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More than 30,000 black Baptists are emphasizing a message of unity this week in Philadelphia.
The 7.5-million member National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc., the nation's largest African American religious organization, has returned to the historic city to hold its 127th Annual Session at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
“Philadelphia has played an important role in the evolution of the Baptist church and the religious community as a whole, and the city’s music tradition, sacred and secular, is world renowned," NBCUSA president Dr. William J. Shaw stated. "Both aspects of this historically rich city serve as a fitting backdrop for the 127th Annual Session’s themes and mission."
"Christian Music for the 21st Century" is the focus of many discussions at this week's session which includes special tours on Philadelphia’s African-American musical legacy and the city's black historic churches.
More significantly, the Sept. 3-7 session is intended to address the brokenness of people within the African-American and other communities through several key "Issues Forums."
Addressing divides among churches, including what some call the "worship divide," a forum on the theology of praise in the Baptist Church featured at the meeting has been designed to cross the generational divide and foster intergenerational understanding and cooperation. And a presentation on the challenges of "Christian Oneness" is addressing the divide among denominations and even within a denomination as it explores the ecumenical journey of Christian thought.
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"I know that Baptists ought to belong to Jesus Christ, and that Methodists and Episcopalians and Presbyterians ought belong to him," NBCUSA president Dr. William Shaw told attendees at the Christian Oneness breakout session on Tuesday, according to the local Fox 29 News.
Dr. Angelique Walker-Smith, who also spoke at the session, similarly noted how "God created us a rainbow.”
”He made us different for a reason," she exclaimed.
Walker-Smith challenged congregants to step out of their "comfort zone" and experience God through the eyes of someone with a different perspective.
"Get into a conversation where we talk about our differences,” she said.
The convention's overarching theme is "Jesus Christ Only, Always."
