APRIL 2021
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VOLUME 170, NO. 7
APRIL 2021
SOARING BEYOND LIMITATION
By Bishop E. Anne Henning Byfield
The determination of any success of an organization is measured in part by its ability to endure challenges, llongevity, and be dynamic. To be dynamic is characterized by constant change, activity, or progress. The 116th District certainly meets this characterization during this devastating pandemic by following the 16th D District theme, “Soaring Beyond Limitation.” g g to waste” is appropriate to the work in Belize, Winston Churchill’s q quote “Never let a good crisis go Braz and Cuba. The pandemic served as Brazil, o an opportunity to do something we have not prev previously experienced. The 16th District is glad to report that a crisis has not gone to wast In addition to continuing missions we waste. serve in the various countries, extraordinary effor were realized. efforts On August 8, 2020, the Tabernacle of O Prai was officially established in Belize Praise City Belize. The Rev. Laurier Vaughn is the City, past pastor. This historic event was 20 years in the making by the fervent prayers and labor S of Sister Virginia Echols. ...continued on p2
INCLUSIVE LEADERSHIP MATTERS MATT By Rev. Dimpho Gaobepe, 19th Episcopal District
Martin Luther King, Jr. said: “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that m matter.” Robust discussions are taking place throughout the continent of Africa and the Diaspora focusing on issues surrounding the u upcoming 2021 General Conference and the elections of bishops and general officers of the AME Church. The epoch of slavery in the history of mankind remains one of the most poignant episodes that consolidated the drive for the e emancipation of the African people. The AME Church was an important instrument in uniting African people. Richard Allen, the activist and abolitionist, was born into slavery and went on to buy his freedom. Allen joined St. George’s Methodist C Church, which was predominantly white. He stoodHe stood for equal treatment for all and opposed slavery and segregation. He also b believed in economic justice, freedom, and inclusive leadership within the church Church and not love for power which is omnipresent i the disintegration and development of the schisms, factional groupings, and regional voting bloc in the AME Church today. in History teaches that since the establishment of the AME Church in the continent of Africa, there have been only five bishops elected a nothing is mentioned about any general officer elected from Districts 14-20. The first bishop from the continent of Africa, elected and in 1956, was Bishop F. H. Gow. The second, elected in 1984, was Bishop Harold Ben Senatle. In 2004, Bishops Wilfred J. Messiah, Paul J.M. Kawimbe, and David Daniels were elected out of a consensus called “The Covenant.” General Conferences held in 2008, 2012, and 2016 did not elect a single candidate outside the borders of the US. The floor was swept clean with impunity, once again, by the US Bloc. ...continued on p11
ARE WE THERE YET? THE 19TH EPISCOPAL DISTRICT The 19th Episcopal District has been known to be amongst the most peaceful and united districts within the entire Connection. However, a different picture was drawn into our disposal during the second-term tenure of Bishop Paul Mulenga Kawimbe, when we saw pastors who called themselves “Lekgotla” and some lay members of the church protesting and marching to the Episcopal headquarters in Johannesburg, on Phillip Street. The protest caught the South African media houses’ attention including South African Broadcasting Corporation News, where pastors of the 19th Episcopal District were protesting against Bishop Kawimbe and accusing him of maladministration ...continued on p32
AME Structures Gone Wild: AME Inc. and the Board of Incorporators/ Trustees… p3
Increase in a Time of Crisis… p6
Holding Biden Accountable…
p9
A CALL TO PRAYER By Rev. Mark Crutcher
Ephesians 6:18 says, “Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints.” Our nation and the world are caught in a pandemic crisis that has lasted longer than most of us envisioned when it began. The pandemic has brought a lot of uncertainty and grief to individuals, families, churches, and church organizations. The crisis has affected every part of our lives for over a year. In talking to people, I have discovered that scientists, doctors, the government, nor the church seem to know when it will end. However, as people of God, we must realize that we are not helpless or hopeless in the matter. God has given His people an avenue to deal with the pestilence that comes upon the world....continued on p23
Ash Wednesday Celebrated by Connectional Group of Young Adult Pastors … p13
56th Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee …
p20
Bearing the Cross … p27
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...From Sharing Beyond p1 Sister Echols is a life-long blood pressure checks. member of the AME Church, growing up in Vernon We thank God for Pastor Vaughn who joined the Chapel AME Church in Detroit, Michigan. After AME Church and was re-obligated in the Dominican serving the country of Liberia in the Peace Corps, she moved to Belize and tried to establish an AME Church. In 2017, after heeding her call and others, the 16th District took a mission team to Belize City. The team consisted of the Rev. Kenneth C. Christmon, the pastor of Turner Chapel AME Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana; the Rev. William L. Gary, the pastor of Wayman Chapel AME Church in Kokomo, Indiana; Mrs. Estella Shockley, the former president of the Missouri WMS and a missionary at Tri-Union AME Church in St. Louis, Missouri; and the Rev. Dr. Carlos Perkins, the then-pastor of Belize Church bible school St. Luke AME Church and the Rev. Carla Perkins, Belize the associate minister at St. Luke AME Church in St. Croix, Virgin Islands. The efforts consisted of supporting children and youth group homes, women’s and men’s prisons, and churches. After the inaugural mission, the 16th District— in partnership with Bethel AME Church in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where the Rev. Mashod Evans is the pastor and Pastor John F. White, the pastor of Immanuel Temple AME Church in Pembroke, Florida—continued the mission with significant contributions to building and rebuilding physical Belize worship structures for the elderly and continuing the Belize worship ongoing missions to the children, youth groups Republic Annual Conference. Tabernacle of Praise homes, and elderly homes. Bethel Ann Arbor continued the mission efforts supporting the also provided health fairs which included medical community with food and household supplies. education, basic dental and hygiene supplies, and Bishop John Franklin White introduced the AME
