Black History Month event to discuss critical race theory and its impact on churches
A special Black History Month event to be held Sunday will include discussion on the topic of critical race theory and its impact on churches.
New Life in Christ Church in O’Fallon is hosting the discussion during Sunday services in a sermon dialogue with Bishop Geoffrey V. Dudley Sr., Ph.D., D.Min. and Dr. Michael Emerson, according to a recent release.
Dudley, senior pastor of New Life in Christ Church, and Emerson, a sociologist and biblical scholar from University of Illinois-Chicago, will present their discussion, “Critical Race Theory & The Church,” in the hope that it will “empower and provide parishoners with a better understanding historically and currently when discussing the subject with others,” stated the release.
Critical race theory is under fire by conservative officials in some states who want it banned from public schools. It has been described in a recent Brookings Report as “a new bogeyman for people unwilling to acknowledge our country’s racist history and how it impacts the present.”
The church news release goes on to say that critical race theory does not blame specific groups of people for being racist. It does, however, focus on “how entities such as the criminal justice system, educational institutions, healthcare systems and the housing and labor market are embedded with laws, regulations and procedures which can lead to different outcomes because of race.”
This discussion takes place during the 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. services on Sunday, Feb. 27.
The later service will be live streamed and can be viewed via the church’s website and Facebook page.
New Life in Christ Church is located at 689 Scott Troy Road in O’Fallon.
