NASHVILLE — An extensive collection of personal records from one of the Southern Baptist Convention’s (SBC) most influential black leaders is now open to researchers at the Southern Baptist Historical Library and Archives (SBHLA) in Nashville.
Emmanuel McCall, a member of the Home Mission Board (now North American Mission Board) staff from 1968 to 1991 and developer of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary’s black studies program, has donated his personal papers to SBHLA, including more than 30 boxes of correspondence, audio-visual resources, sermons and other items.
The collection helps document the SBC’s transition in the 20th century from harboring notorious racial prejudice to becoming one of the most ethnically diverse denominations in America.
McCall, author of five books, hopes his papers will provide researchers with “materials that will help them to understand how the Lord worked” in the SBC. “And the Lord did do a mighty work in what happened across the years,” McCall added.
Though three institutions asked for McCall’s papers, he said he decided on the SBHLA because his files hold more value for Southern Baptists than any other group.
To read more about McCall’s archives, visit www.thealabamabaptist.org.
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