THECHRISTIANRECORDER.COM Church in Brazil at the 2016 General Conference. This work expanded in the pandemic particularly in Salvador, Bahia. Libertade AME Church and Caipe AME Church were established in various regions iin Salvador. These churches were motivated by the fforce of the Gospel in the heart of groups of black p people who, for a long time, prayed and planned ffor a church that combines spirituality, community eempowerment, and social justice. Many of the leaders of the church had been eexposed to Dr. James Cone and Dr. Dennis D Dickerson and saw the AME Church as a model ffor their work. After much prayer and discussion, tthe Rev. Dr. Pedro Acosta Leyva, Ph.D. and the R Rev. Walter Passo took steps to organize these two ccommunities to serve Liberdade and Caípe, in the renewal of Bahia, particularly in the Favellas. The R Rev. Leyva was re-obligated by the DominicanB Brazilian Conference in February 2021. Two other missions were established in the Rio JJanerio area. They are Seropegdica and Barata/ R Realengo. One of the significant goals of the 16th District sset was to re-establish the AME Church’s presence iin Cuba. Before the Cuban Revolution which eended in 1959, the AME Church had a productive w work in Cuba. The churches were active in the life o of our Zion, participating in various Connectional meetings including General Conferences. After the Revolution, contact with the churches in Cuba was lost. Since 2016, much prayer and work occurred with what appeared to be fruitless. ...continued on p13
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, 1722 Scovel Street, Nashville, TN 37208. Periodicals Postage Paid at Nashville, TN. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Christian Recorder, 1722 Scovel Street, Nashville, TN 37208. Subscription price is $36 per year. Single issues are $3.25. Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie, Chair of the General Board Commission on Publications Rev. Dr. Roderick D. Belin, President/Publisher, AMEC Sunday School Union Mr. John Thomas III, Editor, The Christian Recorder
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AME STRUCTURES GONE WILD: AME INC. AND THE BOARD OF INCORPORATORS/TRUSTEES By Bishop Jeffrey N. Leath, 13th District
For the last two decades, AME, Inc. quietly and secretly managed church affairs. For at least 12 years, there has been no report at the General Conference. Before that, I do not remember there being much substance to the report. The result is one of the most unaccountable entities in the denomination. While the masses are loving to hate the episcopacy, AME, Inc. is busy whisking significant matters before the General Board like a pea under the shell game. For over a year, I have tried to get the Council of Bishops to consider the following resolution. So far, it has not made it even to the table to be voted down. Predictably, the response from some of the trustees (formerly known as the Board of Incorporators) is “There are some good points there, we will think about it.” This is a typical adult reply to a child. So, help the kid out. Tell me what is radical or unreasonable about these requests. *** BE IT RESOLVED THAT, the Council of Bishops ask AME, Inc. to prepare an audit for the 51st consideration. They didn’t say a mumbling word. Session of the General Conference, Even the Statistics and Finance Committee was left in the dark. THAT, there should be a summary, without specific detail, of the numbers of The greatest disappointment of this quadrennium is the co-opting of the Sunday matters addressed, assets liquidated and other pertinent information to give the School Union assets without providing an endowment for a struggling sector in this Church a view of the activity, even if there is no identification of personalities in digital age. I wonder if AME, Inc. will meet the expectation of a debt-free facility sensitive cases, when the new AMEC Publishing House facility is dedicated. If not, that will be the THAT, the CFO and AME, Inc. should prepare an inventory of all real and second half of the greatest misdeed. How do you move over $3m without a provision financial assets of the Church to be received by the Council of Bishops and the for the future of publishing and leave a mortgage? Commission on Statistics and Finance as representative of the larger body for the Will the General Conference delegates respond to this? Since it will be new to sake of discretion and confidentiality by 1 June 2021, most, I hope they refuse to accept “we will address this later.” After all, we have just THAT, the Report to the General Conference should include asset values held by one chance every four years to speak to AME, Inc. on a level plane. AME, Inc. at the beginning of the quadrennium and at the end of the quadrennium, There are no child delegates to the General Conference. It is time to demand THAT, the Council of Bishops shall direct the CFO to assist AME, Inc. in every respect as mature human beings. For now, we may need an hour or two on the way to produce an accurate presentation of the real and financial assets of AME, Inc. General Conference Agenda for AME, Inc. *** AME, Inc. is less the servant of the will of the General Conference and the There have been 14 months to think about this. Isn’t it time for the people to authorized agent of church-directed