On the laps of gods

Robert Whitaker’s On the Laps of Gods: The Red Summer of 1919 and the Struggle for Justice that Remade a Nation, details the events surrounding the Elaine, Arkansas race riots of late September and early October 1919. Although a more appropriate term might be Elaine race massacre, considering the number of black people who lost their lives at the hands of whites. In the summer of 1919 the nation was consumed with a “Red” scare, fearing the rise of Communism in the world, and more specifically seeing this as an influence on blacks who were enslaved in the sharecropping system, and laboring under a white supremacist philosophy that was manifesting itself in Jim Crow segregation. Injustice was “business as usual” in the South, with black sharecroppers consistently cheated out of their fair share of cotton revenues.

Against this backdrop, a gathering had been convened on the evening of September 30, 1919 at the Hoop Spur Baptist Church, near Elaine, Arkansas.[1] They gathered with the intent of unionizing to protest the treatment they received at the hands of white landowners. With the atmosphere of violence surrounding the community, as a precautionary move, armed guards were stationed at the church. Their fears were not misplaced, a little after 11 pm, a Model T Ford pulled close to the church and two white men, Charles Pratt and W.A. Adkins, along with a black prison trustee, Kid Collins got out of the car and approached the church armed with guns.[2]  Gunfire erupted, and when the smoke had cleared, W.A. Adkins was dead and the Baptist church was riddled with bullets, sending the occupants fleeing into the darkness.

            It is not hyperbolic to refer to the response by white posses and soldiers to this “uprising” as overkill. The white population feared that this was a black insurrection, and that fear resulted in countless numbers of white men descending on Elaine from nearby counties and the state of Mississippi, as well as soldiers from nearby Camp Pike who were ordered to put down the “uprising”. The estimates of blacks killed is debated, with some estimates as high as 856, but “What so many remembered, however, was simply the sight of corpses strewn about everywhere.”[3]

The white propaganda that emerged from the killings was quick and supported by media reports at the time. Although they were conflicting, all supported the narrative of a black uprising that had been put down by white men with guns. “The uprising, concluded the Arkansas Democrat, had been “nipped in the bud by prompt and vigorous action, which does credit to Phillips County, both for its efficiency and its notable self restraint. In spite of some very aggravating circumstances, absolutely no violence has been done to law-abiding Negroes or to Negroes who showed a willingness to surrender their arms without bloodshed.”[4]

The events in Elaine served as a bellwether perhaps in the direction of race relations in the United States, at least as events would follow in the courts. The NAACP dispatched Walter White to investigate these events in a region deemed so dangerous it was referred to as the “American Congo”.[5] White served as a secretary for the NAACP and “…returned to the scene of numerous lynchings in 1918, his vivid reports triggering a surge in the NAACP’s membership rolls…”[6] White would go on to write concerning the Elaine events, “The riot in Arkansas was about “debt-slavery” and the “systematic robbery of tenant farmers and sharecroppers.” His was an account of the exploitation of blacks, and provided a powerful counter narrative to the white story of a Negro uprising.”[7]

Eventually twelve men were sentenced to the electric chair for their part in leading the Elaine “riot”. There experience in the courtroom had been anything but fair, with members of the posse that hunted them down serving on the juries. The twelve Negroes fate was sealed it seemed, but then a black lawyer by the name of Scipio Africanus Jones stepped up to defend them. Through an extended series of appeals and legal maneuverings, Jones eventually won the release of the twelve. As one publication wrote of the victory, “Mr. Jones went down to Helena and took charge of that case when it was a tangled mess after the defendants had been beaten into making damaging statements…All hail Judge Jones! Praise him for his knowledge of the law, his nerve, his patience and his sagacity.”[8]

