June 2022 Edition of The Christian Recorder

JUNE 2022

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VOLUME 171, NO. 9

JUNE 2022

A Member of Congress Graduates From Wilberforce University An Ohio congresswoman is among the graduates of the nation’s first private, Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

Congresswoman Shontel Brown, representing Ohio’s 11th congressional district in Cleveland, was the keynote speaker at the commencement exercises for Wilberforce University Saturday, May 7, 2022. Along with 92 others who received Bachelors’ and Masters’ degrees, Ms. Brown received her undergraduate degree in organizational management from CLIMB, the university’s accelerated adult degree program.

Dr. Elfred Anthony Pinkard, the university’s 22nd president, conferred the degrees.

The ceremony also featured co-valedictorians Leticia Johnson and Jasmyne Anderson, who are academically tied point for point. It also included the Class of 1972– ...continued on p3

Bishop Beaman Visits the President and Vice President of Angola On April 27, 2022, Bishop Silvester Scott Beaman paid a courtesy call to the His Excellency João Lourenço, president of Angola. He also met Bornito de Sousa, vice president of Angola. Bishop Beaman is in the country for the first time since his assignment to the 2021 General Conference as presiding prelate of the 15th Episcopal District. He also held an ordination service where five persons were ordained as itinerant deacons.

The African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church was organized in Angola in the 1990s after some 10,000 members who had broken away from the United Methodist Church (UMC) approached Bishops McKinley Young and Harold Senatle.

Angola sent delegates to the 1996 General Conference, and the work was received and assigned to the 15th Episcopal District. However, in 2018, a bureaucratic change in government policy caused the ...continued on p3

Morris Brown College Announces Full Accreditation Morris Brown College (MBC) is proud to announce itt has received full accreditation from the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools (TRACS), a Virginia-based accreditation agency. TRACS Board of Trustees voted to grant accreditation to MBC on April 26, 2022, at its annual meeting. This monumental achievement came after nearly 20 years of effort, marking a historic achievement for the 141-year-old college.

The United States Department of Education (USDOE) and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) recognize TRACS as an institutional accrediting agency for Christian postsecondary institutions, colleges, universities, and seminaries. The Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools is also a member of the International Network for Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education (INQAAHE), a ...continued on p2 Why I Am No Longer Interested in Being a “Preacher”… p4

A New Season of Accountability, Will We Rise to the Occasion? … p7

NCC Announces Bishop Vashti McKenzie Interim President and General Secretary On May 10, 2022, the Governing Board of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) welcomed Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie to her first business meeting of the NCC Governing Board as interim president and general secretary. Bishop McKenzie started in the position on April 1, 2022, and has immersed herself in the work of the organization. This initial exploration period culminated in a Board retreat held last week in Montgomery, Alabama, with programming that built upon NCC’s current priority, the “A.C.T. NOW to End Racism” initiative started in 2018.

Roe v. Wade, Voter Suppression, and “We” the Voters… p16

Mothers of the Nations and the Significant Emergence of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson… p22

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The 12th Episcopal District Celebrates Mortgage Burning Years Ahead of Schedule… p28

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...From Morris Brown p1

worldwide association of over 200 organizations active in the theory and practice of quality assurance in higher education. Moreover, the agency is a member of the American Council on Education (ACE), with over 1,700 organizations that collectively promote, protect, and advocate for students, faculty, and administrators in higher education.

Morris Brown College earning full accreditation is a significant achievement demonstrating that it holds quality standards and is engaged in continuous improvement. Furthermore, the college has been reinstated to participate in the Federal Financial Aid Program. Financial aid is any type of college funding that does not come from family, personal savings, or earnings. It can include grants, scholarships, work-study jobs, and federal or private loan programs. Students can use financial aid to cover educational expenses such as tuition/fees, room/board, books/supplies, and transportation. Morris Brown has one of the most affordable tuition rates in Georgia at $4,250 a semester.

Having served as chief executive for three years, President Kevin James said, “I am honored to lead this great institution. Many thought this feat was impossible, but due to our strong faith in God, our hardworking and wonderful faculty and staff, the support of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, our dedicated alumni, and our resilient spirit, we were able to achieve full accreditation. Morris Brown offers a unique, affordable, quality

education that prepares students for success. This was truly The Hard Reset.

This is just the beginning!”

Founded by formerly enslaved religious leaders at Big Bethel AME Church in 1881, MBC is the first college in Georgia to be owned and operated by African Americans. The iconic Fountain Hall and the current Morris Brown campus are where Dr. W.E.B. Du Bois wrote The Souls of Black Folk in 1903.

Notable alumni include Alberta Williams King, mother of Martin Luther King, Jr., and James Alan McPherson, the first black writer to win a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

To learn more about Morris Brown College, visit morrisbrown.edu.

ABOUT MORRIS BROWN COLLEGE: Morris Brown College was founded in 1881 by the African Methodist Episcopal Church. It is a private, coeducational liberal arts college engaged in teaching and public service with a special focus on leadership, management, entrepreneurship, and technology. The institution is the only college in Georgia founded solely by African American patronage.

THE CHRISTIAN RECORDER: The Christian Recorder (ISSN 1050-6039, USPS 16880) is the ofϐicial organ of the African Methodist Episcopal Church and a member of the Associated Church Press and the National Newspaper Publishers Association. Founded in 1852, it is printed monthly by the AMEC Sunday School Union, 900 13th Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37212. Periodicals Postage Paid at Nashville, TN. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Christian Recorder, 900 13th Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37212. Subscription price is $36 per year. Single issues are $3.25.

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...From A Member p1

the Golden Grads, some of whom returned to the university and wore gold-colored gowns indicating they walked across the same stage and received their degrees from Wilberforce 50 years ago. ❏ ❏ ❏

...From Bishop Beaman p1 AME Church to lose its provisional registration and permission to operate in the country independently. Since then, the AME Church in Angola has allied with other denominations to continue operating. However, during this period, several congregations left the AME Church to join the UMC leading to tensions between the two denominations in the country.

After Bishop Beaman’s visit, Angola’s officials announced that fully recognizing the AME Church is a “high priority” for the government, and full legal permission to operate will be granted before the end of the year. ❏ ❏ ❏ ...From NCC Announces p1

“The National Council of Churches is blessed to have Bishop McKenzie in this key leadership role. She brings the necessary insight, expertise, and ecumenical commitment to the Council,” said Board Chair Bishop Teresa Jefferson-Snorton, who is also the presiding bishop of the Fifth Episcopal District of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church.

“The entire Board is excited to have Bishop McKenzie,” added Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, NCC Governing Board vice chair.

“I am honored to have been invited to serve the National Council of Churches. I look forward to the opportunity to enhance the great work that the NCC has already done and look for strategic ways to amplify its voice. It is critical in this season of divisiveness in our country that we remain vigilant and visible advocates and bridge builders,” said Bishop McKenzie.

Prior to this assignment, Bishop McKenzie served

as the 117th elected and consecrated bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. She was the first female elected to Episcopal office in the more than two-century-old African Methodist Episcopal Church and the first female to serve as president of the Council of Bishops and General Board. In addition, she has served as presiding bishop in Southern Africa – Botswana, Swaziland, Mozambique, and Lesotho and the United States in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Texas.

She is no stranger to the ecumenical ministry. She has been a delegate, preacher, and presenter to ecumenical bodies, including the World Methodist Council and the World Council of Churches.

Bishop McKenzie is a graduate of the University of Maryland, College Park, Howard University, School of Religion, and has an earned doctorate from United Theological Seminary.

Bishop McKenzie has been active in social justice issues for more than three decades. She was appointed in 2009 by President Barack Obama to

be on the inaugural White House Commission of Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnership. This group worked on behalf of Americans committed to improving their communities, no matter their religious or political beliefs. In 2014, The Huffington Post named Bishop McKenzie as one of the 50 Most Powerful Women Around the World.

She is the author of six books, including Not Without a Struggle and Journey to the Well. Her newest book is The Big Deal of Taking Small Steps to Move Closer to God. The book shows how to develop a stronger relationship with God with a more effective Christian lifestyle by taking small steps that lead to big changes.

Serving as a leading voice of witness to the living Christ in the public square since 1950, the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) brings together 38 member communions and more than 35 million Christians in a common commitment to God’s love and promise of unity. ❏❏❏

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Why I Am No Longer Interested in Being a “Preacher” Melech Thomas, Contributing Writer

“Would a God whose claim to fame is breaking out of a borrowed tomb make me live the rest of my life in someone else’s box?”

I have asked myself this question often over the last few months. In other words, how does one live a life of color in a world that prefers you in “black and white”? Doing such is an arduous task for each person who wishes to live an authentic life. But it is even more difficult for those called by God to do the work of ministry. During the Lyman Beecher Lectures on preaching at Yale University in 1877, Phillips Brooks famously stated that preaching is the “communication of truth through personality.” This definition sounds great until confronted by the fact that the personalities of most preachers have been manufactured by culture rather than mined out from the innermost parts of their beings.

As young ministers, we were taught the importance of authenticity. Yet, the content of the workshops we attend, the church growth seminars suggested to us, and even our ordination processes teach us otherwise.

Conformity appears to be the name of the game. From dress and conversation to preaching styles and church leadership, the capacity of a minister to fit within the parameters of socio-behavioral expectations is often an indicator of their potential success in the church. More plainly, effective imitation is often rewarded, while authentic expression that does not fit those expectations is ostracized.

“You don’t dress like a preacher.”

“A preacher shouldn’t post that.”

“I didn’t know preachers could do that!”

Questions like these are the product of a semiidolatrous image of the “preacher.” In addition to the preacher’s life being on a “pedestal,” the preacher’s personality also becomes confined by the shallow machinations of Western theological imagination. From this grounding, the formation of ministerial identity begins with the preinclination of inherent existential deficiency. To be frank, some might say that ministerial training focuses on crafting ministers as we have seen them instead of extracting from the minister the authentic characteristics that led God to call them in the first place. This neocolonial notion of “tabula rasa” negates the intrinsic value of the minister before they arrive at the beginning of their vocational journey.

As a result, even amidst an increasingly mutating society, the church has specialized in creating

generations of ecclesiastical clones in hopes of replicating “the good ol’ days.” And the pressure to fit these invisible standards has created an existential quandary within most millennial clergypersons. On the one hand, if we choose to become who the “system” attempts to make us become, we run the risk of losing our authentic selves in the quest for ecclesiastical ambition. But, on the other hand, to choose a bold authenticity is to gamble with the trajectory of one’s ministerial career. To quote William Shakespeare’s famous line from Act 3, Scene 1 of Hamlet, “To be, or not to be, that is the question!” Unfortunately, this existential “tug-of-war” often results in the clergyperson wrestling with despair, ontological exhaustion, and, sometimes, social death, all to be accepted and lauded as someone who looks, talks, and acts like a “preacher.”

For these reasons, I have decided that I am no longer interested in being a “preacher.” No, this is not a resignation letter. This is not a rejection of my appointment. I am not leaving the ministry to

which I have devoted the last 15 years of my life.

On the contrary, a true desire to be faithful to the Call requires the categorical rejection of anything that crushes the capacity of the minister to be their full, whole, authentic self. Furthermore, the efficacy of the Call necessitates the courage to reject the armor of Saul, knowing that the slingshot God gave us works just fine. We may not “dress” like a preacher, but God will still use us.

We may not “talk” like a preacher, but God will still use us. Some of us may not whoop. Some of us may not holler. Some of us may not even desire to pastor. Yet, we are all still the called, chosen by God for who we are and not simply who we will become.

This is not an indictment on all preachers. But this is a challenge to the popular notions of what it means to be a “preacher.” God does not call “preachers.” God calls individuals to preach, whether or not those individuals fit the mold of a “preacher.” Therefore, we must not allow our memories of how God has shown up to limit the possibilities of how God can show up. For the church to survive, we must abandon the “boxes” and allow the power of a claustrophobic God to expand the parameters of our theological horizons.

May the God who rolls stones away remove all barriers to a more authentic life. ❏ ❏ ❏

The Missed Opportunity Rev. Tashara S. Void, Contributing Writer

March 2020 will forever be etched in our minds. It was the time when the whole world stopped moving, including churches.

Things stood still as doors were forced closed, and churches grappled with not being considered essential. It was a time of grief as pastors mourned the closing of their doors and frantically attempted to create a virtual experience to sustain the anxious congregations. The dynamics shifted; what we once called church changed, and the pressure to maintain and sustain increased.

But, in one little corner of the world, one non-pastoral clergywoman could see the growing tension and angst among her peers. So, receiving constant downloads with nowhere to upload them, she reached out to a few of her pastoral colleagues, offering them the content she received in exchange for developing a collaborative group who would bring their congregations together and study collectively on Wednesday evenings. Initially, the pastors were concerned with how their congregations would respond; some even had a separate study on a separate day. But, they all agreed a collaboration was necessary, and the collaborative formed the Family of Faith Bible Study group.

Over the next couple of months, a couple of departments across the connection launched similar programs collaborating across organizations and churches, creating collective studies where there was not one teacher or one church lead but a series of teachers and thought leaders who embodied the spirit of connectionalism and worked as one unit to bring information and spirituality to the masses. There were also clusters of

churches coming together that were formed to focus on re-entry and implementing systemic services that worked in tandem and not in competition with one another.

What if this had been the mindset across the denomination? How

much less would pastors, presiding elders, and

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Jesus Dropped the Charges Rev. Dr. Maxine Thomas, Columnist

“Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1 Beloved, when you gave your life to the Lord Jesus, God washed all of your sins away. God forgave you of every sinful deed, every sinful thought, and every sinful word you have ever said. Yes, he washed you and made you as white as snow. I dare you to give him your old filthy garments and let him give you a robe of pure white! Jesus has washed your slate clean!

is power in the blood of the lamb! When you gave your life to Christ, you became a part of his body.

Because of your faith and his grace, you are now in him, and he is now in you. Because you are in him, there is no need for you to feel guilty about past sins.

Beloved, be exceedingly glad! “God’s mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is [God’s] faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:23). You may not feel like you are forgiven. In fact, every now and then, you may not feel like you are really saved. Every now and then, Satan, the father of lies and the accuser of the brethren, will try to make you feel like you have sunken so low that you can’t get back up. He will mess with your mind and plant seeds of self-condemnation that will cause you to doubt God’s love for you. But the devil is a liar! Truth crushed to the ground shall rise again!

God has forgiven you and forgotten them! Beloved, you must forgive yourself and forget the sins of your past. God does not want us to live in the past. He desires that we press on toward what tomorrow holds in him. Aren’t you glad to be in Christ? Hallelujah! All of my sins have been washed away!