administration. It looks more like a covering demand some answers about God’s church in our care? for elected officers to operate without scrutiny or restraint. What is the role of the No audits. No public reports. Veiled notices. Transfer of Deeds. Movement of board’s officers relative to the parallel general officers? An audit will be telling. The millions of dollars. Building a building. This is a partial executive summary of the ex-officio elected officers seem to have more function than one realizes. Of course, last 12 years of AME, Inc. as far as we know. Legal? Sadly, yes. Prudent, transparent, how do we really know when we do not get reports or see minutes? fair? You decide. Some things are inferred, though. The CFO clearly drives AME, Inc. If you ask At some point, the title to the Sunday School Union property located at 500 8th about this, you are told “that is the CFO’s job.” If you ask about that, the reply is Avenue South in Nashville, Tennessee, was transferred to AME, Inc. It has been “that is the exclusive domain of AME, Inc., and therefore only amenable to the mentioned that the same is true of the Retirement Services property in Memphis. General Conference.” In fact, it is the same person operating! The necessity of said transfers needs proper, public exposure. There may be a note Expose the documents. Is the CFO signing? Why? There is a chair, secretary, and here or there in General Board minutes but most AMEs do not know why. treasurer. Is the CFO overseeing many of the details surrounding the new building All AME property reverts to AME, Inc. as a part of the “in trust” relationship. construction? How did that come about? Why the departure from a century-old practice? Heretofore, properties have been If the “executives” of the church ever get to see audits and comprehensive reports, held by departments and annual conferences. When the New York City Mission they should study account organization and the internal checks and balances AME, House was sold, there was little discussion as to the destination of the proceeds. I Inc. has created. They should know when the church is being sued and why. Maybe, am not sure I agree with the conclusion. Where are those funds among the AME then, they can lead the church in requisite reforms. Perhaps they can learn from the assets today? Spent? Tell us about it! Let us have a complete narrative for the sake of errors of their colleagues or better manage the repercussions of their decisions or posterity before key figures retire. lack thereof. Ignorance is not bliss. It is painful, destructive, and expensive. The second greatest disappointment of this quadrennium is the secret planning Discreet management of certain matters is understandable. Everything need not and establishment of an endowment fund with a portion of the proceeds of the be so undisclosed, especially when public documents can tell much of the story sale of the Sunday School Union. AME, Inc.—not the AME Church, a specious despite the wishes of the obstructers. We must not tolerate misrepresentations of distinction we will address later—now owns a separate entity known as AME Future church law and sidewalk myths to support covert operations. The denomination is Fund, LLC. Did you read about this in The Christian Recorder? You know about overdue for informed discussion, valid interpretation, and constitutional revision. the initial investment, directors, and structure, right? Our trustees walked side-byThat is if there are adults in the room other than the autocratic elites. ❏ ❏ ❏ side with us down corridors at Connectional meetings knowing all of this was in
EARMARKS WILL FIX A BROKEN CONGRESS By Quardricos Driskell, Columnist
Discussions about bringing back earmarks have germinated on Capitol Hill in recent years. Now, House Appropriations Chairwoman Rosa DeLauro announced weeks ago her Committee’s plan to solicit members’ requests for earmarks, the system of designating funds for specific local projects, that’s been banned for a decade. Earmarks were eliminated in 2011 by Republicans who won the House with the Tea Party movement, who insisted the federal government tighten its spending. Infamously, the “bridge to nowhere” became the rallying symbol of why earmarks are wasteful and need to stop. While the Tea Party had more of a role in setting the stage, it was an intra-party agreement not to embed earmarks in appropriations. However, it seems all Republicans did not universally accept it. President Obama, however, had a significant hand in bringing on a de facto ban by declaring that he would veto any appropriations bill containing earmarks—essentially attempting to look as fiscally responsible and anti-pork as the Tea Party. Thus, there is bipartisan blame for the disappearance of the earmark. The reality is with
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AME CHURCH MEMBER INAUGURATED AS PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF BLACK POLITICAL SCIENTISTS On March 13, Tiffany Willoughby-Herard was inaugurated as the president of the National Conference of Black Political Scientists (NCOBPS) during the 52nd session of the Conference which was held virtually. She is an associate professor in the Department of African American Studies at the University of California, Irvine. Her research focuses on black political thought, black radical movements, and queer and trans sexualities. Before her inauguration, she serviced as president-elect (vice president) and will serve in her role until 2023. Willoughby-Herard authored the book Waste of a White Skin: The Carnegie Corporation and the Racial Logic of White Vulnerability (University of California Press 2015) and edited the volume Theories of Blackness: On Life and Death (Cognella 2011). She has published articles in Journal of Contemporary Thought; Cultural Dynamics; African Identities; Social Justice; National Political Science Review; Politics, Groups, & Identities; South African Review of Sociology, New Political Science, Race in Anthropology, focusing on intersectional topics in universities in the US and South Africa.