The legacy of the events of Elaine, Arkansas in the summer of 1919, serve as a reminder that the ideas and philosophies of white supremacist and greed are apt to contaminate any generation. Although it is hard for moderns to imagine injustice on the scale of Elaine and Hoop Spur, it is evident that injustices due to race are still perpetrated today. The streets of Ferguson, Missouri and Baltimore, Maryland tell those stories. Yet, in all of these instances there are individual stories of heroism that serve as beacon of light in the darkness, acts of kindness and defiance, which serve to contrast the criminal landscape against which they are cast. For instance, Frank Moore, a sharecropper and World War I veteran, who was convicted of being a leader of the Elaine “uprising”, endured the torture and humiliation of his white captors, never once offering false testimony. He refused to give up the one thing his accusers and captors could not take from him, his personal integrity. Whitaker writes, “Frank Moore was whipped at least three times to try to compel him to give evidence against himself and the other petitioners, which he never did do. He stated that he would rather die in this manner than to tell something on himself or others that was not true.”[9]

The tragedies of Elaine, Arkansas in the twentieth century, and the developing tragedies of Ferguson and Baltimore in the twenty first century serve as a reminder that injustice continues to plague the United States. Part of the answer, perhaps, is the individual acts of courage and kindness, as was exemplified by Frank Moore and others. The depths of unjust darkness can never extinguish the light of a single individual, no matter how alone they might be. May these lights continue to shine.

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[1] Whitaker, Robert, On the Laps of Gods: The Red Summer of 1919 and the Struggle for Justice that Remade a Nation, (Three Rivers Press, New York, 2008) 1

[2] Ibid, 80-81

[3] Ibid, 124-125

[4] Ibid, 132-133

[5] Ibid, 148

[6] Ibid, 150

[7] Ibid, 157

[8] Ibid, 308

[9] Ibid, 164

Is your communication clear?

Have you ever been misunderstood? Often the words that issue from our mouths are not the words heard by our listeners. I recall speaking with a student who was working to finish a research paper. I asked her in my Northeastern Arkansas vernacular, “How much do you ‘like’ to be done?” She responded, “I haven’t finished yet, but I’ll be happy when I do!” I repeated, “But how much do you ‘like’ to finish?” We stared at each other for a few seconds, not realizing we were using different meanings of the word like. She mistakenly thought that I was asking whether she enjoyed being done with her paper, but I was actually trying to ask how many pages she lacked to complete it. Although we shared the same language, we did not share understanding. 

This phenomenon is present in conversations around the world, and it can be dangerous when it affects our gospel communication. Thankfully we can all recommit to the principles of God’s Word and of clear communication in our efforts to fully recover the impact of gospel communication.

As we seek to be clear presenters of the gospel, the words of the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 2:1–5 are a great guiding resource: “And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. 

For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” This passage reveals Paul’s intent that there is only one message that can transform human hearts: the message of the cross of Christ.

The normative pattern for Paul and the other apostles in the New Testament was a consistent presentation of the gospel of Christ. Christ’s life, death, and resurrection were the hallmarks of the church’s message. This must define our communication as Christians today. But although the message of Paul and the apostles did not change, it is clear that they crafted their messages intentionally to reach specific audiences. For example, Paul approached the gospel in different ways in Thessalonica and then at Mars Hill. Acts 17:1–3 reads, “They came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews…On three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead” (emphasis mine). In the synagogue, Paul started with the scriptures, but later in Acts 17, Paul spoke to a very different audience in Athens. He started not with the scriptures but with their cultural artifacts: “He saw that the city was full of idols…So Paul standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: ‘Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, “To the unknown god.” What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you’” (Acts 17:16, 22–23, emphasis mine). Paul then proclaimed Christ to them. The starting point for both groups was very different, but the destination was the same: the gospel of Christ.

Like Paul, we must be intentional in our efforts to persuade others of the truth claims of Christ and scripture, not simply relying on the skills of rhetoric but having those skills sharpened and transformed by the Holy Spirit.