The Bible says as far as the west is from the east has God removed your sins (Psalm 103:12). He remembers them no more. For he has cast them into a sea of forgetfulness (Micah 7:19). There is power in the blood of Jesus! There

Exhale All of my sins have been forgiven. I release all guilt from past sins. I exhale.

And now, I receive limitless love and an abundance of his grace. ❏ ❏ ❏

Sisters and brothers, walk in the newness of life. Hold on, hold on! Hold on to God’s unchanging hand! A songwriter said, Ask the Savior to help you, strengthen, comfort, and keep you. He is willing to aid you. He will carry you through. My friend, you have been forgiven.

Just Three Simple Words: A Sister Who Didn’t Forget Rev. Monica Jones, Contributing Writer

I must begin these very brief remarks by thanking God for delivering me to this point in my professional journey. My life has been blessed beyond measure, and I do know that one can only come this far by faith.

February 25, 2022 First, as always, I have to give thanks to God for delivering me as promised–(applause)--and for sustaining me throughout this nomination and confirmation process. As I said at the outset, I have come this far by faith, and I know that I am truly blessed. To the many people who have lifted me up in prayer since the nomination, thank you. I am very grateful.

April 8, 2022 “I thank God….”

No one could have been more proud than I when the Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson was nominated and confirmed as the first black woman to sit on the United States Supreme Court. As an African American, I was proud. As a woman, I was proud. But most of all, as a Christian, I was so very proud.

As a rule, we as black people, whether for an Oscar or for winning an Olympic race, remember to give thanks to God. Typically, when giving an acceptance speech, the individual will begin with, “Before I thank anyone, I want to thank God.” It is something that I treasure and look forward to hearing.

Yet, my heart warmed even more when I heard the next Supreme Court Justice essentially say in her speeches (that acknowledged her nomination and celebrated her confirmation), “I thank God.” She is so very far removed from most of us in her career milestone. She has achieved a career success that

most of us will never see. Almost overnight, she has become an icon on the national landscape. Yet, she did not forget how she got there.

Certainly, Sis. Ketanji’s hard work paid off; her efforts to be the best paid off. But what really paid off for her were the prayers that went up on her behalf, prompting God’s grace to smile down on her. I was so glad that she did not forget to say thanks for that, too.

At times, it is so easy for us to consider ourselves fortunate or privileged and even lucky when we achieve our goals. It is easy for us to take credit for something God did for us. However, when we have

moved beyond the ordinary to the extraordinary and recognized a milestone that is so very special, we must not forget.

We must not forget that our intelligence, our resources, and our success stories have come to us by way of God’s mercy. We must not forget that even when we fail, it is not God’s way of torturing us; it is God’s way of teaching us. We must never forget that our foremothers and forefathers did not have the same opportunities that we do and that now, it is our job to carry the banner high. The only way to maintain that banner is to give God the glory for what God has done.

Just three simple words; it is a part of our witness, no matter where we are in life.

I hope that Justice Brown Jackson’s career will be long and distinguished.

I pray that all that she does will be successful and just. I pray that the judicial decisions she makes will change the trajectory of humanity and the progress of social change.

However, if this does not happen, I hope and pray that she will still give God the glory and never forget that she and we have come this far by faith.

The Reverend Monica C. Jones, Ph.D. is the director of Christian Education at Big Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Atlanta, Georgia.

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Ketanji Brown Jackson vs.

Clarence Thomas

What We Value

Quardricos Driskell, Columnist

What is most precious to you? Your family? An heirloom? Your reputation? The list of most important things should not be all that long, but the list of how important something is to you changes daily, maybe even hourly or minute by minute, depending on how much something affects you and your life. Does a war, famine, or natural disaster in another part of the world matter more to you?

I support the nomination and confirmation of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court of the United States. I support her confirmation because of her impeccable credentials, inspiring story, hard work, sacrifice, and the historic nature of being the first African American woman as the 116th associate justice of the country’s highest court.

The last time Congress confirmed a black person to the Supreme Court was Clarence Thomas in 1991. In his contentious confirmation hearing, he was accused of sexually harassing his work colleague Anita Hill; many believed — and still believe — that he lied when he denied Hill’s claims. He was confirmed by a narrow majority of 52 to 48. A slim majority also confirmed Judge Jackson due to the political dynamics of the U.S. Senate.

I do not attempt to compare Justices Jackson and Thomas, but the African American community did not widely celebrate Justice Thomas. The NACCP opposed his nomination before the October confirmation hearing.

His relatively novice judicial career and conservative ideology were not the ideal replacement for civil rights stalwart Justice Thurgood Marshall. It was Judge A. Leon Higginbotham, the Lyndon B. Johnson nominee who served as chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, that was the judicial heir apparent to Justice Marshall.

It was widely assumed the appointment to replace Justice Marshall would be a man; after all, it had been nearly 25 years since Constance Baker Motley, the first black woman to argue a case before the Supreme Court, was confirmed to a federal judgeship. Since this time, according to the Pew Research Center, “fewer than a third of all black judges ever appointed (29%, or 70 of 239) have been women.” Moreover, “Only 13 have served at the appellate court level — the powerful regional courts one step below the Supreme Court.” The report continues: “Democrats Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, who each served eight years in the White House, appointed 26 and 15 black women to the federal judiciary, respectively. Among Republican presidents, George W. Bush appointed eight black women during his eight-year tenure. George H.W. Bush and Donald Trump appointed two during their four years in office.”

As a heuristic exercise, would a conservative black woman nominee be equally embraced and celebrated? It was a Democratic Senate that ultimately confirmed Justice Thomas to the court. Such musing is not politically feasible in our current political reality, nor is the thought to suggest that black communities do not support or embrace conservatives. Gen. Colin Powell, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.) are prime examples of the embrace of black conservatives.

But for Justice Thomas, his voting record has cemented the cynicism many blacks feel toward him. He is the first Supreme Court justice to openly criticize the high court’s landmark Civil Rights ruling, Brown v. Board of Education. And he joined a 2013 high court decision, Shelby County v.

Holder, that eviscerated the Voting Rights Act. In his three decades on the court, Clarence Thomas, the longest-serving current justice, is the most reliable conservative vote.

Certainly, Justice Jackson will have a critical impact — not only as the first and only black woman on the court to have served as a public defender but also as one of two black justices serving at the same time for the first time.

Whether making good on this campaign promise will be enough to galvanize the Democratic base, particularly black voters, is yet to be seen.

Printed in The Hill, reprint permission granted.

Rev. Dr. Darryn Hewson, Contributing Writer

By the time you are reading this, some time will have passed since the assassination of trailblazing Palestinian American Journalist Shireen Abu Akleh. If you did not hear about it when it happened, that just confirms some of what needs to be said. Most of the United States would not have heard about it if she were not an American citizen. American news does not report that much about the rest of the world. Europe gets the most notice. The big players like Russia and China get noticed sometimes, but it must be big (invading another country, originating a pandemic) to be more than a sideline. The death of Abu Akleh happened in Palestine, and a United States ally (one that cannot be questioned even if his or her actions go against the very fabric of the religion they claim to represent) killed her. Her story may just disappear like the stories of many Black, Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC) people.

Even if the whole world seems to be talking about something, that does not mean it becomes of greater value to the average person, and it has an effect and at least makes people want to know more. Russia invading Ukraine got the world’s attention. In other parts of the world, like in Syria, people are still being killed or forcibly oppressed by their government. Every few years, in a much more one-sided invasion by Israel in Gaza, not to mention the occupation in the West Bank, we only talked about Afghanistan briefly as the United States pulled out. The genocide in Uyghurs, China is devastating.

The climate is changing. More and more, people are becoming food insecure or losing homes and livelihoods, and natural disasters are more frequent–the list of tragedies is endless.

So what do we do? We care. We care about every life regardless of where they are or what they look like. Still, we also understand that at this time in the world the ones that need to matter most are the ones that are being oppressed, that are being targeted, the ones that have historically not been protected or are currently not being protected even by the governments and authorities who are meant to do so. As people of faith, our role must be to speak out for those whose voices are not being heard. Tell their stories. This is not a new call, but if we do not remind ourselves often, we forget and we fail to make a change. Every voice and every story matters. ❏ ❏ ❏

The party has not delivered on signature campaign and legislative goals such as police reform and new federal voting rights protections. Perhaps Democrats can start to focus on the federal judiciary, as their rival Republicans spur their base to do — the entire direction for generations to come is genuinely at stake.

Will Justice Jackson’s presence on the high court be enough to improve the lives of black voters where it counts — their pocketbooks, around the household table, in their communities? Or will Jackson’s confirmation galvanize the GOP heading into the midterms this fall?

Time will tell, but in the meantime, political and legal analysts will be paying close attention to the opinions and comments between Justices Jackson and Thomas.

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Reflections on the Gift of Black Theological Education and Black Church Collaborative Dr. Herman O. Kelly, Jr., Bethel

African Methodist Episcopal Church, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

We cried, we laughed, we shouted, and we celebrated together. Dr. Delores F. Brisbon made a clarion call for us to gather at Shaw University on April 25-28, 2022, in Raleigh, North Carolina, for a time of reflection, engagement, and focus toward a plan and an agenda for the Gift of Black Theological Education. We came from the seminary, classroom, pulpit, and pew to engage, collaborate, and give direction for the future of this gift we call Black Theological Education. We all realize that training students in a black seminary is a gift we must handle with care; we must cherish the legacy God has placed in our hands. The institute started with a worship experience because we understood God called us all together to be directed by the Holy Spirit. Wonderfully blessed and gifted presenters taught at the institute.

Reflections of the Institute First, we all believed and were called to be stakeholders in the Gift of Black Theological Education. We were called together to reimage and re-focus our efforts to enhance and engage us to improve and chart the future of Black Theological Education. The Gift of Black Theological Education is a gift for us, but also for theological education worldwide. Our gift will impact theological education in the future and in this present age. As we nurture the Gift of Black Theological Education, we share our God-given gifts to enhance and improve this process.

Second, we understand that Black Theological Education must move to the digital age. The church and preparation for ministry must consider this new platform for carrying and sharing the Gospel of Jesus, the Christ. The session on digital church challenged us to move beyond our comfort zone and do church differently. Presenters challenged my comfort zone and pushed me toward thinking

differently to reach a new generation. As we explored the digital church together, the experience challenged us to look through different eyes to see the ministry and our call to collaborate for a better Black Theological Education. We all understand we have several platforms to extend and articulate the Gospel of Christ. Yet embracing such is, for many, an uneasy but valuably challenging position.

It made me feel like the first time I dove into deep water to test my swimming skills several years ago.

I had practiced the skills, but the final test was swimming in deep water. The digital church is deep water for many of us. To cherish the Gift of Black Theological Education means swimming in deep water and working through the skills we have been taught. It means depending on God’s grace and direction.

Lastly, Dr.Brisbon challenged us to ponder and reflect on the question: When was God real for you? In our final session, we cried, shouted, and reflected because God had been a presence for all of us in the room. Dr. Pollard allowed God to

perform surgery on him in our company. When God left the surgical room working on Dr. Pollard, the Almighty moved around the room, touching and blessing others as we reflected on the realness of God. This was a fitting conclusion for a week of study, worship, reflection, and planning.

I cried, I shouted, I laughed, and I felt a new presence of God. We left Shaw University with our marching orders from Dr. Brisbon, but even more impelling were our marching orders from Almighty God. The Gift of Black Theological Education Institute gathers us the academy and the church, to remind us that theological formation is our baby to nurture, nourish, teach, and even correct when necessary. As we nurture the gift we ask God for direction and inspiration for the task. Let us all embrace the gift that God placed in our hands. Let us not be selfish or careless with the Gift of Black Theological Education. If we are careless, God will hold all of us accountable. God, please give us the wisdom to cherish the Gift of Black Theological education. ❏ ❏ ❏

A New Season of Accountability, Will We Rise to the Occasion?

Mrs. Cynthia Gordon-Floyd, CPA, Columnist

Having trained pastors and church leaders across the country in financial stewardship, I, unfortunately, witness many church leaders who justify withholding financial information because they are concerned that their congregation will distort and gossip about the information. These leaders believe the finances are better controlled with fewer people being aware of the detailed information. Is this a deliberate attempt to conceal poor stewardship or abuse of power? Should we hide and covet gifts that are freely given? These are questions to examine as a larger question looms. Is the current threat facing the church great enough for us to change?

A biblical view of accountability must be at the forefront. Unfortunately, some receive accountability as a code name for red tape and bureaucracy. Others lament that accountability is an opportunity for accountants and managers to question a leader’s decisions or utilize it as a backdoor to block progress.

While I do not present this as a biblical perspective on accountability, we must reconcile that accountability and transparent oversight encompass the essence of stewardship.

The Word provides a solid foundation for how we are to conduct business matters, and the principle of accountability runs throughout the Bible. The

Parable of the Talents gives us a pointed analogy of how we will be held individually accountable to the Lord for our stewardship (Matthew 25-14-30). Paul also addressed the need for accountability of his work in his second letter to the Corinthians: “We are making this arrangement lest anyone blame us about this generous gift that we are administering, for we are setting our minds on what is right not only before the Lord but also before the people.”

(8:20-21). Paul’s desire for accountability led him to conduct himself in a manner that would not be easily subjected to human suspicion. Such conduct is a high bar to reach, but it is what should be required from followers of Christ. Making the right choices requires listening to the Holy Spirit, submitting ourselves to others, and seeking wise and independent counsel.

As a church, we were bleeding internally, but now our blood is splattered in the streets via the newspapers and television. We must change. Are we willing to rise to the occasion? Will we take the drastic steps needed to repair this breach, restore trust, and conduct business in God’s way? I pray so.

Cynthia Gordon-Floyd is a certified public accountant and founder of Willing Steward Ministries, LLC. Willing Steward Ministries (willingsteward.com) is a financial consulting and accounting firm for churches and other faith-based non-profits, specializing in Biblefocused financial practices, pastoral compensation issues, IRS compliance, and other financial needs specific to churches. Cynthia is a graduate of Lake Forest College and holds her MBA in Accounting from DePaul University. She is a steward and the financial secretary at the First African Methodist Episcopal Church of Manassas in Manassas, Virginia.

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Edward Waters University Won Black College World Series Saturday Night Beating Kentucky State 3-2 Chris Porter, First Coast News

EWU came all the way back from a second-round loss to arch-rival Florida Memorial in the game that ended at 1:30 a.m. Saturday.