Willoughby-Herard is the former editor of the National Political Science Review (2016– 2019), current book review editor for Safundi: The Journal of South African and American Studies, and member of the editorial advisory board for the Journal of the Critical Ethnic Studies Association. In 2016, Willoughby-Herard was a member of the Women of Color Advisory Board to the Committee on the Status of Women in the Profession for the American Political Science Association. She is a member and church school teacher at Christ Our Redeemer AME Church in Irvine, pastored by the Rev. Dr. Ralph Williamson. ❏ ❏ ❏
THE SEVEN LAST WORDS OF GEORGE FLOYD By John Thomas III, Editor
The commemoration of Good Friday is a solemn and holy event for Christians. We cannot get to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ without traversing through the crucifixion, death, and burial of God’s only begotten son. One of the dividing lines among Christian traditions is the context of Jesus’ Passion and death. When we separate Jesus from his worldly environment and circumstances—being persecuted as a Jewish teacher by a foreign empire and betrayed by compatriots who were threatened by his message and witness—we lose sight that Jesus, both fully God and man, was gruesomely murdered. This year’s Good Friday was especially poignant for African Americans as it comes in the middle of the trial of police officer Derek Chauvin for the gruesome killing of George Floyd. The nine minutes and 29 seconds Chauvin had his knee on Mr. Floyd’s neck turned the collective stomach of the world and have been seared into our shared consciousness. The legacy of this watershed moment is still playing out. In the same way that we cannot allow our faith to be sanitized, we cannot allow Mr. Floyd’s killing to be stripped of the circumstances of institutional racism, poverty, and white supremacy that led to his brutal death at the hands of one who was charged to serve and protect. It is customary on Good Friday to commemorate, in solemn worship, the seven last words or sayings of Jesus Christ. In that spirit today, I encourage us to reflect upon the seven last words of George Floyd, based upon the police bodycam transcript. 2015, the flag was revived and updated to say, “Another 4. I can’t believe this. 1. Mama, mama, mama! man was lynched by police today.” Jesus’ death was a Mr. Floyd’s disbelieved that a transaction with an “When George Floyd called for his mother, he was public lynching complete with a gambling show. The alleged counterfeit bill could cost him his life. There calling for all of us,” said a friend of mine who is the world has borne witness to Mr. Floyd’s lynching—many was shock from emergency personnel who clearly saw mother of a young Black son. When Jesus was dying on anguished, others cheering, and some nonchalant—in the signs of distress yet were not allowed to render the cross, he looked to his mother, Mary, commending the same way the spectators watched Jesus hang his assistance. There was horror in rookie police officers her to John’s care. We can only imagine how Mary head on Golgotha as the sun set. out on their training patrol witnessing a superior felt to see the life slowly leaving her son’s body. In his 7. I can’t breathe! crushing the life out of a restrained suspect. We all last moments, Mr. Floyd cried out for the woman who This most well-known phrase embodies how white cannot believe the cruel brutality of white supremacy; brought him into this world as he realized he was being supremacy has strangled the life out of Black people yet, it plays before our collective eyes daily with its ripped out of it. globally through the trans-Atlantic slave trade (Maafa), deadly consequences. We remember the brutality of 2. Please, man. colonialism, apartheid, segregation, and a litany of the Roman Empire and the fact that Jesus’ execution When Jesus was on the cross, he appealed to his other terms associated with white supremacy and antiwas an example of the continued assurance of their tormentors to quench his thirst. Mr. Floyd appealed Blackness. It was first seared into our memories when supremacy through brutal oppression. to the humanity of his tormentor to save his life. He we watched Eric Garner have the life choked out of 5. Tell my kids, I love them. was already on the ground and restrained. He was not him. On May 25, 2020, over 600 years of global antiMr. Floyd had a life before he became a martyr, a threat. This plea echoes the signs of the 1960s strikes Blackness seemed distilled into a single moment as a a slogan, and a T-shirt image. He was a friend, son, when working-class Black people asserted their dignity white cop ripped the spirit out of a Black man. We and father. Behind every victim of racism is collateral by simply saying, “I am a Man!” It also echoes the remember Jesus committed his spirit to God as his damage—grieving children, a heartbroken community, appeal of Sojourner Truth for persons to see and value lungs collapsed from the crucifixion. and the lost potential of what could and should have her humanity by saying, “Ain’t I a Woman?” Breonna Taylor, Atatiana Jefferson, Tamir Rice, been. Even though his death has become a symbol of 3. You’re going to kill