The following is a printed statement from Dr. Selah, after the Galloway Board enacted rules that would bar Freedom Riders from entering Galloway for service. I was six months old.
Clarion Ledger
Jan 7, 1963 Monday
Selah States Stand On Race Integration
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
The pastor of the largest Methodist congregation in Mississippi said Sunday he believes forced segregation is wrong and advocates voluntary desegregation of all public facilities.
Dr. W. B. Selah of Galloway Memorial Methodist Church in Jackson stated his beliefs in answer to an Associated Press query about his position concerning a statement last week by 28 young Methodist ministers endorsing an official "no discrimination" church position.
Since the “born of conviction” statement was published last Wednesday in the Mississippi Methodist Advocate, the movement has slowly added numbers and age to its list of supporters.
However, the bishop of the Mississippi and North Mississippi Conferences, Dr. Marvin A. Franklin, said Wednesday he would not like to be quoted concerning the statement and has maintained silence since.
Thursday, Dr. J. P. Stafford, lay leader of the Mississippi Conference, praised the statement as "very worthwhile." He said "it is hard for many of us to go along with the great Methodist Church and changing times, in matters of race, but this is an adjustment Christians can make."
As lay leader, his position in the conference is roughly the lay equivalent of that held by Bishop Franklin among the clergy. Dr. Stafford's remarks will appear Wednesday in his column in the Advocate.
Francis B. Stevens, a Jackson attorney, an associate lay leader of the Mississippi Methodist Conference, said Saturday he endorsed the statement of the 2 young ministers. He said that a climate of "fear and hatred, created by pressure groups, had kept many Mississippians silent on the race issue.
Also last Thursday, 23 ministers along with Dist. Supt. W. I Robinson of Tupelo voted "enthusiastically" to endorse the original statement of the 28, which did not ask desegregation and made few specific references outside of a denunciation of communism, but stressed the freedom of the pulpit.
Dr. Selah's statement, however, tackled racial questions direct and answered them directly. The church's own obligations in racial matters was the central theme of Dr. Selah's statement Preference for segregated worship is not sinful, he said, but sin is committed when a church erects a color bar.
"I've been saying it-announcing those principles (in his statement) lots of times," Dr. Sela said. His 17 years at Galloway mark the longest tenure in a Mississippi Methodist church.
He said most of his statements Sunday came from a sermon delivered at Galloway on Nov. 19, 1961. He has had it, entitled it "Brotherhood," put into print. His statement Sunday bore no title
Dr. Selah's statement is as follows:
"Jesus said, 'One is you Father and you are all brothers’ The doctrine of the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of man is fundamental in Christ’s teaching. For seventeen years I have preached the law of Christian love from the pulpit of Galloway Methodist Church. This law means that we must seek for all men, black and white, the same justice, the same rights, and the same opportunities that we seek for ourselves. Nothing less than this is Christian love. To discriminate against a because of his color or his creed is contrary to the will of God. Forced segregation is wrong. We should voluntarily desegregate all public facilities. We should treat men not on the basis of color but on the basis of conduct.
"In the light of Christian principle, there can be no color bar in a Christian church. It is not sinful for white people to prefer to worship with white people or for colored people to prefer to worship with colored people. The sin comes when a church seeks to erect a color bar before the Cross of Christ. As Christians, we cannot say to anyone, 'You cannot come into the house of God.' No Conference, no preacher, no official board can put up a color bar in the church. That matter is determined by the nature of Christianity which is an inclusive fellowship of those who seek the Lord. The house of God is a house of prayer for all people. black and white.
"When a person seeks membership in the church he is not asked about the color of his skin. He is asked about his faith in God as revealed in Christ. Salvation is not by color but by faith. There can be no color bar in a Christian institution.
"Race prejudice is a denial of Christian brotherhood. Any kind of prejudice racial or religious weakens the nation by dividing it into hostile groups. It sets race against race, church against church. This plays into the hands of the Communists and makes it easier for them to do their diabolical work.
"Every American citizen, black or white, is entitled to the best educational opportunity the state affords. In our struggle with Communism we need to offer all our people the best possible training; for in the long run the fight for freedom will be won by that nation which produces the finest brains and the best character. The public schools must be kept open.
"No doubt there are some places where laymen expect the preacher to echo their opinions. The freedom of the pulpit must be maintained. The preacher must get his message not from the community but from Christ. He must state his convictions and allow others to disagree. I'm sure that many of my people disagree with things I say. But they want me to declare my convictions. "Think and let think' is the genius of the Methodist Church. Thoughtful laymen will demand a free pulpit. Only a free pulpit inspires people to think.
"All these things I have stated to my people many times before."
No comments:
Post a Comment