The Tigers took back-to-back one-run games to win, and Edward Waters outfielder Keilin Washington won the College World Series Most Outstanding Player.

The Tigers got on the scoreboard first on a run-scoring double by catcher Anthony Roman in the top of the second inning and added another run scored on a run batted in triple by John Nobles to take a 2-0 lead.

Kentucky State would get back into the game in the third inning plating a run on a sacrifice fly to close the gap to 2-1.

EWU would get another run in the fifth inning off the bat of Daiton Pass with a run-scoring single to go up 3-1.

Edward Waters pitcher Austin James earned the victory for the Tigers on the mound, going 5.0 innings, allowing just one earned run, and six strikeouts, while Caden Hutchinson earned the save for EWU. ❏ ❏ ❏

Vacancy Announcement – AME University 34 Camp Johnson Road • Monrovia, Liberia • jobs@ame.edu.lr AME University is a faith-based institution located in Monrovia, Liberia. Founded in 1995, the University has grown steadily over the years. In fostering its mission, the University is seeking a highly experienced, vibrant, and progressive Assistant Vice President, Institutional Research, with a cutting-edge academic vision, to work with the Vice President for Academic Support Services in leading the institution as it continues to accelerate progress in becoming a premier tertiary institution in Liberia.

Class/Title: Assistant Vice President, Institutional Research & CoCa Cola Institute.

Division: Academic Support Services Reports to: Vice President for Academic Support Services Benefits: Commensurate with position and experience Closing Date: May 31, 2022 How to Apply: Submit CV, cover letter, and credentials to: jobs@ame.edu.lr POSITION REQUIREMENTS: The Assistant Vice President, Institutional Research, is a member of the management team in the Office of the Vice President for Academic Support Services and is an academic officer who meets with the Vice President for Academic Support Services regularly to coordinate the management of programs related to the disciplines in question. The Assistant Vice President, Institutional Research, is responsible for maintaining active membership in several related professional organizations and developing strong contacts and partnerships with local and regional institutions. In addition, by organizing and delivering great programs, he or she should provide leadership and direction to the Institutional Research program.

The Assistant Vice President, Institutional Research must have a terminal

degree in research or a related field from an accredited institution and a track record of teaching, research, and service that qualifies the candidate for the Assistant Vice President position. A minimum of five (5) years of administrative experience in an academic setting is required of the successful candidate. The Assistant Vice President, Institutional Research should be able to provide visionary and strategic leadership for the office and program’s educational missions and promote high academic achievement, honesty, and professional integrity among staff and students. He or she must be a Microsoft Office Suite expert, capable of leading seminars and training sessions for faculty, knowledgeable about the Internet, and possess strong written and oral communication abilities.

POSITION DESCRIPTION: I. KEY RESULTS AREAS ❖ Provides leadership and oversight for all research initiatives and programs in the Coca-Cola Institute for Innovation. ❖ Develops, performs, collects, compiles, and analyzes research data ❖ Ensure to improve and implement the University’s research program. ❖ To create new knowledge and technologies for the research institute. ❖ To design statistical and comprehensive data for decision-making.

II. TECHNICAL DUTIES ❖ Operate, extract, and analyze data from collection, or other internal and external sources, as they relate to the University. ❖ Coordinate with various departments and verify the integrity of internal institutional data for reports, policies, and decision-making. ❖ Safeguard institutional research data, including student-faculty evaluation; faculty-peer surveys; reports on key indicators of enrollment: graduation, retention, gender, success, progress, and student learning outcomes. ❖ Develop, coordinate, and publish the University’s annual...continued on p30

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Paul Quinn’s 2022 Graduating Class Receives $250,000 Investment From Alfred Street Baptist Church Southwest Airlines, Vistra, and artist Ryan Parker among those honored with President’s Award at 145th Commencement Paul Quinn College (PQC), the creator of the urban Work College model and one of the most celebrated colleges in the country, continues its commitment to fighting intergenerational poverty by announcing the formation of an investment fund for the graduating class of 2022 seeded by a $250,000 gift from Alfred Street Baptist Church’s Seek 2022 initiative.

The Reverend Dr. Howard-John Wesley, the senior pastor of the historic Alfred Street Baptist Church and Paul Quinn’s commencement speaker, made the first-of-itskind surprise announcement to graduates, parents, and friends

during commencement exercises on Saturday, May 7, 2022. The class of 2022 is the largest graduating class from Paul Quinn since 2008 and continues the college’s steep upward trajectory.

“We are truly grateful to Alfred Street Baptist Church and my friend, Dr. Wesley. The vision needed to make this type of investment is as uncommon as it is generous,” said Dr. Michael J. Sorrell, president of Paul Quinn College. “With this gift, we will be establishing a trust fund for the class of 2022. In doing so, we are making available the type of wealth management/building tool that is not commonly available to

first-generation college graduates and Pell Grant recipients. The number one tool in the fight against poverty is access to capital. Together, Alfred Street and Paul Quinn are making sure that PQC’s class of 2022 begins their post-college lives on the right foot. We can never say ‘thank you’ enough to Dr. Wesley and his extraordinary congregation.”

The investment fund will be managed by JP Morgan Chase and will be accessible to the 2022 graduates in 10 years. The goal is to build upon Alfred Street’s gift by securing additional contributions and thereby increasing the fund’s value. The fund will provide a tangible, monetary gift that will go directly to students and grow as the students continue in their educational or professional pursuits.

“Congratulations to the Class of 2022! This graduating class has spent at least half of their college career in a global pandemic navigating an immense amount of stress and hardship. We know the impact this has had on our mental and physical health and especially the impact it has had on the black community.

These resilient students deserve to be celebrated in a one-of-a-kind way and I, along with the incredibly giving community of Alfred Street Baptist Church, am excited to bless these bright young leaders who have the brightest future ahead. Our hope is that this gift will sow a seed into Paul Quinn students, allowing them to become all that God has called them to be,” said the Reverend Dr. Howard-John Wesley, senior pastor of Alfred Street Baptist Church.

Paul Quinn College Honorary Degree and President’s Awards Paul Quinn presented Dr. Wesley with an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters in recognition of his tremendous contributions to society. Honorary degrees are conferred on individuals who have made distinguished contributions in scholarship, music, the arts, business, or social service.

Also, at the ceremony, Paul Quinn honored Southwest Airlines and Vistra

with the President’s Corporate Partner Award and Ryan Parker with the President’s Community Partner Award. These distinguished awards honor the organizations and individuals who have contributed significantly to Paul Quinn, its students, and staff and have enhanced the campus experience in impactful ways.

❖ Southwest Airlines generously provided travel for the Paul Quinn men’s basketball team to the USCAA national championship tournament. Southwest Airlines also hosted a welcome home celebration at Dallas Love Field when the team returned home after winning the national championship. ❖ Vistra has invested heavily in both the Paul Quinn campus and students, establishing the Vistra Scholars Program and donating over 60 new trees to beautify and enhance the grounds. The investment in Paul Quinn is part of Vistra’s overall $10 million commitment to organizations working for social justice and equity. ❖ Ryan Parker, the founder of FreeKeyThree Creative, designed the basketball court in Paul Quinn’s new Health and Wellness Center. The court’s striking black and white theme incorporates archival photos of the Dallas skyline prior to integration, grounding the college’s newest building in a defiant recognition of its resilient past. The court became a viral sensation on social media when it was revealed in October of 2021 and has been widely described as “the best basketball court in America.”

“We are eternally grateful for having partners and advocates like Southwest Airlines, Vistra, and Ryan Parker,” said Dr. Sorrell. “Each of them shares our

values and belief that people deserve to be treated fairly and with dignity.”

Paul Quinn College 2022 Valedictorian Pricilla Deyanira Aguilar is Paul Quinn’s 2022 valedictorian and a firstgeneration American and first-generation college student. Aguilar’s parents are from Mexico, and she was born and raised in Oak Cliff. Aguilar is

graduating with a major in Business Management. She was captain of the women’s soccer team and interned with JP Morgan Chase in the company’s Consumer & Community Banking sector.

About Paul Quinn College Paul Quinn College is a private, faith-based, four-year, liberal arts-inspired college founded on April 4, 1872, by a group of African Methodist Episcopal Church preachers in Austin, Texas. The school’s original purpose was to educate formerly enslaved people and their offspring. Today, we proudly educate students of all races and socio-economic classes under the banner of our institutional ethos, WE over Me. Our mission is to provide a quality, faith-based education that addresses the academic, social, and Christian development of students.

Under President Sorrell’s leadership, Paul Quinn has become one of the nation’s most innovative and respected small colleges and now serves as a model for urban higher education. Fortune magazine recognized President Sorrell’s work and the college’s transformation by naming him one of the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders. President Sorrell is also a three-time award winner of HBCU Male President of the Year by HBCU Digest, was selected as 2018-2019 President of the Year by Education Dive, and was named by Time magazine as one of the “31 People Changing the South.” ❏ ❏ ❏

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How My Mom Taught Me to Write by Cultivating My Imagination J. Jioni Palmer, Columnist

My mother taught me the virtue of words and trained me to be a wordsmith. Sure, we read books together—James and the Giant Peach, The Chronicles of Narnia, and Where the Sidewalk Ends—as we lay in bed. But, while the stories stirred my imagination and ignited a lifelong desire to create, what intrigued me most was how the words on the page could carry her away to a time and place distant from our own.

Without fail, her voice would eventually trail off, sometimes because she had fallen asleep, but more often because she was so engrossed in the material that she forgot I was listening. I would watch her face broaden into a smile or shrink with a grimace as the plot unfolded. It was entertaining hearing her snigger, gasp, and provide a commentary on the action and the characters.

“What’s happening?” I would ask.

“Oh, it’s getting good! Wait until I finish this paragraph.”

If I were lucky, she would go back and reread the passages aloud, but I had to settle for a summary more often.

While the stories held my interest, my curiosity was piqued by these authors’ power to shift reality and perspectives.

In our tiny two-bedroom duplex on Bonar Street in Berkeley, California, I would sit on the living-room floor playing with my Lincoln Logs imagining I was a pioneer on the American frontier. At the same time, my mother lounged on our tattered floral printed couch with a thick tome in her plump but worn hands.

Occasionally, I glance up at her immersed in the prehistoric world of The Clan of the Cave Bear. Then, in those rare moments when she put the book down to fix us something to eat in the kitchen, I would sneak a peek at the pages. None of it made sense to me, but I loved listening to her talk about the saga of an orphaned Cro-Magnon girl living with a clan of Neanderthals with our neighbor Bunny as they sipped wine with Anita Baker crooning in the background.

What kind of magic could Jean Auel conjure to compel my mother, who wore the exhaustion of multiple jobs and single parenting like a parka, to trek to the public library and dig

through telephone books to find the author’s phone number in Portland, Oregon?

I do not know what spell she cast on my mom in that phone conversation, but I do know that somehow she found the time and energy to begin taking classes at the local community college. A year after I graduated from high school, my mother graduated from college, and before I could get my bachelor’s, she would receive her master’s in social work.

Every so often, my mom would declare that we needed a mental health day, and we would play hooky from school and work. Sometimes we would lounge around the house doing chores while listening to Sam Cooke, Joan Armatrading, or Cameo, but more often, we would shower and get dressed as usual and then go for a long leisurely breakfast, visit a museum, or watch several movies in a row. In high school and college—and even as of last month–I would make the same declaration and follow the same pattern, but unlike my mom, I pay for the first movie and then sneak into the rest.

One of the games we often played

during our mental health days was speculating about someone in line at the grocery store or eating at the same diner.

“You see that man over there, to your left,” she would whisper conspiratorially.

I eventually learned to look clandestinely by shifting my gaze, but I would first swivel my head, exposing myself to the target.

“The one reading the newspaper?” I would ask.

“No, the one reading the book.”

“Yeah, I see him. So what?”

“So, what do you think?”

“Think about what?”

“What do you think his name is?

He looks like a Robert to me. What does he do for a living? I think he’s a farmer because he’s wearing overalls and boots, but maybe he is an actor getting in character for an upcoming play. What do you think?”

By the time our food arrived, we had concocted a complete back story beginning with the man’s childhood

growing up on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, the only child of German immigrants who fled the Fatherland between the two great wars. Before the check arrived, we fabricated tales of unrequited love, questionable business deals, and weekends tending to his bonsai garden at his home in El Cerrito, down the hill from the cemetery where our ancestors are buried.

It never occurred to me to try to ascertain whether our assumptions were even close to the mark or not.

It was fun enough wrestling with the raw material of our imaginations to bother whether we were in the vicinity of fact or the neighborhood of fiction. For the moment, we were living in a universe of our own creation where laws of physics and gravity were malleable to our ingenuity. Years later, while working as a journalist, I cultivated the art of enticing people to reveal information about themselves despite their best efforts to keep them concealed. Most people, I have found, want to share their stories, but what the game my mom and I played taught me is that sometimes you need to engage in a little bit of fiction to get at the truth.

J. Jioni Palmer is the founder and publisher of “Thinking Good,” a digital media community that helps men be their better selves, and is the men’s minister at Metropolitan AME Church in Washington, D.C. A graduate of the University of California at Los Angeles and Howard University School of Divinity, Palmer is a former journalist, Congressional staffer, and Obama administration appointee. He lives in Washington, D.C, with his wife, two sons, two cats, and a puppy.

The Truth Behind the Coverage of the Vice President’s Staff Transitions Rev. Carey Grady, 7th Episcopal District

Politics is the art of compromise. Compromise is an intentional and mature way of handling conflicting ideas and potential conflict.

Compromise occurs when groups make concessions. Unfortunately, we are missing the art of compromise in today’s political climate.

Politics has become a dirty nonphysical combat sport steeped in perception and built on people, power, influence, and money. Yet, in the midst of ideological differences and public debate is compromise. Progress is often the result of compromise. Politics are important because that is how we make decisions.

The most dominant influence on modern American politics in the 20th and 21st Centuries is the influence of the media. A news clip, sound bite, newspaper article, blog, or trend on social media can build or tear down political aspirations or careers overnight. ...continued on p14

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Kingdom Fellowship African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church Kingdom Fellowship African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Calverton, Maryland, celebrated Resurrection Sunday with their first inperson worship in their new edifice. To celebrate this momentous occasion Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Douglas Emerhoff joined Kingdom Fellowship for worship. Photos show an exuberant worship experience. A recording of the service is archived on the church’s Facebook page.

