Robert Parham of ethicsdaily.com writes about the King speech where King calls on the story of Rip Van Winkle,  awaking to find that he had missed the American Revolution:

“How can we sleep when the war dogs bark for a clash of cultures? Some in our midst want the American military to crush Islam to advance Christianity. Others want American public schools to provide religious instruction for a generic god. Still others push the American government to do the evangelism of the church. How can we nod off when technology revolutionizes society? In an age of global communications and 24-hour news channels, the primary way Baptists communicate is through weekly newspapers or monthly magazines that carry dated news. Most of our churches and church organizations retain a paper fixation: printed curriculum with lessons written 18 months ago. Many denominational leaders fail to appreciate that playing to their audience for cheap feedback can bring harmful consequences to others abroad. Instead of sleeping through this period of change, we need, as King said, “new mental responses.” New situations demand new attitudes, new ways, new resources. “

I vistited Robert and Cliff Vaughn at their office , “The Baptist Center for Ethics” a couple of days ago,  after finding their site the week before while cruising some CBF sites.  They have taken on what I see as two tasks of communication:  One,  to meet the above challenge concerning finding ways to speak intelligently and quickly to issues….not from last month but today.  By the time many people get to an article via the mainstram presses,  opinions have already been molded by various media,  usually television.   Southern Baptists have an addditional problem: deciding what to do with the “official statements” from denominational representatives who all too often communicate a predictable allinace with Republican politics and Christian Right perepectives.  Ethics daily has not been “sucked in” by this massive “falling in line” ,  often “forced” by the denominational leaders upon its various agencies.  They do this without “focusing” on the problems of the SBC,  but by simply continuing to ask discerning questions and covering relevant social issues.  They’re doing something extremely valuable for the Theological Community,  and also for people who grew up as Southern Baptist and find themselves shaking their head with the rhetoric and attitudes expressed by their “leaders”,  simply by continuing to be faithful to what they think God would have them communicate.