In his book Christ-Centered Preaching: Redeeming the Expository Sermon, Bryan Chapell points out, “Craft cannot make a message powerful if one’s heart and character do not validate its truths.” Certainly preaching is a craft of persuasion, as the Apostle Paul points out in 2 Corinthians 5:11: “Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience.” But so is our everyday calling to the effective communication of gospel truths. As echoed by the voice of the wise man in Proverbs 16:23, “The heart of the wise makes his speech judicious and adds persuasiveness to his lips.” Preaching from the pulpit is a strategic act of persuasion, but all of our speech should be used for the propagation of the gospel. The difference between the goals of gospel communication and persuasion alone is this: persuasion by itself centers on behavior modification, but the point of gospel communication is regeneration, or the changing of a person’s heart—something that only God can do through His Word.

This is something Paul points out clearly in his opening admonition to the Thessalonians: “For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction” (1 Thes 1: 4–5).

Whether spoken from the pulpit or in the marketplace, then, the pervasive lack of clarity of our age demands that our gospel communications be CLEAR:

Centered in Christ, the gospel, and the text of scripture: If these elements aren’t at the center of what we communicate, then we run the risk of relegating Christianity to just another self-help mantra. We must communicate Christ and his Good News from every text of scripture, because not to do so reduces the Holy Word of God to a mere collection of inspirational principles rather than what it is—a book of transformational power.

Intentional in Language: Jesus gives this warning in Matthew 12:36–37: “I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give an account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” How often do we throw about careless clichés long devoid of meaning in an effort to communicate the timeless truth of the gospel of Christ? Using such vague clichés can be lazy: “If God brings you to it, he’ll bring you through it.” “Where God closes a door, he opens a window.” While these may be true, we’ve heard them so often they lack resonance. The greatest message ever shared with humanity is worthy of our best efforts to communicate that message. Choose words that will effectively and powerfully demonstrate the simplicity of Christ.

Empathetic in expression: As effective gospel communicators, we must craft our message to meet the perceived needs and deep concerns of those in our audiences. Whether our audience consists of one or one hundred, our fallen world has resulted in broken people in need of a Savior. We must see and feel the brokenness in every aspect of our communities and relationships, leveraging the Good News to restore what has been broken.

Action-oriented: The gospel of Christ demands a response from all those who hear it. As communicators of the gospel, it is our responsibility to ask for that response. It is not enough to share news and leave the hearers without a path to apply the gospel to every area of their lives. When crafting effective gospel communication, remember to always include an appropriate action to guide your listeners in their response.

Reflective in nature: Effective gospel messages challenge both the speaker and the listener to reflect on their own lives and areas where the gospel of Christ has yet to fully penetrate. Reflection is a gift of the gospel, calling us to more fully surrender every part of ourselves to Christ.

We have been entrusted as heralds of the king of Kings to declare his message. This is both a privilege and responsibility that calls upon us to speak with Holy Spirit–inspired clarity to an ever-increasingly ambiguous world. 

The Spirit of God charges us to communicate the gospel deliberately, productively, and substantively. May we rise to the challenge given to us in Ephesians 4:29: “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.”

Why we can't stay here

 In order to grow, we can't stay where we are at!

There are moments in our life, when change isn't an option it is a necessity. As much as we may dislike change, we all understand intuitively that in order to grow, we must be willing to change. The story of the Bible is one that teaches us change. Think of all of the changes that take place in Scripture. In Genesis alone, the chaos is changed to the cosmos, Abram's name is changed to Abraham, Jacob's to Israel. Sara becomes a mother after being barren. Joseph's position changes from a slave to a ruler.

God isn't interested in maintaining the status quo in our lives. In Exodus after 400 years of slavery the nation of Israel was delivered from bondage, and their story became a series of changes. They were constantly on the move, challenged to go where God wanted them.

Where does God want you to go? What does He want you to accomplish? What changes does His plan for your life require?

When we embrace the changes God desires for our lives, we will discover the blessings of growth. Start changing today, start growing today!