The celebration continued through Eastertide as the congregation broke ground on the Kingdom Care Center. The congregation and community will use the center to provide food, job training, healthcare, and community-

oriented services. Bishop T. D. Jakes, Bishop John R. Bryant, Bishop James L. Davis, and a host of gospel artists excited about what God is up to in Calverton joined the celebration.

Under the pastoral leadership of Rev. Matthew L. Watley, Kingdom Fellowship has established itself as a glowing and ever-growing ministry committed to “serving, supporting, and strengthening communities.” ❏ ❏ ❏

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St. Luke AME Church in Lawrence, Kansas, Holds First Full Service Since Pandemic, Renovation Elvyn Jones, Lawrence Journal World

St. Luke African Methodist Episcopal Church, which was founded in 1910, renewed its proud motto of “The friendly little church on the corner” the weekend of May 15, 2022, with its first full Sunday service in more than two years and a rededication marking extensive renovations to the East Lawrence landmark. Church member Maryemma Graham shared that “Sunday’s 10 a.m. service was the first at the church on the southeast corner of Ninth and New York streets to welcome the full congregation and open to the public since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.”

Making the day more special was the first sermon titled “Act Brand New,” drawn from John 21:1-19 to the full congregation by the new pastor, the Rev. Brandee Mimitzraiem, and dedication after the service by our presiding prelate, Bishop Clement W. Fugh.

“Although some congregation members had the opportunity to view the renovations during a hybrid Easter service, Sunday’s service will be the first opportunity for the entire congregation to see all the changes,” Graham said, as “much of the renovation, including remodeling of the vestibule and the fellowship hall, rehabilitation of large stained-glass windows, tuck-pointing and structural repairs of the brick exterior, and installation of a chairlift to the basement-level fellowship hall was completed during the pandemic pause.”

Tours of the church were available after the rededication. With regular Sunday services returning, the congregation is eager to resume all its traditional activities, such as Sunday meals.“Everybody is excited to get back to church,” she said. “This is an old congregation who wants to go to church. It’s a close-knit community with deep roots, especially in East Lawrence.”

Saint Luke undertook the renovations under the leadership of the Rev. Verdell Taylor, who retired last fall after 26 years as pastor. Taylor provided remarkable leadership to the church and the Lawrence community. Graham noted that the congregation’s first female pastor, Mimitzraiem, carries on a tradition recalled by the experience of Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes. Hughes attended St. Luke while living in Lawrence with his grandmother in the early 1900s, an association critical to the church’s placement on the National Register of Historic Places.

“He was impressed with the role of the strong women who attended the church,” said Graham, a University of Kansas English professor who heads the school’s project on the history of black writing. “This church has a tradition of strong women, and women still play a major role in the church, and our new pastor is our first woman pastor.”

Reprinted with permission. ...From The Truth p12 The press coverage of vice president Kamala Harris is designed to derail her potential presidential aspirations but, in fact, is giving us a glimpse of what life is like for a vice president.

When was the last time the media reported on a vice president’s staff transitions? Can you honestly recite the names of the chief of staff, press secretary, director of Press Operations, or director and deputy director of Public Engagement of present and former vice presidents? No! And more than likely, you will not know the names of future vice presidential administrations. Do you know the name and address of the official vice

presidential residence? Probably not!

Everyone knows 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. Few know 1 Observatory Circle.

The coverage of the swift and frequent transitions of the vice president’s staff is designed to make her look incompetent as a leader. To say this is sexist is an understatement; unfortunately, racism comes with it, intentionally and unintentionally. The barrage of negative coverage about her staff comings and goings speaks to the fear of VP Harris’s future endeavors.

The shallowness of President George H. W. Bush’s vice president, Dan Quayle, did not take this kind of heat,

and Quayle kept putting his foot in his mouth. Nevertheless, the coverage of Harris’ staff transitions speaks to her future as one of the faces of the Democratic Party.

vice presidents end their political careers as vice president, including VPs Humphrey, Agnew, Rockefeller, Mondale, Quayle, Gore, Cheney, and Pence.

Washington, District of Columbia, and Capitol Hill jobs are transitory.

Young people want a congressperson’s, senator’s, or vice president’s staff position on their resume in hopes of landing a major job.

Vice presidential staffers are young and on the upward swing. Being on the VP’s staff is a launching pad. It is time for the media to stop making it seem like VP Harris is incompetent.

The staffers leaving are part of the cycle for staffers hoping for the next big thing. In our rock star culture why would a young person want to stay on the staff of the number 2 when there are more glamorous jobs with more pay?

No one wants to make a career working for a vice president, a gig that can last four to eight years max.

Few VPs become president, with the recent exceptions of Presidents Nixon, Johnson, Ford, Bush, and Biden. Most

The Rev. Carey A. Grady is the pastor of Reid Chapel AME Church in Columbia, South Carolina (www.reidchapel.org). He believes words have power. He blogs at www.careyagrady.com.

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Celebrating the 137th Church Anniversary of St. John AME Church Dr. Bridget Floyd

St. John African Methodist (AME) Church, Huntsville, marked its 137th anniversary on March 20, 2022, at the 10 a.m. worship service. The theme was “A Legacy of Faith and a Bright Future,” with a scriptural emphasis on Matthew 16:18. The service was hybrid in terms of recorded and in-person participants, with the latter adhering to Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines. The Mass Choir and musicians were inspirational under the direction of Brother Reggie Pearson, with Brother Phil Lee leading the choir and congregation in singing the opening hymn. Pastor Maurice Wright II preached the sermon for the anniversary service.

A nostalgic review began the service with a video presentation of photos of people and events over the years. After which, the Women’s Month tribute to women of St. John continued, highlighting two “phenomenal women.” Ms. Joy Wright highlighted Sister Claire Philadelphia and Attorney Genevia Fontenot. Congratulations to these outstanding ladies. Sister Maeola Peoples gave the welcome and announcements.

Pastor Wright introduced Deaconess Sarah “Granny” Bell, “the oldest and longest serving St. John member,” as the worship leader. The Deaconess Board recited the Call to Worship: Deaconesses Earnestine Barnes-Ivery, Eva Smith, Willie M. Heyward, Charlsie Brooks, Gwendolyn Baldwin, and Mary Powers.

The Reverend Meriam Garrett gave the invocation after the opening hymn.

Scripture readings were as follows: Old Testament, Psalm 100 by Addison and Breanne Bradford; The Epistle, Ephesians 1:15-23, Sister Jana Goggans; The Gospel, Matthew 16:13-18, Sister Mattie Ezell.

[Due to technical challenges, the last scriptures were featured the following Sunday.]

Pastor Wright preached the third sermon in his series, “What Shall We Do With the Church?” entitled “Do Not Sleep on the Church.” The scripture reference was Acts 20:7-12. He noted the negative impact of “sleeping”/inattention at this point, including social, economic, and political factors. He emphasized that “there are people sleeping on the church,” resulting in a negative impact on the youth and leadership; ministries are not as fulfilling, and the message is “watered down.” He urged soberness and vigilance to avoid the negative impact.

The first point made by Pastor Wright was “The Word is for you” in that there is something for every believer present for the sermon… “the Word of God always meets its target.” He encouraged participation in the church, noting that “church is not a spectator sport.” Another point made was that “You can be in the right place but be in the wrong place at the same time.” In the text, the man was in the right place [“the church”] but in the wrong

place [sitting in the window on the third level] which would allow for inattention or distractions.

He cautioned that this could cause today’s believers to miss their blessing because they could not focus fully on the Word. Pastor Wright emphasized that “there is always light in the church… we must always pay attention to the light,” which allows one “to see as well as be seen.” He noted that in the text, no one cautioned the man about being “on the ledge” and that “the church can be busy… not warn people.”

He indicated that in the text, the people “became the church” once they attended to the man who fell from the window. He indicated that Paul directly “ministered”/attended to the man when he fell, not delegating to someone else. Another key factor was that everyone left comforted after the events in the text. Pastor Wright indicated that people should feel better after participating in worship, “leave with joy in your spirit … the power of the Almighty.” He ended by citing Luke 21:36 – the importance of “staying awake” in order to escape events that are going to take place and gave examples of current events/problem situations. The sermon was indeed a sermon upon which to reflect as the St. John family marked 137 years of existence as a church serving the Huntsville community. Sister Mary Allen made the offertory appeal, and the Doxology and Benediction followed.

Congregants remained to view a congratulatory video of greetings from regional and national clergy, church officers, members, and friends.

They included Bishop Harry L. Seawright of the 9th Episcopal District; Bishop Anne Henning Byfield, 13th Episcopal District; Bishop Adam Richardson, Sr., senior bishop, 10th Episcopal District; Presiding Elder Bruce W. Hunter, South Birmingham-Huntsville Bessemer District; the Reverend Dr. Willie Eugene Marshall, presiding elder, Ozark/Troy District; the Reverend Mark Kelly Tyler, pastor of Mother Bethel AME, Philadelphia, PA; the Reverend Dr. Patrick Clayborn, Bethel AME, Baltimore, MD [former pastor of St. John, Huntsville]; the Reverend Dr. Michael Bell, Allen AME, Washington, D.C.; Brother John Thomas III, editor, The Christian Recorder; Brother Marcus Hill, St. John Steward Board, vice chair; Brother Bill Williams, St. John Trustee Board, vice chair; Brother David Person, a friend of the church; the Honorable Anthony Daniels, Alabama House Minority Leader and St. John member; and Deaconess Sarah Bell –“90 years of service to St. John and longest living member.”

St. John is proud of its legacy and looks forward to a bright future. ❏ ❏ ❏

Roe v. Wade, Voter Suppression, and “We” the Voters John E. Warren

The current uproar over the leaked draft of the United States Supreme Court’s anticipated decision on abortion rights is another example of the Republican right wing effort to eliminate democracy under cover of the very Constitution, which provides all our democratically protected rights.

In addition, we have seen the attack on voting rights by the actions of the Republicans in the U.S. Senate, who refused to support not only the Voting Rights Act but also the John Lewis Act and the legislation coming out of the George Floyd murder.

certification of President Joseph Biden as president of the United States. These are the same senators who prevented former President Obama from making a United States Supreme Court nomination. In contrast, these same Republican senators rushed through two conservative nominations who are now a part of the longawaited overthrow of Roe v. Wade.

These are the same Republicans who we now know plotted to overthrow the U.S. Government on January 6, 2021, with their efforts to stop the

What we do know is that primary season is upon us and that we all have a chance to make some choices and changes if we look ...continued on p32

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Thurgood Marshall School of Law at Texas Southern University and a Master of Social Work from the University of Houston.

JUDGE PATRICIA MARIE MAYBERRY (1951-2022) Judge Patricia Marie Mayberry was born on August 25, 1951, to Samuel Mayberry and Shirley Long Hawkins in St. Louis, Missouri. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Missouri– Columbia. In addition, she earned a Juris Doctorate from

Her legal career included serving the United States Air Force as a judge advocate rising to the rank of major, a trial attorney with the Immigration and Naturalization Service, an Administrative Law Judge for the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board, and a Labor Law attorney with the United States Air Force at the Los Angeles Air Force Base.

Judge Mayberry served as the first vice president of the Fifth Episcopal District Lay Organization and a member of Price Chapel African Methodist

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Episcopal Church in Los Angeles, California, where she served as the parliamentarian of the local lay organization, a member of the Women’s Missionary Society, and as the vice-chair of the Steward Board.

Judge Mayberry transitioned on May 2, 2022.

She leaves to cherish their memories her mother Shirley Long Hawkins, her brother, the Rev. Dr. Harold R. Mayberry (Mary), her sister Marilyn Mayberry McGee (Fred), her uncle Attorney Matthew Long, Jr. (Diane), a loving first cousin Donna Edwards, and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, “adopted” children, and other extended family and friends. ❏ ❏ ❏

Bethel AME Church Makes $1 Million Investment in Freedom West 2.0 Bethel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church San Francisco has announced a $1 million commitment to Freedom West 2.0, a transformative initiative to revitalize Freedom West Homes, a nonprofit, limited equity housing cooperative located in the heart of the Fillmore district in San Francisco, just three blocks from City Hall.

The commitment from Bethel AME Church arose from the Freedom West 2.0 Partners Convening held at The Battery in February. That gathering assembled national leaders from industry, philanthropy, and community who came together to review and provide expert input and support for advancing the $2 billion plan to reimagine Freedom West Homes.

Freedom West 2.0 will deliver modern market rate quality yet permanently affordable housing for the existing residents while also inviting a new, expanded population of residents who want to enjoy modern amenities at the site.

Freedom West Homes, their master development partner, MacFarlane Partners, and Bethel AME have finalized a collaboration agreement which includes Bethel AME making a $1 million impact investment in the Freedom West 2.0 Founders Circle to contribute to predevelopment and entitlement expenses.

The agreement also features preferred terms for Bethel to invest $10 million with MacFarlane Partners in the market rate portion of the development. A key feature of the development agreement between Freedom West Homes and MacFarlane Partners includes Freedom West participating in all profits realized by MacFarlane throughout the market rate portion of the $2 billion development.

“I am elated to see so many business and community leaders coming out in support of Freedom West 2.0,” said Mattie Scott, president of Freedom West Homes. “We were totally blown away by the bold $10 million commitment made

by Pastor Shaw on behalf of Bethel AME Church.”

In addition to creating affordable housing units for existing residents, Freedom West 2.0 will also include additional affordable rental units, more than 2,000 feet of open space, retail and entertainment options, a boutique hotel, a health and fitness center, childcare center, and an onsite Community Innovation Center, with access to state-of-the-art, industry-grade technology, equipment, and training needed for 21st Century tech and science driven jobs and entrepreneurship.

“President Mattie Scott, the board of directors, and the entire Freedom West shareholder community have done an amazing job getting the vision of Freedom West 2.0 to this critical point,” said the Rev. Robert Shaw, pastor of Bethel AME Church. “We want to do our part by stepping up as both an investor and a codeveloper with MacFarlane Partners to help ensure this bold vision becomes a reality for Freedom West and the broader Fillmore community.”

Bethel AME Church originally sponsored Freedom West Homes in the late 1960s in the aftermath of government-sponsored urban renewal, which displaced more than 20,000 residents and closed over 800 businesses. Built as a 382-unit housing co-operative on 10 acres of land just three blocks from City Hall, Freedom West has provided affordable housing for nearly 1,000 racially diverse, low-

and moderate-income residents for decades. Now struggling with 40 years of deferred maintenance, it faces an uncertain financial future due to a lack of investment in the community and a non-existent long-term economic sustainability model.

“We are honored to have Bethel AME Church join our development and investor team as we work hard to help the Freedom West residents

realize promises made to them over 40 years ago,” said Victor B. MacFarlane, founder, chairman, and CEO, MacFarlane Partners.

