Has the Black Church lost its power?
"The Black Church has no power!" exclaimed an audience member at IPFW's recent "The Role of the Church in the Community" panel discussion. The young man complained that despite the presence of more than 50 churches within a one-mile radius of his home, crime, violence and drugs remain unchecked threats in the neighborhood. "The Black Church has no power," he repeated.
The panel, which included pastors Anthony Pettus, Sylvester Hunter, Chrystal Thomas, Angela Shannon, Keion Henderson and Luther Whitfield all bristled at the suggestion that the Black Church has no power.The Black Church DOES still have power, they noted; the power to change lives through Jesus Christ. Several of the pastors also touted the work their congregations were doing in the areas of community and economic development, housing and entrepreneurship.
While the pastors' point about Christ's power is indisputable, and while their various and respective outreach ministries and projects are commendable, the young brother accurately represented the frustrations that simmer in the minds of many Black people when it comes to the subject of today's Black Church.
The real questions is whether our Black Churches still have the power to change society, as they did during the Civil Rights Movement? And if so, do our pastors have the will and the wisdom to do so? The 1968 Freedom School movement, led by pastors like the late Dr. Jesse White and others, was perhaps the last time that most people can remember Fort Wayne's Black Church community truly rallying together with determination and strategy to fight for social justice. Does the local Black Church still have that kind of power and drive?
There is a disconnect between what many Black people expect of today's Black Church and what today's Black Church seems willing to deliver. The reality is that the Black Church is no longer the monolith that we, in part mythically and in part romantically, believe that it was in the Civil Rights struggle of the 1950s and 1960s. Nor are today's pastors the firebrands that we nostalgically remember using the pulpit to loudly and consistently speak out about the social conditions that impede progress for local Blacks.
Times change. Perhaps our expectations should, too.
The panel, which included pastors Anthony Pettus, Sylvester Hunter, Chrystal Thomas, Angela Shannon, Keion Henderson and Luther Whitfield all bristled at the suggestion that the Black Church has no power.The Black Church DOES still have power, they noted; the power to change lives through Jesus Christ. Several of the pastors also touted the work their congregations were doing in the areas of community and economic development, housing and entrepreneurship.
While the pastors' point about Christ's power is indisputable, and while their various and respective outreach ministries and projects are commendable, the young brother accurately represented the frustrations that simmer in the minds of many Black people when it comes to the subject of today's Black Church.
The real questions is whether our Black Churches still have the power to change society, as they did during the Civil Rights Movement? And if so, do our pastors have the will and the wisdom to do so? The 1968 Freedom School movement, led by pastors like the late Dr. Jesse White and others, was perhaps the last time that most people can remember Fort Wayne's Black Church community truly rallying together with determination and strategy to fight for social justice. Does the local Black Church still have that kind of power and drive?
There is a disconnect between what many Black people expect of today's Black Church and what today's Black Church seems willing to deliver. The reality is that the Black Church is no longer the monolith that we, in part mythically and in part romantically, believe that it was in the Civil Rights struggle of the 1950s and 1960s. Nor are today's pastors the firebrands that we nostalgically remember using the pulpit to loudly and consistently speak out about the social conditions that impede progress for local Blacks.
Times change. Perhaps our expectations should, too.
posted by Afrozen at 6:05 PM
3 Comments:
womanist1 makes an excellent point. Fort Wayne seems to have a growing number of Black Churches (108 at last count) juxaposed against a growing number of Black people, teens and young adults especially), who feel that the Black Church has lost its relavancy. This growing disconnect further fractures Fort Wayne's already disjointed Black community.
theauthor seems to forget the purpose of the black church in fort wayne or anywhere else..how could the increasing crime, violence, etc. be laid at the church"s doorstep..crime is a natinal epidemic and especially affects our community..also does it matter if one is a regular church attendee or not..the minister's seem judgemental in the question..in my humble estimation the focus has changed for churches..many of them have quietly addressed issues confronting the community and that needs to be acknowledged..in the same token leadership from churches these days is suspect..we miss the pioneers from this area..we don't have the presence that the Rev's Adams,White,Bledsoe and Jordan commanded and that is sorely missed..
The so called black church never had any power in the first place. As usuial, it has only been a concubine for the main stream white=bablylonian christian emperior or there about. They have never and will never have power because they fail to realize that the geo-roman religion isn't the faith or beliefs of our forefathers. They fail to realize that this religion was forced upon us a a whole and our tru idenity has been hidden, not lost, from us. THose times have changed and forever will be. We our not some oppressed group of people without a nmae or idenity. We are the remanamts of the Hebrew Ysraylite family of Abraham. We are not Jews, or black Hebrews or any of the demigroggains that society wants to hang over our heads. We are torah based believers whom followed the torah as proof and the only truth, because it came directly from the mouth of Yahweh (Yah-wah). We know or should know that the Messiah's Name is Yahoshua, not some jesus. Study the alphebet of our people and you would that there isn't a "J" in our true language. You should or would know that we don't celebrate any of the heathenist pagan hollow days, cause they are are not of Yah, but to pagan god(s)..x-mas, the god of the solcias, easter..mother of the heavens and fertility, valintines day, goddess of love (venus), and many more! they belong not to us, but to the pagans. This is why in Genesis, Yah told Mosheh not to allow any of the temples or places of worship that belong to the cannannites to be left standing. Not to take up any of their godworshipping ways. For He already knew what the results would be. And history bored Him out to testify to His truths. We our a prime example of that disobeidiance. To this day we are still walking around like stiff neck hebrews, unwilling to relent the ways of this world and accpte the will of Yah.
So no, these so called black churches will never gain any real power, just an illusion of having it... runjonah/teachyonah
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