Forgiveness isn’t begotten by forgetfulness.” Equity will not be accomplished by the mere passage of time, resolutions or sweeping past wrongs under the rug. He concludes: “Active harm requires active repair. Onwuchekwa asserts that disremembering means the SBC failed “to own this troubled history,” evident in certain contemporary illustrations in which denominational triumphalism obscures historic racial prejudice.

They were architects, instructing its followers as to where and how to lay the bricks to build a wall of racial inequality that still plagues Black and brown people to this day.” Thus, “this denomination was a leader in the persecution and humiliation of Black people. Reason one: Cornerstone Church disengaged from the SBC because of “the destructive nature of its disremembered history.” SBC slavery-advocating origins began, not by chance or being in the wrong place at the wrong time, but with intentional denominational support. My own concern here is less to castigate the SBC than to reflect on the implications of his concerns in this Black Lives Matter era in American life. The “four reasons” for the departure of Onwuchekwa and Cornerstone offer insights for the SBC and the rest of us, not only about issues of race, equity and justice, but also about the nature of the gospel itself, past, present and certainly future. I’d rather give myself to serving that overlooked and under-resourced demographic than merely enjoy the perks of being treated as some outlier.” The SBC liked me, but I feel like they’ve failed people like me.

Then the decision: “Nevertheless, I had to leave. Onwuchekwa expresses appreciation for the denomination’s contribution to his Atlanta congregation and the opportunities he was afforded in SBC life. His introduction assures readers that while he is not trying “to convince anyone,” his intent is “to put concrete words around what I’ve felt (and tried to push back against) for years” in the SBC. Then came Onwuchekwa’s 2020 essay, “ 4 Reasons We Left the SBC,” published in The Front Porch. When a building became available, the SBC helped the church secure a loan and in 2019 provided a grant of $175,000 for refurbishing it. Native Texan and son of Nigerian immigrants, Onwuchekwa founded Cornerstone Baptist Church in 2015, with funds from another SBC congregation and $1,800 of his own money. Written by Maina Mwaura, it details Onwuchekwa’s public ascent in the Southern Baptist Convention as preacher, church planter and the hopeful presence of people of color in America’s largest Protestant denomination, a membership 85% white, 6% black, 3% Latino/a. John Onwuchekwa, lead pastor at Cornerstone Church, Atlanta, when a friend sent me a Religious News Service article about him.

John onwuchekwa prayer