About Freedom West: Freedom West Homes Corporation is a nonprofit housing cooperative containing 382 housing units located in the Fillmore District of San Francisco. In the late 1960s, in a period of civil turmoil, the Rev. J. Austell Hall had the vision to preserve a portion of the Fillmore District neighborhood threatened by the city of San Francisco’s urban renewal. From this vision, he established Freedom West to create a safe, affordable community while protecting cultural diversity and providing a source of social and economic empowerment through cooperative ownership.

About MacFarlane Partners: MacFarlane Partners is a real estate investment management and development firm headquartered in San Francisco that acquires, develops, and manages properties on behalf of some of the world’s largest pension plans and institutions. Founded in 1987, the firm pioneered the urban investment concept among institutional real estate investment managers in the 1990s and today is a leading investor in and developer of

properties that promote smart growth, urban revitalization, and sustainability in urban and high-density suburban areas nationwide. For additional information, please visit the firm’s website at www.macfarlanepartners. com.

About Bethel AME Church: Bethel AME Church is the oldest African American church in San Francisco, having been founded in 1852 in the midst of social, economic, and political change. For over 170 years, through earthquake and fire, through redevelopment and relocation, Bethel AME has continued its civic engagement to make tangible and lasting changes in the Fillmore and greater San Francisco community.

Pastors of Bethel have served in the San Francisco city government on various commissions such as Planning, Civil Service, Housing Authority, Police, and the Human Rights Commission. Through sponsorship of affordable housing for seniors and the homeless, food programs for the hungry, activities and scholarships for youth, and support for small businesses, Bethel AME continues to expand its service footprint through the community involvement and leadership of its pastors, members, and affiliations.

This press release was issued through 24-7PressRelease.com. For further information, visit http://www.24-7pressrelease.com.SOURCE: Freedom West.

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Prayers at the Pump Fill Up Spirits and Gas Tanks Under the leadership of the Reverend Dr. Jonathan L. Weaver, pastor of Greater Mt. Nebo African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, members of the ministerial staff joined together to relieve some of the “pain at the pump.” After seven ministerial staff members delivered the “7 Last Words” of Jesus Christ on Good Friday, members of the ministerial staff joined together to provide prayers and gas gift cards at three local gas stations in the Bowie, Maryland community.

To help ease the financial stress of filling up their gas tanks, hundreds of people received a spiritual fill-up as clergy prayed for and ministered to their needs. In addition to receiving a gas gift card and praying, invitations were extended to join us for Resurrection Sunday worship service, virtually or in person. A mother with teenage children recently moved to the area and was looking for a church and other ways to connect her teenagers in enriching activities in the community. The Reverend Tomika McFadden, who serves as Youth and Young Adult minister, shared precise ways Greater Mt. Nebo AME Church can support this mother and her family. Several gift card recipients joined Greater Mt. Nebo in worship to celebrate the Risen Savior!

Submitted by the Reverend Andre D. Christian, executive minister, and itinerant elder, Greater Mt. Nebo AME Church.

The Reverend Dr. Reginald Blount Named Director of the Center for the Church and the Black Experience The Reverend Dr. Reginald Blount (G-ETS 2005), an esteemed colleague and longstanding faculty member of Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, has been named director of the Center for the Church and the Black Experience (CBE), effective July 1, 2022. A leading center of Garrett-Evangelical, CBE was founded in 1970 and has empowered and trained generations of black leaders for the church and society. Blount, who served as interim director for CBE in the mid-2000s, is the 11th director of CBE, following Mr. Taurean J. Webb, who has accepted an appointment at Indiana University, Bloomington.

Instituted in 1970 as one of the primary emphases of the seminary, CBE has been a beacon of hope and inspiration for black students, pastors, churches, and communities for nearly five decades. It has been instrumental in fusing black people and black religious life into the entire seminary community. As director, Blount seeks to address the unique challenges facing black students—across the diaspora—while educating and inspiring all persons who live, work, and study at the seminary.

“We find ourselves at a defining moment where we need institutes like the Center for the Church and the Black Experience to nurture theologically rooted leaders called to discern the signs of the times, cast vision, and collaboratively and strategically address issues related to the wellbeing and thriving of the church and society,” Blount said. “There is also much to learn when the black experience is centered in this formative work. I am grateful for the opportunity to embrace the 50+ year legacy of CBE and build on the leadership and gifts offered by previous directors in nurturing the next generation of ‘leaders of leaders.’”

A citadel of teaching, research, action, and reflection on black life and Black Church life, CBE is committed to training seminarians and pastors to be pastoral, priestly, and prophetic “leaders of leaders.” In addition, CBE offers the seminary and the broader community opportunities for understanding the Christian faith via interracial and cross-cultural perspectives. It also seeks to facilitate a greater understanding of religious leadership dynamics, organizational change, and public outreach and witness of black churches in relation to the broader religious and social context.

“I am so grateful that Dr. Reggie Blount is willing to step into this leadership role at this critical moment in Garrett’s institutional life,” said President Javier A. Viera. “Dr. Blount is a visionary and spiritually grounded person of faith. He is a highly respected member of our community, a strategic thinker who leverages his many professional connections for the good of Garrett, and who has the stature in so many community, ecclesial, philanthropic, non-profit, and guild spaces to ensure that the CBE remains a high profile and innovative center. I know that the center will thrive, and the seminary will continue to benefit greatly from his leadership, and I look forward to the close partnership we will have in advancing the mission and work of the Center for the Church and the Black Experience.”

Blount officially joined the faculty in 2006 but served as an adjunct professor and instructor from 1997 to 2006. Today, he serves as the Murray H. Leiffer associate

professor of Formation, Leadership, and Culture. His research and writings have centered on adolescent and young adult identity formation, African American identity formation, and Christian education and strategic leadership in the Black Church. In addition, he speaks and teaches nationally and internationally, helping faith communities envision new and creative ways to minister to, with, and on behalf of young people, engage in transformative Christian education, and foster congregational and community renewal.

In addition to his teaching responsibilities, Blount serves as the director of the “Holy Yearning, Holy Listening, Holy Partnerships” project, established in 2017 at Garrett-Evangelical. This project was formed out of the Lilly Endowment’s Young Adult Initiative, which aims to help congregations develop and strengthen congregational ministries that build relationships with young adults, nurture their religious lives, and foster their engagement with religious communities.

An ordained elder and pastor of Arnett Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church in the Morgan Park neighborhood of Chicago, Blount has been a leader in the formation of Freedom Schools both in Evanston and Morgan Park. Blount and his faculty colleague, the Rev. Dr. Virginia Lee, cofounded the Garrett-Evanston Children’s Defense Fund Freedom Schools Program in 2016. In addition, they served as editors for the book, Let Your Light Shine: Mobilizing for Justice with Children and Youth (Friendship Press Inc., 2019).

He has contributed numerous articles and chapters throughout his career.

Of particular note, Blount served as a contributor to the CEB Student Bible (Common English Bible) along with his daughter Deborah Ayanna, which was published in 2015. In addition, he wrote discussions for the books of Joel and James, which includes questions, activities, and “Reading Differently” exercises for youth groups and small groups.

Blount received his Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering from Tuskegee University (1984) and his Master of Divinity from Candler School of Theology at Emory University (1995). He earned his doctor of philosophy from the GarrettEvangelical/Northwestern University joint program in religious and theological studies, focusing on the areas of Christian education and youth ministry (2005).

Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, a graduate school of theology related to The United Methodist Church, was founded in 1853. Located on the campus of Northwestern University, the seminary serves students from various denominations and cultural backgrounds, fostering an atmosphere of ecumenical interaction. Garrett-Evangelical creates bold leaders through master of divinity, master of arts, master of theological studies, doctor of philosophy, and doctor of ministry degrees. Its 4,500 living alumni serve church and society around the world. ❏ ❏ ❏

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The Care and Keeping of Your Pastor Rev. Melinda Contreras-Byrd, Ph.D., Contributing Writer

Over the years, the Lord has led me to minister in various settings and with various people. I have worked with bilingual preschoolers, intellectually gifted children, suicidal and violent teens, special education students, and adult populations struggling with addictions, homelessness, and a myriad of psychological differences and challenges.

Over the past ten or more years, I have become involved in ministering to those who minister. After years of searching the literature on pastoral self-care, I realized there was no research on black and Latinx pastors! So, in 2013, funded by the Louisville Institute, I undertook a study to define and address the needs of black and Latinx pastors. As a result, in 2020, I published a book, Saving the Lives of Black and Latinx Pastors – A Self-Care Study. My journey as a Christian psychologist has taught me some important truths I want to share with you today. Your response to these issues may very well “…save the life of a black or Latinx pastor”!

African Methodist Episcopal Church pastors carry a distinction among black clergy. We require master’s level credentials for eligibility for ordination as an itinerant elder. If you compare the salaries of persons with a master’s degree to average clergy salaries–you will be disheartened by the disparity. A pastor’s salary is significantly less than others with master’s degrees. When you include “being black” as a factor for comparison consideration–the picture is even more dismal. Many of our pastors take a second job so that they can continue to pastor. They pay bills and purchase gifts for their congregants and leadership out of their pockets. Let pastors know they are appreciated—beyond a set “Pastor Appreciation Sunday.”

The call to ministry typically begins early in the lives of pastors. Even as children, we stand out as being “a little weird.” We are not part of the in-crowd. Peers ostracize us for being “religious.” Pastors live on the margins, uninvited to social gatherings, soon becoming outsiders-except in the church. Once they become pastors, they spend most of their time engaged with their members. They know their members’ names and often the names of all of their extended family. They go to the hospital and take tearful calls late at night from the hospice, home, or hospital. But they are blessed to be the ones who baptize, bury, and marry. And when they answered

their call to ministry, they agreed to a sacrificial life wherein they would lose close contact with friends; but are paradoxically prohibited from forming close friendships with those with whom they spent most of their time. They work hard, forming nonreciprocal relationships.

If the pastor is married and/

Everyone sighs at the end of the week and silently repeats the mantra, “Thank God it’s Friday.” But for pastors’ Saturdays are not free days.

Instead, having been unable to do so during a busy work week, most formalize the bulletin and select the music, scriptures, and service participants while struggling with God over a meaningful word to preach.

there are stewards and class leaders

or has children, this raises likely guilt-producing

and

stressful

family conflicts between balancing important

church

and

family

functions.

What might we do to support a pastor’s well-being? First, realize that to assist the pastor in meeting the congregational needs too numerous for one person alone. Second, avoid criticizing your pastor for not being at every important event or visiting every person who is sick and shut-in.

You may not know that a majority of clergy leave the pastorate each

made a difference and are not doing a good enough job! So, as laity (and I encourage pastors to do this also for themselves) acknowledge pastors’ successes, pray for them in their failures, and give them the gift of guilt-free time to relax and de-stress.

In my study, I asked, “Should pastors be role models in all things?” Do you think most believed this to be true or false?

I asked, “Do you take at least one week-long vacation each year?” Did most say yes or no?

What percentage do you think said they experienced loneliness or attended retreats?

year, convinced that they have not

The answers are in my book.

Encourage self-care in your pastor, and buy her or him these books on the self-care of pastors.

Kirk Byron Jones, Rest in the Storm. Judson Press, 2001.

G. Lloyd Rediger, The Clergy Killers. Westminster John Knox, 1997.

Melinda Contreras-Byrd, Saving the Lives of Black and Latinx Pastors: A Self-Care Study. Africa World Press Red Sea Press, 2020.

Paul David Trip, A Dangerous Calling. Reprint, Crossway, 2015. ❏ ❏ ❏

...From The Missed p4 even bishops have been stressed if they used this opportunity to bring people together instead of retreating to isolated silos? How much stronger would we be denominationally if we did not push for individual pastoral or church achievement and instead collaboratively tended to the growing needs of those shutdown, shut-in, and lockedup? How much better would we be had we pooled our resources and created systems that

promoted partnerships and togetherness?

Picture where we would be now if other pastors had accepted the invitation to join or if other leaders had the same foresight. Imagine the great community of learners and families of faith that would have been born had we put “I” aside for “we.”

2020-2022 was undoubtedly a time of great despair, and there was not one person who

was not affected. But, it was also a time of great opportunity, and we missed it, mourning the loss of our open doors and underused buildings. I can only pray that as we return to “business as usual,” we ask God to recover what we overlooked - collaboration, collectivism, and community - and grant us another chance to come together as one denomination. ❏ ❏ ❏

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Two Ways to Read the Story

By Kiratiana E. Freelon, Correspondent

Mônica Francisco and Mãe Seci Caxi do not see eye to eye about God. Ms. Francisco, a Rio de Janeiro state congresswoman, practiced Catholicism until she joined an evangelical church at 18. She is among the 65 million Brazilians – approximately one-third of the population – who consider themselves evangelicals. Ms. Caxi was born into a family of Candomblé – a minority Brazilian religion of African origin that has historically been discriminated against, including by evangelicals. In polarized Brazil, religious groups have often clashed with one another. But in an unlikely partnership, two women of different faiths find common ground to preserve their African heritage.

When Ms. Caxi needed help saving a space sacred to the adherents of Candomblé, she turned to the evangelical politician, who is also a pastor. United by their African heritage, the two have become unlikely allies against deep-seated religious intolerance in Brazil and for recognition of their shared culture. “We must fight religious intolerance so that we can preserve our ancestry. We must preserve our oral traditions and African mythology as a religious practice because this reaffirms our Afro-Brazilian identity and its roots,” Ms. Francisco says. “Our past includes an enslaved family, who probably worshipped African gods, who had to use syncretism,” she adds. “Although I am a Christian, a pastor, and have embraced the evangelical faith, it is impossible not to recognize this presence in our ancestors.”

Message of Justice

housing rights in favelas.

An abandoned structure outside Rio de Janeiro that a local mayor wanted to raze brought Ms. Francisco and Ms. Caxi together.

Called the Terreiro da Goméia, it is sacred land in Afro-Brazilian worship and a national symbol of Afro-Brazilian culture. It was established by the late Joãozinho da Goméia, a pai-de-santo, or high priest, who was also known as the king of Candomblé because he brought the religion out of obscurity. Gay and mixed race, he was often harassed and once imprisoned as he fought against entrenched attitudes and prejudices.