me, man! Freddie Gray, Philando Castile, Botham Jean, Janisha the cost of institutional racism for Black people, Mr. Mr. Floyd told Chauvin he was dying and pleaded Fonville, Mr. George Perry Floyd, Jr., and Jesus. Floyd was a real man with real people who mourn him with him to stop. As the trial goes on, we are hearing the Today, as we commemorate one who paid the and have been robbed of his presence in their lives. We damning testimony of persons who all say they know ultimate price for our eternal salvation, we must also remember Jesus’ human relationships and the grief of they witnessed a murder—an assassination perpetrated remember those who daily pay the price of the legacy of his loved ones that often get lost and forgotten in the by white supremacy at the hands of the police. How the brutal and inveterate violence of white supremacy. course of Jesus as a symbol of divine love. many times have we heard deadly force being justified Our prayer to make it “on Earth as it is in Heaven” is 6. I’m dead. because of a perceived threat or a need to stand one’s only as good as the witness and daily steps we take to Between 1920 and 1938, the New York branch of the ground? We remember the witnesses of Jesus’ march make sure Jesus, Mr. Floyd, and so many others have NAACP hung a flag outside of its office emblazoned to Golgotha and Simon of Cyrene who did his best to not died in vain. Amen. ❏ ❏ ❏ with the words, “Another man was lynched today.” In help our Lord.
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WILBERFORCE UNIVERSITY CONTINUES MOVING TOWARDS EXCELLENCE The nation’s first, private historically black college and university (HBCU), Wilberforce University, introduced Dr. Nedra Allen, as the University’s new Dean of General and Foundational Studies and the Center for Academic Support. General education is an area of academics that does not target one specific course of study. General education courses allow diversity of study that can lead to several more specific disciplines as students advance toward their junior or senior year. Under Dr. Allen’s departmental leadership, freshman and sophomore of some students who may not be quite college students will better matriculate through their general education coursework. ready and need extra help to navigate towards D Direction from Dr. Allen the goal of graduation. Whether that involves w increase motivation for will tutoring and/or mentoring, the University W Wilberforce students who will provide the necessary avenues to get that n need more strategic focus degree,” Dr. Jones commented. i their academics. “It is my Li l Rock, R k Arkansas. Ak H in Dr. Allen comes to Wilberforce University from Little Her h hope these young minds, educational background includes a Bachelors of Arts degree in English from t through general education, the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, a Masters of Education degree in w be successful and will will Instructional Technology from American InterContinental University, and a l learn to use skills to better Doctorate of Education degree in Higher Education and Adult Learning from t themselves toward their Walden University. She is the former chair of the Literacy Skills Department in f future at Wilberforce and the General Education Division of Philander Smith College in Arkansas. Dr. t throughout life,” Dr. Allen Allen begins her employment at Wilberforce on March 8. s said. Wilberforce University, founded in 1856, is a four-year, accredited institution Dr. Allen will report to Dr. of higher learning located in Greene County, Ohio, near Dayton. It is a member J D. Jones, the provost and J. of the United Negro College Fund, the NAIA conference, and the Ohio Link vice president for Academic Affairs. “Dr. Allen comes to Wilberforce with an Library Consortium. According to HBCU.com, Wilberforce is one of the top extensive background in general studies. That includes understanding the needs five HBCUs in the midwest. ❏ ❏ ❏
ST. PAUL IN JACKSONVILLE, FL IS ON “LOC!” By Dr. Brenda R. Simmons-Hutchins, 11th Episcopal District
While many across the country were enjoying romantic dinners on Valentine’s Day, St. Paul AME Church’s leadership expressed love in a singularly, extra special manner. The Church had the community on “LOC,” Pastor Marvin C. Zanders, II’s acronym for Loving Our Community! Love was articulated. On Friday, February 12, the membership, led by the pastor, participated in the Founder’s Day Virtual Birthday Cele¬bration for Bishop Richard Allen, sponsored by Senior Bishop Adam Jefferson Richardson, the presiding prelate of the 11th Episcopal District. The Founder’s Day Symposium brought together church and professional luminaries such as the Rev. Teresa Fry Brown, the Reve. William H. Lamar, IV, the Rev. Elliott Robinson, the Rev. Roslyn M. Satchel,
