of Christ in Baltimore, Maryland. He has over 10 years of diverse experience in congregational leadership in the areas of mentoring, preaching, advising, church growth, administration, and strategic planning. He is also a researcher, lecturer, published writer, and social advocate. Lawrence graduated with honors from Howard University with a Master of Divinity and received his bachelor’s from Harding University. Lawrence is happily married to Bettae, and they have two children.

JERRY TAYLOR

Dr. Jerry Taylor, founding director of the Carl Spain Center, is associate professor of Bible, Missions and Ministry at Abilene Christian University. He began many initiatives such as the New Wineskins Retreat, the National Freedom in Christ Conference, the Young Scholars Retreat, and the Racial Unity Leadership Summit (RULS) and RULS Spiritual Retreat. He is married to Patricia (Bowden) Taylor, and they have two children.