When Ms. Francisco converted and began serving in various roles in the evangelical church, her activism expanded: fighting against police violence against poor black men and for economic and political rights for women. But attitudes are shifting. “African Eventually, she started a spirituality has always been sp Two women church in Borel. Then,, satanized by Christian sa when her friend Mariellee of opposing movements,” says Lêmba m faiths unite to Franco, an activistt protect sacred Dyala, coordinator of D and politician, wass Candomblé space th the Goméia Commission assassinated in 2018, Ms.. and also a high priest. an January 4, 2022 Francisco ran for politicall “But today, we can report “B office, easily winning a [abuses], move freely, and [a seat for the left-wing Socialism being criminalized.”

S l ffight h without h and Liberty Party. When asked In fact, the Goméia Commission how her faith and desire for justice fought for the temple’s remains interconnect today, Ms. Francisco by pushing to have the site turned points to Matthew 5:6 in the Bible: into a historic landmark. In 2019, “Blessed are those who hunger and its members initiated a heritage thirst for righteousness, for they process through Rio de Janeiro’s will be filled.”

State Institute of Cultural Heritage (INEPAC). However, in the middle Religion Under Attack of the pandemic, with the INEPAC process delayed, Mayor Reis Candomblé is considered one of reiterated the city’s plans to turn the strongest vestiges of African the site into a nursery. So on July 21, heritage in a country where 50% 2020, Ms. Francisco and two other of its 212 million people are Afrodescendants. It is estimated that state congresspeople proposed a bill to make the land where Mr. only 1.5% of Brazilians practice Candomblé, but the religion’s Goméia’s Candomblé terreiro once symbolism and imagery can be stood a state heritage site.

Before his death 50 years ago, the site attracted journalists, artists, and high-ranking politicians who sat high on balconies to watch its elaborate festivals and ceremonies.

“He welcomed nonbelievers just as much as he welcomed believers,” says Ms. Caxi, who was chosen to be a Candomblé priest when she was a baby. She established the Goméia Commission in 2003 to preserve the memory of Mr. Goméia and calls his lifework “a true social project.”

His message of justice resonated with Ms. Francisco too. She grew up in Rio de Janeiro’s Borel favela, a majority-black hill settlement where most residents live in precarious housing and have limited access to public services.

So when a massive landslide in Rio killed dozens in her community in 1988 when she was a teen, she spent sleepless days and nights helping families. She calls this moment the birth of her activism.

From then on, she fought for

found in festivals, holidays, and carnivals. Still, society has not always been open to Candomblé – and at times, downright hostile.

In recent years Candomblé practitioners have come under increasing attacks from adherents of evangelical Christianity, who helped lift right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro to office. In 2019, local media tallied 201 Candomblé religious facilities destroyed or ransacked nationwide, the majority in Rio de Janeiro. For example, the

Terreiro da Goméia in the town of Duque de Caxias came under threat by Mayor Washington Reis, who announced he wanted to build a daycare on the sacred site.

He called such temples “corners of witchcraft” just this year.

The site is not just fundamental to the religious practices of Candomblé but to “the struggle and resistance of the black population and for the dissemination of African and Afro-Brazilian culture in the country, ensuring the right to identity and memory,” it reads.

Amid this bill and mounting media attention and demonstrations, Mayor Reis backed down a week later. But Ms. Francisco did not stop there. She also proposed

This article was produced with the support of the USC Center for Religion.

another bill to make March 27, Mr. Goméia’s birthday, the State Day of Awareness Against Religious Racism, and Joãozinho da Goméia Day. (Evangelical politicians attempted unsuccessfully to amend the bill with a proposal to remove Mr. Goméia’s name.) “Putting his name on the day not only represents the fight against religious racism but also against racism, against homophobia, against prejudice,” says Ms. Francisco. “It’s defending territories that are occupied and built by black people.”

In April of this year, both bills were passed, paving the way for the complete landmark status of the terreiro in September by INEPAC. It is only the second Candomblé site to receive such status in Rio de Janeiro. “I believe that Terreiro da Goméia has a cultural and symbolic relevance on a national level,” says Leon Araújo, director of the Department of Intangible Heritage at INEPAC. While the Goméia Commission plans how to use the landmarked site to pay homage to Mr. Goméia properly, Ms. Francisco continues her political work against religious racism through a state committee investigating all religious intolerance. “This was an episode; tomorrow comes another, and we will fight it again,” Ms. Francisco says. “With my militancy, I couldn’t be far from this fight.

I would be there whether or not I was a politician. Coming from where I come from and with my journey, I have a responsibility to do everything I can.”

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You Cannot Manage Time Byron Washington, Columnist

Have you ever heard somebody say you have 1,440 minutes in a day, and we can use those minutes wisely or waste them? The statement is partially accurate but is also misleading. The saying motivates us to consider our time and how we use it. However, none of us can actively use all 24 hours (1,440 minutes) daily. At best, we can utilize 17 or 18 hours, assuming we do not have other responsibilities and remember we must sleep. In addition, some actions and activities are not flexible, so our time may be even more constrained.

Here is the reality - stop focusing on time management and focus on priority management. Time will happen regardless of what you or I do. If you stop reading this article and close your eyes, time will continue to move. The issue we have is not time; it is the management of the priorities in our life. If you are familiar with the game Tetris, you can equate each piece to a priority we have in our life. We have to manage the pieces (our priorities) and have them fit together efficiently within the time available. The words of Johan Wolfgang von Goethe ring true, “Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things

which matter least.” Likewise, John reminds us that, “We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work” (John 9:4).

In my training on priority management, I instruct people to identify the area they want to prioritize. I begin by having participants write down the daily activities they handle at work and then identify how much time they have in the day to do those tasks. For example, if the person works from 8 a.m.-5 p.m., they have 9 hours for their work priorities. Then, I have the participants allocate time to

complete each activity. Finally, we will work through a series of other steps to better understand how their time at work is spent and discover ways to reorganize or prioritize their responsibilities to maximize their time.

Understanding what we prioritize, how much time we have, and what we spend our time on is helpful in the long run for better priority management. However, guessing and not having a process of outlining your priorities will continue to frustrate the individual and leave them feeling overwhelmed. I understand some issues arise and other variables that

I cover in my training, but the basis is that we manage priorities more than time.

See what your priorities or responsibilities are and begin to identify how much time you truly have available. We can use this process for work, church, or personal growth. Of course, there are some things we cannot change; however, an individual can augment their life to get maximum utility out of the allotted time. For more information on priority management, visit my podcast, The Leadership Ledge, available on all streaming platforms. ❏❏❏

THE TRUTH IS THE LIGHT Reverend Dr. Charles R. Watkins, Jr., Columnist

Based on Biblical Text: Acts 5:27-32 (NRSV) When they had brought them, they had them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them, 28 saying, “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you are determined to bring this man’s blood on us.” 29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than any human authority.

30 The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. 31 God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.

32 And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.”

27

Religious freedom has been the driving force for our government. In fact, our founding fathers modeled the laws established by elected officials and appointed judges after the morality established by God in the Holy Bible. Up until the 20th century, few in America would even consider challenging such laws. However, we find ourselves at a period in history when it appears that as we press to maximize our freedoms, we seem intent on challenging even God. We exist in a country founded by men whose God led them to draft a constitution affirming that God is no respecter of persons, but we have become no respecter of God. Consequently, our affirmations now challenge biblical morality on every front. Religious symbols and scripture have to be removed from public places. The sanctity of marriage is challenged daily. State social

workers have the authority to remove children from a home where parents exercise corporal punishment (spanking). Our communal retreat from the sanctity of God begs the question: What is a Christian to do?

The answer is simple. For those of us who are “the called according to God’s purpose,” we are mandated to preserve the Word of God at any cost. But how far will we go to defend our cause for Christ? Our text reminds us, “We must obey God rather than any human authority.” Peter and John have taken a stand for the Lord. Despite warnings of imprisonment and even death, they have preached the unadulterated Word of God in city after city. Now they find themselves standing before the Jewish high court for the first time. It is one thing to challenge the political authorities, but it is treacherous to challenge the religious hierarchy.

As Christians, we need to realize that we can sometimes do the right thing and end up guilty before the law yet innocent before God. Many of us have lived through a time where bold men and women worked to further the mission of God, infuriating man. Willing to stand against racial prejudice, oppression, and segregation that was the law of the land, Martin Luther King, Jr., went to prison, though he remained innocent before God. Likewise, principals and teachers establish God’s order in their schools and classrooms despite the federal separation of church and state.

It is never a light thing to break the laws of our nation; however, there are times when, like the

Apostles in Jerusalem, “We must obey God rather than any human authority.” It is then we exhibit our respect for God, and it is the only way to preserve God’s Word for our future generations.

The Bible warns us, declaring, “Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the Law, till all be fulfilled” (Matthew 5:18). A “jot” is the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet.

Jesus used this example to emphasize the importance of preserving even the seemingly most insignificant words of the Bible. The “tittle” is a small hook or horn that distinguishes one Hebrew letter from another. The rabbis attached great importance to these marks since altering them could change the entire meaning of a word or phrase. In the same way, Jesus warned that the Word of God would not, could not, and must not be altered.

Peter and John’s ministry did not fail Christ.

Will we? Will we ignore the condemnation of sin when our government endorses it? Will we shy away from the challenge of facing off against the political enemies of God? Christ is seated at the throne of God, and he is waiting for the church to take its stand. We must be bold. Now is no time for lukewarm Christianity! It is time to reach our boiling point and stand for the Lord. It is time to get back to doing things God’s way.

When terrorism strikes, tearing at the very fiber of our faith, the church of Jesus ...continued on p32

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Mothers of the Nations and the Significant Emergence of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson Angelique Walker-Smith

At that time Deborah, a prophet, wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel. —Judges 4:4 Before Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson—or any of the people who have served or currently serve on the U.S. Supreme Court—there were judges like Deborah in the Bible. She lived from approximately 1107 B.C. to 1067 B.C. and was known as a prophetess, a wife to Lappidoth, and a judge and “a mother in Israel.”

The Brazilian Old Testament scholar Dr. Claude Mariottini states: “Deborah became known as ‘a mother in Israel’ because she was regarded by the people of Israel as a woman of exceptional character, a woman who used her skills to help the people and to defend her nation, a woman who identified with the people in their suffering, and a woman whose strong leadership aroused the leaders of the tribes of Israel to resist their oppressors and whose enthusiasm inspired the people to rise up to fight for their nation.”

Sadly, Deborah is the only woman referred to as “a mother in Israel” in the Old or New Testaments.

But I propose there are many “mothers of the nations” today—women who have been and continue to be resilient and committed to Dr. Mariottini’s description of what Judge Deborah stood for.

Mother’s Day is a day when the public celebrates this. The day is celebrated in more than 50 countries, although not all countries celebrate it on the same day.

At the same time, “mothers of the nations” remain underrepresented in publicly elected or appointed roles of national governance. This challenge is particularly acute when considering the few numbers of African women and women of African descent.

As of January 3, 2021, black women comprised less than 5% of all members of the United States Congress; black women comprised only 18% of all women in Congress and only 43% of black members of Congress. From when Shirley Chisholm (D-NY) became the first black woman elected to Congress in 1968 to the start of the 117th Congress, just 47 black women have served in Congress from only 21 states.

It was only in 2020 that we elected our first woman to the vice presidency in the United States, former Senator Kamala Harris, who is of African and Indian descent.

Beyond our shores, there have only been ten acting, interim, or elected women presidents in Africa out of 54 African nations. In addition, only five African countries have had a woman Supreme Court judge.

In May, the National Trust for Historic Preservation unveils its much-anticipated annual list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places. The eleven sites on the 2022 list represent a powerful illustration of expansive American history. The wide range of cultures, histories, and geographies highlighted through the 2022 list help illustrate how telling the full story can help people see themselves reflected in our country’s multi-layered past.

“This year’s list illuminates elemental themes that have framed the story of our nation—the quest for individual freedom, the demand for fairness and equal justice, the insistence to have a voice in society, and the ongoing struggles to make these dreams a reality,” said Paul Edmondson, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. “These places give us a better understanding of our nation’s complex history and allow us to explore the ideas that continue to challenge us today. And, with each year’s list, we are making greater strides in our effort to expand the work of preservation to tell the full American story.”

Annually, this list spotlights important examples of our nation’s architectural and cultural heritage that, without applied action and immediate advocacy, will be lost or face irreparable damage. Due to the efforts of the National Trust and the passionate work of our members, donors, concerned citizens, nonprofit and for-profit partners, government agencies, and others, placement on the 11 Most list is often the saving grace for important cultural landmarks. In the 35-

year history of the America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places list, less than five percent of the more than 300 places spotlighted have been lost.

“These eleven endangered places are facing critical turning points, and if they are lost, we will have lost an important part of our collective story,” said Katherine Malone-France, the National Trust’s chief preservation officer. “By including them on this list, we have an opportunity to recognize their significance and fight to protect them, rather than watching them disappear from our national landscape and fade into memory. Through this year’s list, we help broaden American identity through places that tell the profoundly important stories, but many of them have been historically overlooked or deliberately obscured. Once remembered and recognized, they enrich and deepen our understanding of ourselves as individuals and as an American people.”

Brown Chapel AME Church in Selma, Alabama, played a pivotal role in the Selma to Montgomery marches that were instrumental to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Built in 1908 by formerly enslaved black builder A.J. Farley, Brown Chapel provided sanctuary to Civil Rights activists and church members as they convened to plan protests against African American voter disenfranchisement.

It also served as the starting point on March 7, 1965, when marchers—including the late Congressman John Lewis—attempted to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge,

Bread for the World celebrates the leadership of past, present, and future “mothers of the nations” and invites you to advocate with us at the upcoming Bread for the World Advocacy Summit/Pan African Consultation, June 6 - 7 at www.bread.org/ advocacysummit.

Angelique Walker-Smith is a senior associate for Pan African and Orthodox Church engagement at Bread for the World.

Photo by Ron Cogswell/Wikimedia Commons

Brown Chapel AME Church in Selma Tops List of America’s 11 Most Endangered Places

Only recently has the United States confirmed its first woman of African descent as a Supreme Court justice, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson—but not without challenge. Her contested emergence reminds us that advocating for change to racialized gender disparities is not easy, but doing such moves us closer to ending hunger and poverty.

only to be beaten back by Alabama state troopers in an event historically known as “Bloody Sunday.”

The recent discovery of severe termite damage has forced Brown Chapel to close its doors to its active congregation and visiting the public for the foreseeable future. This closure impacts the church’s ability to serve its community. It leaves this National Historic Landmark and internationally known Civil Rights pilgrimage site unable to serve as a community resource, welcome guests, or host national events.