the Rev. Dr. Michael Waters, and Ms. Cheryl Dozier for a day of information, revelation, and restoration. Love was activated. The weekend continued with an act of love in the form of sustentation through a Food Giveaway on St. Paul’s campus, addressing the neighborhood food desert and the ever-growing need for healthy fruits, vegetables, and other food¬stuffs for the most vulnerable citizens in our community. Saturday’s activities were not lost on the youth of the church who participated in the Historic 1st Virtual and 34th Annual Black Heritage Weekend Competitions sponsored by the YPD of the 11th Episcopal District. The highlight for the East Conference was the Black Heritage Brain Bowl winner, Master Jo Joseph Dorsey, one of St. Paul’s d dedicated YPDers as one of the team m members. Love was applied. The greatest aand most impactful act of love o occurred on Sunday, February 14, w with the Church’s participation as a F Faith-Based Community Site for the C COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution. T The medical team administered m more than 500 shots in the arms o of community members 65 and o older as the first step at eradicating th the dreaded virus and making steps to toward restoring health to the ccommunity. The Acts of Love that had the local ccommunity on LOC during the weekend o of universal love were far from random. T They were a targeted, strategic, and d deliberate carriage of the commission
d d by b God G d to care for f the h people. l St. S Paul, P l ordered under the leadership of Pastor Zanders, once again, demonstrated that even the pandemic cannot stop it from being a place where God is seen, love is felt, and lives are changed. Session two of the COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution will resume on March 14, 2021. ❏ ❏ ❏
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ECUMENICALNEWS
COGIC ELECTS BISHOP J. DREW SHEARD AS PRESIDING BISHOP Bishop J. Drew Sheard has been elected as the new presiding bishop of the Church of God in Christ (COGIC), the largest Pentecostal denomination in the country. The COGIC General Assembly, the legislative body of the denomination, has voted Bishop J. Drew Sheard of Detroit, Michigan as the leader of the worldwide organization. Presiding Bishop Sheard says, “I am humbled and incredibly grateful for the opportunity to serve this extraordinary organization, the Church of God in Christ, as its new leader and Presiding Bishop.” He adds, “To be elected to serve as the Presiding Bishop for the Church in which I was born, raised, and have learned and served all my life, is a dream and desire that can only be fulfilled by God’s loving grace and guidance. The opportunity to serve such an extraordinary organization at our highest recognized level of priesthood is beyond humbling. I am so grateful for the unparalleled support of my loving wife, Karen, who has served diligently alongside me in ministry, and for my children. I could never adequately honor or appreciate my parents for demonstrating holiness by sheer example. With complete excitement and joy, I look forward to serving the Lord’s people.” Presiding Bishop Sheard was born on January 1, 1959, in Detroit, Michigan, to Bishop and Mrs. John Henry Sheard. After graduating from high school, he matriculated to Wayne State University, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Education and a Master of Education degree in Mathematics. Presiding Bishop Sheard is a former mathematics teacher and has served as the senior i di i f pastor of the Greater Emmanuel Institutional Church of God in Christ since 1988. He is the prelate of the Michigan North Centrall JJurisdiction, was a former Auxiliary in Ministries (AIM) Convention chairman, and International Youth Department President for COGIC. Since 2012, he has served as a member of the General Board. He is married to Mrs. Karen Clark-Sheard, a member of the legendary Grammy Award-winning group—The Clark Sisters—and is the father of Kierra and J. Drew II. He has two grandchildren: Jacob and Kallie Drew. The General Board for the COGIC is comprised of 12 bishops who serve as the Board of Directors of the Church. The following persons have been elected: Bishop J. Drew Sheard, Michigan; Bishop Jerry W. Macklin, California; Bishop Sedgwick Daniels, Wisconsin; Bishop Lawrence M. Wooten, Sr., Missouri; Bishop Brandon B. Porter, Tennessee; Bishop Darrel L. Hines, Sr., Wisconsin; Bishop Michael E. Hill, Sr., Michigan; Bishop Prince E. Bryant, Sr., Texas; Bishop David A. Hall, Sr., Tennessee; Bishop Loran E. Mann, Delaware; Bishop Malcolm Coby, Oklahoma; and Bishop Charles H. McClelland, Wisconsin. Presiding Bishop Sheard has chosen Bishop Macklin and Bishop Wooten as his first and second assistant presiding bishops respectively. The Installation for the presiding bishop, General Board members, and general officers will be held at a later date. Founded in 1907 by Bishop Charles Harrison Mason and headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, the Church of God in Christ is one of the oldest Pentecostal denominations in the world and the fourth-largest Protestant group in the United States with 10,000 churches in over 112 countries worldwide and millions of adherents. ❏ ❏ ❏
INCREASE IN A TIME OF CRISIS By Dr. James F. Miller, 4th Episcopal District