Although Brown Chapel has received funding and support from the National Park Service, the church needs additional funding to repair and re-open the building, which typically hosts thousands of visitors per year and offers weekly worship services and outreach programs such as community food distribution and COVID-19 support. Therefore, the historic Brown Chapel AME Church Preservation Society, Incorporated, is seeking partnerships, resources, and support to ensure this sacred site can continue to serve its community and the nation as a beacon of hope for change and equality. ❏ ❏ ❏

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CONGRATULATORY Announcements *Purple font connotes Episcopal Family; Red font, General Officers; and Blue font, Connectional Officers.

AME Minister the Reverend Dr. Dee Dawkins-Haigler, Candidate for Georgia Secretary of State Receives Noble Peace Prize Nomination for Global Leadership Dee Dawkins-Haigler, Democratic Party, is running for election for Georgia Secretary of State. Dawkins-Haigler is on the ballot in the Democratic primary on May 24, 2022. DawkinsHaigler (Democratic Party) was a member of the Georgia House of Representatives, representing District 91. Dawkins-Haigler assumed office in 2008. Dawkins-Haigler left office in 2017.

The Honorable Roysdale A. Ford, member of Parliament in Guyana and one of her nominators for the Peace Prize, states, “Dr. Dee DawkinsHaigler has been instrumental in the fight for Afro Guyanese gaining full access to government and global resources. She has been an ally in trying to ensure that equitable, sustainable economic development is achieved for all Guyanese, which would level the playing field and get many Afro Guyanese people back to work and out of poverty.”

The Honorable Dee Dawkins-Haigler is a champion for women and girls empowerment and continuously works on behalf of assisting vulnerable populations throughout the global village, states Representative Laura Hall (AL), president-elect of the National Black Caucus of State Legislators (NBCSL), who recently presented a resolution to Dawkins-Haigler in the Alabama House of Representatives. Representative Hall has accompanied her to countries such as Nigeria, Guyana, and United Arab Emirates and knows firsthand the work she does to eradicate poverty by providing for orphans and empowering widows with micro-grants to help them start small businesses with proceeds from two of her literary works - A Message to Our Daughters: Turning Trials in Triumphs and Empower Her: Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Development.

Dawkins-Haigler, a Goodwill ambassador and global connector, not only travels extensively throughout Africa and the Caribbean, she also facilitates visits from world leaders to visit Georgia, New York, and Washington, D.C. to further build diplomacy and trade. Dr. Ken Giami, publisher of African Leadership Magazine, the largest and most respected publication centered around global leadership in the world, states it best, the Honorable Dee Dawkins-Haigler has a unique way of making everyone feel that we are truly a

global village by bridging the gap between those on the continent of Africa with those living in the diaspora. She has been an ally as it relates to diplomacy and creating strategic economic partnerships to help close wealth gaps for people of African descent.

She dedicates her life to fighting for social justice and human rights issues that promote peace and economic stability. She is hailed as a champion and catalyst for systemic change by working with various world leaders and political regimes throughout Africa and the Caribbean, assisting them with tangible ways of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) outlined and approved by the United Nations. Her work has focused on the eradication of poverty, gender equality, affordable and clean energy, and quality education to just name a few.

Dee is the founder/president of the Organization of World Leaders (OWL), a consortium of leaders in government, law, business, health, finance and politics dedicated to working together to build alliances for economic sustainability and growth in Africa and the diaspora. She is also the chief ambassador to the United Nations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for the Center of Economic Leadership and Development (CELD) in New York, Geneva, and Vienna. She is the founder of One Georgia which is dedicated to bringing together clergy, elected officials, social and civic groups, Civil Rights organizations, and fraternities and sororities for the collective purpose of promoting issues salient to the African American and Hispanic communities with a special emphasis on economic justice and parity.

In addition to the above work, Dee is the organizer of the Minority Cannabis Coalition (MCC), an organization dedicated to promoting equity and access in the cannabis industry.

Dee is an advocate in the fight against human trafficking, domestic violence, and teen dating violence which led her to produce the documentary/drama “Black Girls Die Too: The Back Page Murders,” which chronicles the death of fourteen black women murdered as a result of using online human/sex trafficking websites such as Back Page. Dee is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Top Ladies of Distinction, National Council of Negro Women, and the Order of Eastern Star. She is a past regional officer for Jack and Jill of America and is president of the East

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MAY 2022 Metro Orchids. Dee resides in Lithonia, Georgia.

She is married to her college sweetheart, Colonel David Haigler, Jr. and they have four children: Christopher, Christyn, Hannah, and Joshua, and two grandchildren, Amari and Kingston.

She is an ordained elder in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, celebrating 25 years in ministry, and serves at First Saint Paul AME Church, Lithonia, Georgia, in the 6th Episcopal District, the Rev. Dr. Marvin Crawford, pastor.

Messages of commendations and congratulations can be emailed to: dawkhaig7@aol.com.

Dr. Herman O. Kelly, Jr. Named a Game Changer by Humana at the 2022 Senior National Games in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida Dr. Herman O. Kelly, Jr. was named a game changer

by Humana at the 2022 Senior National Games in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. He was one of 12 named and one of two swimmers named for this award.

The award is given every two years at the Senior Games to persons who work toward healthy living and community service. Dr. Kelly has competed in two senior games, and he has an annual fundraiser for cancer, entitled Swim For Linda.

Presently, he is seven-time state champion in the Louisiana Senior Games. This prestigious award is given to persons 50 and over who work hard toward exercise and healthful living.

Dr. Kelly is the pastor of Bethel AME Church in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Congratulatory comments can be emailed to: spidermh7@yahoo.com.

The Rev. Dr. Mark L. Griffin Honored by the Step-by-Step 4 Help Foundation, Inc. Congratulations are extended to the Reverend Dr. Mark L. Griffin on the occasion of being honored by the Step-by-Step 4 Help Foundation, Inc. with their 2022 Community Hero Humanitarian Award at their Shades of Green Inaugural Gala held on Sunday, May 22, 2022, at the Schultz Center in Jacksonville, FL. Dr. Griffin serves as the servant leader of Wayman Temple AME Church (ONE Church - TWO Locations), Jacksonville, Florida (East Conference - 11th Episcopal District).

Congratulatory messages may be sent to: Dr. Mark L. Griffin Email: mgriffin@wayman.org

On behalf of Publications Commission chair Bishop David Rwhynica Daniels, Jr., president/publisher of the AMEC Publishing House (Sunday School Union) the Rev. Dr. Roderick D. Belin, and editor of The Christian Recorder Mr. John Thomas III, we celebrate and applaud your achievements.

“For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 (NRSV) To share or receive information about Connectional clergy family bereavements and congratulations, please contact the AME Church Clergy Family Information Center. Mrs. Ora L. Easley, administrator • 5981 Hitching Post Lane • Nashville, TN 37211 • 615.833.6936 (CFIC Office) • amecfic. org • facebook.com/AMECFIC ❏ ❏ ❏

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NECROLOGY Listings

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*Purple font connotes Episcopal Family; Red font, General Officers; and Blue font, Connectional Officers.

The Reverend Edward Samuel Townsend,who served as a local elder at Mount Teman AME Church, Elizabeth, New Jersey of the New Jersey Annual Conference of the First Episcopal District

The Reverend Earlie L. Leonard, the father of the Reverend Irvin Leonard, pastor of St. Paul AME Church, Tuscumbia, Alabama in the Ninth Episcopal District, AME Church

Judge Patricia M. Mayberry, president, Judicial Council, African Methodist Episcopal Church, the sister of Presiding Elder Harold R. Mayberry, chair of the Episcopal Committee of the African Methodist Episcopal Church

The Reverend Cosmas Wakunguma, presiding elder of Lusaka East District and administrative assistant to the bishop in the South East Zambia Annual Conference of the Seventeenth Episcopal District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church

The Reverend Carl E. Wade, retired itinerant elder, New Jersey Annual Conference of the First Episcopal District, and the husband of Mrs.Carolyn Wade, past president of the New Jersey Conference Women’s Missionary Society Ms. VanKeila Simmons,daughter of the Rev. Vandy and Dr. Bonita Simmons, pastor of Antioch AME Church, Stone Mountain, GA, Sixth Episcopal District Sis. Tiffany L. Penso, the daughter of presiding elder emeritus, the Reverend William A. Dyson and Dr. Marianne Dyson, former Christian Education director of the Norfolk Eastern Shore District of the Virginia Conference, Second Episcopal District

Mrs. Edith Veronica Palmore, the mother of Mrs. Renée Palmore Beaman, Episcopal supervisor, Fifteenth Episcopal District, and Jennifer Palmore Jones of Atlanta, Georgia, and the mother-inlaw of Bishop Silvester Scott Beaman, presiding prelate, Fifteenth Episcopal District The Reverend Julia G. Combay, pastor of St. James AME Church, an ordained deacon in 1984 and later ordained elder in the Fourteenth Episcopal District, AMEC Mrs. Arletia Kirkland Vandegrift of Birmingham, Alabama, a faithful member of Nichols Chapel AMEC and a gifted musician; the sister of Bishop T. Larry

Kirkland, the 114th elected and consecrated bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church The Reverend Haywood Bellamy of Seale, Alabama, age 76, husband of Sister Amanda Bellamy, and a retired pastor in the Phenix City District, Northeast Alabama Conference of the Ninth Episcopal District Sister Mary Walton, the mother of the Reverend Everette S. Hobson, Sr., and the mother-in-law of the Reverend Barbara Hobson, pastors of Martin Chapel AME Church, Clarksville, TN, Thirteenth Episcopal District The Reverend Ouida Parks-Pierson, former pastor of several churches, and a faithful member of the Oklahoma State Annual Conference, becoming a superannuated minister in the Twelfth Episcopal District, Oklahoma State Annual Conference in October of 2012 Mr. Isaac Hugger, the brother of Bishop Michael Leon Mitchell, presiding prelate, Twelfth Episcopal District, African Methodist Episcopal Church

Condolences to the bereaved are expressed on behalf of Publications Commission chair Bishop David R. Daniels, Jr., president/publisher of the AMEC Publishing House (Sunday School Union) the Rev. Dr. Roderick D. Belin, and editor of The Christian Recorder, Mr. John Thomas III. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” Matthew 5:4 (NRSV) To share or receive information about Connectional clergy family bereavements and congratulations, please contact the AME Church Clergy Family Information Center. Mrs. Ora L. Easley, administrator • 5981 Hitching Post Lane • Nashville, TN 37211 • 615.833.6936 (CFIC Office) • amecfic. org •facebook.com/AMECFIC ❏ ❏ ❏

200th Session of the New York Annual Conference of the African Methodist Episcopal Church — State of the Country Report April 26, 2022 — May 1, 2022 Greetings, Bishop Julius Harrison McAllister, Supervisor Joan Marla McAllister, Presiding Elders Guyton, Owings, and Anderson, pastors, delegates, and members of the 200th Session of the New York Annual Conference. James Baldwin said, “To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a state of rage almost all of the time.” We are in rage when we account for the disproportionate impact that COVID-19 had on black and brown communities as we face nearly 1 million deaths since March 2020. We are in rage that black women are three times more likely to die during childbirth due to health disparities such as access to quality health care and structural racism.

We are in rage when we survey the state of our crumbling democracy and the assault on the fundamental right to vote. The violent insurrection on January 6, 2021, was an attempt to overturn the peaceful transfer of power and install a fascist dictator in the United States. Unprecedentedly, 19 states have enacted 34 laws across the country targeting early voting and absentee ballots to suppress the vote in direct response to the overwhelmingly black and brown turnout that elected the first black woman, Vice President Kamala D. Harris, to the second highest position in the land, We are in rage with gross inequity across the nation that leads to a widening racial wealth gap that leaves black households with 12% of the household wealth of whites. We are in rage as we are on the precipice of a catastrophic nuclear war with Russia over the crisis in Ukraine. But unfortunately, the constant escalation of rhetoric between global war powers and the insatiable transfer of wealth and weapons are not pathways to peace. It is evident that humanity’s inventions of poverty, militarism, and racism are harmful to the climate as we bear witness to disastrous environmental devastation and decay. We are approaching an

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ECUMENICALNEWS

The Beloved Community and the Heresy of White Replacement Robert P. Jones

At approximately 2:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, a white supremacist terrorist— motivated by a fear that whites are being “replaced” by immigrants and the growth of nonwhite Americans—massacred ten people and injured three others in a predominately black neighborhood in Buffalo, New York. As this 18-year-old young man unleashed a deadly barrage of more than 70 rounds from an assault rifle with the N-word emblazoned on the barrel, I was sitting on a hill in Mendota Heights, Minnesota.

I was learning more about how central demographic and cultural replacement have been to white supremacy in this country—plainly evident in the systematic genocide and removal of Native Americans from their historic lands by white European settlers, backed by our nation’s military and government. You can see the violent logic of white replacement in the soil itself and in the competing names assigned to that hill, a 350-foot high bluff overlooking the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers.

In documented history back to the early 1800s and oral Native American traditions reaching much farther, this land was known as Oheyawahi (“the place much visited”). It served as a sacred burial and ceremonial space for the Dakota people. Early French fur traders acknowledged it as La Butte des Morts (“hill of the dead”). As white settlers increased in Minnesota in the mid-1800s, the place became known in English as Pilot Knob because its geographic distinctiveness allowed riverboat captains, with their cargoes of goods and guns, to safely mark their position on their missions supporting white proliferation along the great rivers.

journey that requires a confrontational truth-telling. The liberation and healing of the oppressed. Repentance and conversion of the oppressor. The building of the beloved community.

After the immediate shock of the shootings abated, those words came back to me: repentance and conversion, the healing of both the oppressed and the oppressor—the building of the beloved community.

We white Christians have learned these words. I mean, we know them.

And we love to quote them in Januaries. But we must, once and for all,

“Beyoncé Mass,” George Floyd Square, May 14, 2022.

In 1925, the Masons purchased most of the hill and christened “Acacia Cemetery” after a sprig used in Masonic funeral ceremonies. Early advertisements declared that the land was to be “dedicated to the exclusive and perpetual use of Masons and their families.” An extensive landscaping and monument construction plan removed more than 20 vertical feet from the top of the hill, a process that conveniently cleansed the land of most Native American remains. Unfortunately, some bones, most of which likely belonged to the Dakota people, were collected haphazardly in a vault at the periphery of the property when they marred the landscaping plan or trespassed on a purchased white burial plot.