As a pastor, I always take special notice of our year-end fiscal reports. There’s always a lot of talk about qualifications and abilities but reports show the numbers and the numbers tell the truth about preparation, ability, and integrity. In these trying times when the church is not gathering during the pandemic, our 2020 year-end finance report would be especially revealing. After hearing that some churches are down, up, and doing better than they ever did, I certainly wanted to know— after all account balances were reconciled to their statements—how my church was doing. Would our assets, buildings, and lands; temporal possessions; and portfolio be up, down, or holding? I’m very happy to report that our receipts were up 10 percent. We are completely renovating the church and our portfolio balances are better than ever. I can’t talk enough about God’s grace and the people’s faithfulness. Also, I certainly don’t want to brag because God changes fortunes instantly. So, let me robustly say, “To God be the glory!” You might ask, to what would I attribute this victory? DuPage AME Church is a most excellent AME Church but as far as numbers go, it’s all relative because it’s not the size of the church but the percentages of change. Just as in an investment account, it’s not about how much is in there but what was the percentage of increase. So, especially in these challenging and dire times, DuPage is thankful to God for the increase in th this time of international crisis. Here are a few points I think helped contribute to our blessings. FFor further information, you may refer to my latest book, INCREASE: A Path to Abundance for th the Local Church. First, realize that we are all in spiritual warfare. The enemy does not want us to prosper. O Our priority is to “fight the good fight” (2 Tim. 4:7); fight God’s way (2 Cor. 10:3); and employ th the spiritual disciplines (Ps. 46:10) of daily prayer, Bible study, weekly worship, helping others, pperiodic fasting, and tithing. As a church body, we practiced and promoted all these daily, all year. Second, clearly define stewardship and exercise best practices. Stewardship is not fundraising. It is faith-raising. It’s not simply about giving money and paying bills. It’s about the Christian m management of everything we have and do. More than anything, it’s about gratitude. It’s about bbeing thankful to God for the blessings already received. In th the purest sense, stewardship is not about the needs of the cchurch but the needs of the person God has blessed to give bback to God. We didn’t ask ourselves for certain amounts, w we simply asked ourselves how thankful we were? Third, have a fiscal strategy for the year and execute it. A fi fiscal strategy is beyond having a budget. It’s the intentional pplan about how the funds will be raised. This thought marries th the church giving to the church calendar at the beginning of th the year. All chairpersons have plenty of time to do their bbest job for Jesus. We had a stewardship ...continued on p7
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WHEN DO WE NEED A MIRACLE? By Byron Washington, Columnist
Miracles are supernatural occurrences that we observe throughout the Bible. God, in most instances, bypasses the laws of nature—and even science—to show His power, love, mercy, and might. The healing of the woman with the issue of blood (Matthew 9:20), Naaman who had leprosy (2 Kings 5:1), and the widow at Nain whose son died (Luke 7:12) are all examples of situations that had no available remedy. In each of those cases, there was no answer or cure for the situation being faced. The woman with the issue of blood had been to every doctor and exhausted all her money. She had nothing left. However, she believed if she could simply touch Jesus’ garment she would be healed. Naaman had leprosy as did the 10 lepers (Luke 17:1214). At that time there was no cure for this condition. Bartimaeus was blind. The son of the widow at Nain was dead, and there was no human answer available. Therefore, God intervened in each of these situations. Let’s bring it forward to 2021. People have been praying and wanting God to rid the world of COVID-19 so things can return to “normal.” Currently, there are three vaccines available in the United States and six available around the world. To pray for a miracle when there is an answer is counter-productive. Now, to not
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accept the answer is a personal choice. Let us not make it a spiritual one. Let us not make those who choose to take a vaccine to be judged to have less faith than those who do not. If we take medicine, shots, vaccines, and various treatments for other ailments, let us not be pejorative toward those who choose the COVID-19 vaccine. I caution us not to use our faith irresponsibly to create a faith narrative that is more opinion than Spirit. Just because we had a thought in our mind for how God would do something does not mean He will follow our narrative. Consider again Naaman who almost missed his miracle because he wanted the prophet to do something grand and great; however, dipping in the Jordan River was not what he had in mind. If not for a servant making him reconsider, he would have walked away from his miracle because it was not how he planned. Pray and make your personal decision. Though I would submit to you that the miracle could be that they created an effective vaccine faster and quicker than usual. Isaiah 55:8-9 says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” ❏ ❏ ❏