After the tour, I left Mendota Heights for a different kind of sacred space, George Floyd Square in Minneapolis. I had learned, serendipitously (or perhaps providentially), that my visit would coincide with an outdoor performance of “Beyoncé Mass,” a womanist worship service—curated by the Rev. Yolanda Norton, the H. Eugene Farlough chair of Black Church Studies at San Francisco Theological Seminary—that uses the music and life of Beyoncé to foster an empowering conversation about black women.

Memorials to George Floyd and other victims of police violence. George Floyd Square, Minneapolis, MN.

After getting over my self-consciousness as a white man in this space, lifting and honoring black women, I fell into the worship experience. I had not heard the horrific news about Buffalo yet. But Rev. Dr. Norton’s sermon, and the experience of passing the peace and taking communion among that gathering of 80 or so people from all walks of life, sustained me when I finally heard that yet another person who looks like me committed an act of racial violence.

I am sure the Rev. Dr. Norton had not heard the news either, but her words were prophetic. Or perhaps that is not even the right word. In our current context, this is simply a description of lived reality.

There is always a Pharaoh who will arise over Egypt. Everywhere I look, I see pharaohs arising. People committed to death dealing and who are not life giving. There are people who have decided that if you are not part of their tribe, there is nothing valuable about you.

Everywhere I look, I see pharaohs arising. People committed to the death of black people.… Everywhere I look, I see Pharaoh.

But over the opening notes of Beyoncé’s “Halo,” which preceded communion, the Rev. Dr. Norton also offered these words of hope: Repentance is not a one-time thing but a developmental process, a

“This is a Sacred Space.” Handmade sign outside of Cup Foods in George Floyd Square, Minneapolis, MN. get clear about the stakes before we again utter mere lip service to the Rev. Dr. King’s vision.

The beloved community is the repudiation of the violent

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theology of replacement germinating in white supremacy. We white Christians must figure out how to drag ourselves and our peers to kneel at the altar of repentance. We must confess our complicity in the heretical and only half-unconscious belief that God has ordained whites to replace—that is to kill and displace—others and that, once accomplished, white dominance is to be perpetually preserved as the divinely approved state of affairs. ...From The Beloved p26

Here’s a simple test to assess our communities. If our pastors and Sunday School leaders did not talk this Sunday about the ten human beings killed by white supremacy and justified by a depraved vision of European Christendom, we are responsible. If even our confrontations with our congregations about our complicit silence are met with a collective shrug, white supremacy is being blessed by our apathy.

The last words I heard while sitting on Oheyawahi with a group of white evangelicals came from the Rev. Jim Bear Jacobs, a member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican Nation and the director of racial justice for the Minnesota Council of Churches: I don’t need white Christians to be smarter. I need them to be better.

Through local activism, 125 acres of that sacred hill—including the land on which I sat Saturday—have been protected from additional desecration and development by being placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Under the watch of a local nonprofit, the land is being restored to an oak savannah, slowly healing from the wounds of the past.

The belief that America is a kind of promised land for European white Christians (a view held, by the way, by 52% of white evangelical Protestants and by more than one-third of white mainline Protestants and white Catholics) cannot coexist with the beloved community. We have to choose between these incompatible visions of America: one that replaces, one that shares, one that kills, one that heals. ❏ ❏ ❏

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The 12th Episcopal District Celebrates Mortgage Burning Years Ahead of Schedule A mighty spirit-filled “Celebration of God’s Faithfulness” took place Saturday, April 23, 2022, on the campus of Bethel AME Church, North Little Rock, Arkansas. Bishop Michael L. Mitchell, presiding prelate, Supervisor Cordelia D. Mitchell, along with members of the 12th Episcopal District joined together in recognizing Psalm 118:23, “This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes,” with a mortgage burning worship service for the Episcopal Headquarters, which also houses Jackson Theological Seminary.

Attendees gathered for an occasion that signifies the realization of a vision guided by a dedicated, benevolent, and selfless leader in the person of Bishop Michael L. Mitchell and documents the committed and faithful follow-ship of the people of the 12th Episcopal District. This mortgage burning is significant because the 12th Episcopal District was able to satisfy all debt and obligations associated with a potential thirty-year mortgage in five short years.

General co-chairman set the atmosphere, Presiding Elder Tyrone Broomfield, serving as worship leader, and the general chairman, Sister Melanie A. Hillard, extended a warm and heartfelt welcome to all in attendance. The 12th Episcopal District presidents of the Lay Organization and the Women’s Missionary Society, Sister Natalie Horton and Sister Thelma Denton, respectively, participated by leading the litany and scripture reading. Representatives from every conference were also included in the worship experience. The 12th Episcopal District choir offered beautifully befitting musical selections, further ushering in God’s presence. However, the congregation simply could not contain their praise as Bishop Mitchell spontaneously began singing a cappella, “Father, I Stretch My Hand to Thee!” The worship experience was taken even higher as retired Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie preached a powerful word, “Be the See Something and Say Something AME Church,” taken from the combined texts of Psalm 34:8, “Oh taste and see that the Lord is good” and Matthew 16:16, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.” Indeed, the works of the talented and dedicated Mortgage Burning Celebration Committee, as well as the support of the members of the 12th Episcopal District, were acknowledged as instrumental in executing a celebration honoring the marvelous thing God has done for the people of the 12th Episcopal District. ...continued on p29

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The mortgage burning celebration was the culmination of the 12th Episcopal District’s Called to Serve Holy Convocation, which began April 21, 2022. Bishop Mitchell assured those in attendance were spiritually fed through powerful preaching and teaching by the Reverend Dr. Patrick Clayborn, pastor, Bethel AME Church, ...From The 12th p28

The Christian Recorder Baltimore, Maryland. Throughout the convocation, dynamic messages were also given by the Reverend Tom Scott, pastor, St. Paul AME Church, Arkadelphia, Arkansas, and the Reverend Elijah Shafah, pastor, Avery Chapel AME Church, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. In addition, it was a blessing to have guest psalmists,

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the Reverends Patricia and Tracy McGeathey, St. Stephen, Jacksonville, Florida; Chief Financial Officer Marcus and Yolanda Henderson, executive director of Global Witness and Ministry the Reverend Dr. John F. Green, president/dean, Turner Theological Seminary, the Reverend Dr. Ammie Davis, and Connectional

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Women in Ministry president the Reverend Dr. Erika Crawford, to come and share. Truly this historic occasion in the life of the 12th Episcopal District was an exemplary celebration of God’s unyielding faithfulness to his people, and we look forward to the wondrous works he has yet to perform. ❏ ❏ ❏

— 19th Episcopal District — In April of this year, the Kwa-Zulu Natal province of South Africa was impacted by heavy flooding that killed at least 435 persons across the province and caused more than 17 billion South Africa Rand (US$1 billion) in damages. The 19th Episcopal District under the leadership of Bishop Ronnie E. Brailsford, Sr. engaged in relief efforts through the Women’s Missionary Society, Sons of Allen, and Lay Organization. These are photos from the donations made throughout the province. ❏ ❏ ❏

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existential deadline for the planet to reduce carbon emissions, end deforestation, and transition to a clean energy economy.

...From 200TH p25

We are in rage because the state of our country is in disrepair. Yet, we, the 200th Session of the New York Annual Conference, believe in the power of holy rage to transform society, as evidenced by the witness of Jesus Christ turning over the tables of money changers in the temple. It is with righteous indignation that we commit to bringing forth revolutionary witness during these unprecedented times. We must resist through committing ourselves to radical love in action through the power of non-violence.

We must recommit ourselves to training our youth, congregations, and communities on the power of our history as change agents who have braved slavery, Jim Crow lynchings, segregation, and the great migration to resist mass incarceration, anti-critical race theory, voter suppression, and economic inequity.

Therefore, we, the members of the 200th Session of the New York Annual Conference, proudly proclaim the Renaissance is NOW as we redeem the soul of America.

We recommend that each church engages in the “Resurrect the Vote” campaign to register, educate, and mobilize voters leading to the midterm elections on November 8, 2022.

We recommend that each church hosts a freedom school to train youth and young adults in the history and struggle for black liberation this summer during Vacation Bible School or Church School.

Humbly Submitted, Reverends: Stephen A. Green, Kahlil James, Tamoya Buckley-David, Tyra Frazier, Sanayi Beckles Canton, Anna Marie Posey Delegates: Vanessa Sherwood, Dianne Mack, Denise Badger ❏ ❏ ❏

fact book, also known as the Annual Statistical Abstract and the Fact Sheet of quick data. ❖ Coordinate data collection for national and international research and related studies; and ensures compliance with requirements of the National Commission on Higher Education. ❖ Provide consultation to relevant University faculty and staff on research methodology, data management, and data analysis and interpretation and advise relevant bodies, including the president’s cabinet and Council, on data assessment trends. ❖ Coordinate continuing research studies in conjunction with relevant faculty and administrators and present research results to appropriate bodies. ❖ Establish and maintain an integrated working relationship with other colleges and universities and the National Commission on Higher Education. ❖ Perform other tasks as assigned by supervisor. ...From Vacancy p8

III. EDUCATIONAL AND WORK EXPERIENCE ❖ The candidate should have a Terminal Degree in research or related discipline with 5 years of working experience with a recognized university. ❖ The candidate should demonstrate computer proficiency, including the use of Microsoft, Excel, PowerPoint, and others.

IV. OTHER SKILLS AND PROFICIENCIES ❖ Innovative and equipped with analytical, technical, and critical thinking skills. ❖ Attention to detail. ❖ Written communication skills. ❖ Act with honesty and integrity. ❖ Ability to develop and maintain a strong professional relationship with internal and external stakeholders and work effectively with all categories of employee. ❖ Very good presentation skills.

V. OTHER REQUIREMENTS Occasionally required to ❖ Work outside normal working hours to meet the deadline of crucial projects. ❖ Carry out physical or light field duties. ❖ Provide support for meetings after normal working hours. ❏ ❏ ❏

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EDITORIAL

Smoke in the Room John Thomas III, Editor

Enron. Bernie Madoff. Stanford Investments. Fyre Fest. Theranos. The last 20 years have been filled with examples showing how corporate governance structures can be manipulated to hide fraud and perpetuate schemes stealing millions upon millions of dollars. In each of the instances cited, gaps in corporate oversight led to executives being able to defraud consumers and clients. Board members did not have sufficient skill sets to supervise the executives adequately or were not given all the information to make the appropriate judgments. These examples of corporate greed continue to have repercussions to this day.

When we see these issues in the secular world, we immediately wonder why no questions were asked and if people truly did not know what was going on.

“How could someone take (insert amount here) and no one know anything?”

In each of these stories, one learns of whistleblowers at all levels of the company who saw red flags and warned of the potential consequences—but they were ridiculed and silenced by a culture that would not tolerate dissent because the image had to be preserved.

Manipulation of governance structures not only happens in the secular world. Recent revelations regarding maladministration of the Department of Retirement Services and the Connectional Lay Economic Development Corporation (CLEDC) should give us all pause. While the amount impacted is smaller than the corporations I have mentioned, the behaviors are sadly the same. We find poorly supervised executives with boards who were given insufficient information and misled into authorizing actions that led to massive losses of capital and confidence. Across the breadth of the African

Methodist Episcopal Church, from the local to Episcopal District levels, we have heart-breaking stories of properties being lost and monies being misappropriated due to a culture that does not question leadership but simply follows.

John Thomas III “You will know the truth, and the truth will 21ST Editor of The Christian Recorder make you free” (John 8:32 NRSV). These are the words of Jesus Christ, and we know that indeed there is freedom in truth. Yet, what happens when the truth is that the financial actions being taken are improper and unwise? We cannot talk about symptoms without attacking the larger issue in the AME Church culture of equating legitimate questions with obstructing leadership. We have confused respectful dissent with rebellious discord. To be sure, there are those who do not want to see progress and are more concerned with earthly power than Kingdom building. Yet, more often than not, the questions come from loyal clergy and laity who rightfully want to protect the assets of their congregation and Annual Conference for future generations instead of seeing them siphoned off for current gain.

As heirs of the Free African Society, the Connectional AME Church is imbued with a spirit of economic empowerment and community uplift. We are to be our brother’s and sister’s keeper. The culture of silence that reigns throughout our church must be repudiated. There is smoke in the room, and unless the fire is put out, everyone will suffocate. ❏ ❏ ❏

Christ should be moved to action. The church must take the lead as we see our neighbors pouring into the streets with lighted candles, searching for answers and not knowing where to look. The church must be at the forefront as we witness our communities forced to their knees by overwhelming circumstances, yet many do not know how to pray or to whom. Our country, our community, and many times even our homes are being attacked by those who despise our God, and still, on Sunday morning, many of our churches remain half-full as they were before COVID-19. Has the church of Jesus Christ lost its influence and impact on America? ...From The Truth p21

It is time for the church to rise and be the leaders God has called us to be. We must make clear our vision and realign our priorities. We are challenged to revive our hearts and remold our attitudes. It is time for the church to submit to God’s authority with unyielding faith. We must rekindle our flame and boldly stand in the face of lies threatening our relationship with God. We are challenged to trust in God’s Word, believe in God’s power, and surrender to God’s will.

The Reverend Dr. Charles R. Watkins, Jr., is the pastor of James Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina.

closely at who is running for what offices around this country and in our own backyard. “We,” the people, must not lose control of the U.S. House of Representatives nor the U.S. Senate. The Senate hangs on “one” vote tied at 50/50 because of the two Independents that vote with the Democrats. ...From Roe v. Wade p16

We now know that what we saw with voter suppression laws in over 22 states was just the beginning. Roe v. Wade is the second step in the attack on Civil Rights following voter suppression. Next, we see references to changing such Constitutional rights as the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection and Due Process guarantees and provisions of the Civil Rights Act.

We should not get overwhelmed by the magnitude of the attacks but rather understand and remember that our votes represent the solutions to preserve our rights. Using the legislative process, Congress can reverse and codify any decisions made by the United States Supreme Court. But we must have the votes in the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate.

knows better than most, having spent 38 years in the U.S. Senate. Moreover, the Democrats in the Senate cannot be so afraid of losing control of the Senate in the next election that they allow McConnell, the Senate Minority leader, to continue to control the Senate because he controls the filibuster.

Suppose we return to the idea of killing the “Filibuster Rule” in the Senate, making it no longer necessary to have 60 votes instead of 50 plus one, with the vice president as the tiebreaker. In that case, we could get about the business of governance. President Biden did not fight hard enough to break the filibuster, and he

“We,” the people, must follow the example of the people of the state of Georgia and realize that “All Black Votes Matter” and must be voted and counted if we are to survive the lynching and extermination a few have planned for so many of us. Where do you stand? ❏ ❏ ❏