ROLAND MARTIN: DOES THE BLACK CHURCH HAVE PRESENCE OR MERELY PRESENT? By Rev. Samuel Williams, Jr., Contributing Writer
The AME Church’s Second District Bishop James L. Davis invited journalist Roland Martin to serve as a featured speaker for the 2021 Virtual Mid-Winter Meeting in February. Martin did not disappoint. Martin, a renowned African American journalist, who hosts the weekly #ROLANDMARTINUNFILTEREDDAILYDIGITALSHOW, was truly “unfiltered” in his commentary to the Second District and had no cut cards with the delivery of his message. That message came in the form of a question in respect to the Black Church’s role in effectuating change: Does the Black Church have presence or merely present? Martin admonished the white conservative evangelical church, chastising them for throwing support behind President Donald Trump, who Martin termed as “the most evil and corrupt” president in American history. “The Black Church must assert its authority and position in molding what is happening in American society,” Martin said. “Now is the time for the Black Church to rise again and take the lead of moral leadership in this country and serve as a clarion call to address issues specific to the African American community. The call for social justice is not enough; the Black Church must demand change in economic and racial equity as well,” he added. According to Martin, the Black Church has fallen victim to the same mentality that plaques Black fraternities and sororities as well as leading civil rights organizations throughout the nation: “insular” focus. “The Black Church, in my opinion, is operating like our Black sororities and fraternities, focusing inwardly and neglecting to leverage our collective influence, our potential for power externally,” he said. Martin suggested that the AME Church should be initiating efforts to unite with the Church of God and Christ, African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, the National Black Baptist Convention, and other predominately Black churches. “Can you imagine
if Black Church leaders from various denominations showed up on Capitol Hill with an army of Blacks standing at their backs? The mere presence would cause them to ask ‘what do you want?’ And that is where the change begins,” he remarked. Martin also alerted the Second District audience that the Black Church should lead the demand for equal distribution of billions of American dollars generated by pension funds fueled by the Black community. “A huge amount of the people paying into the nation’s pension fund is Black and Brown people,” Martin said. He continued, “But minority communities never see that money. Why aren’t politicians and business leaders reinvesting money from pension funds [paid into by] people of color to those communities?” Marin said if the Black community is going to do or demand something, sadly, they must force American leaders to do so. He said the Black community can no longer accept what white American leadership is trying to do. Martin closed by issuing a challenge to the AME Church’s highest authorities: “If the AMEC bishops are not modern-day Nehemiahs, then it may be time for them to retire.” Martin’s speech can be accessed in full at the AME Church Second District website: ame2.com.
...From Increase p6
we prioritized the spiritual disciplines to be practiced diligently. They provided the strength, inspiration, and motivation for us to become our best selves in Christ and realize these noticeable, measurable results. God’s Word promises “flowers in the desert” and “springs of water in the wilderness” (Is. 35:1 and 43:19). Beloved of the Savior, I’m just another witness who is happy to testify that with God’s grace and the people’s faith, we can receive increase in this or any other time of crisis. Stay strong everybody and stay safe.
month with teaching and preaching. Along with the planned calendar of ministry and finance efforts, the church responded well. Fourth, emphasize the spiritual goal of stewardship. The spiritual goal of anything God does with us is personal transformation (Rom. 12:2). Everything God is doing with us is to sanctify, improve, and make us perfect, as God is perfect (Math. 5:48). When we have regular, daily devotions, worship weekly, tithe, and practice the other spiritual disciplines, our encouragement is that we actually see ourselves becoming better
Christians, persons still imperfect but “better today than we were yesterday.” That excited and spurred us on. Fifth, practice love and faith. In the world, we say a lot of things that are so easier said than done. It’s very challenging to have patience when others go on speaking, allow folks who have wronged you another chance, constrain yourself when frustration takes hold of you, wish the best for others as a daily practice, and sacrifice and give help to others when you need help yourself. Love and faith require belief and action (John 13:35 and James 2:20). This is why
The Rev. Samuel Williams, Jr. serves as men’s ministry coordinator under St. Paul AME Church in Northwest DC, where the Rev. Wanda E. London is the senior pastor.
Dr. James F. Miller is the pastor of DuPage AME Church in Lisle Illinois.
He is in his 32nd year. In these years, DuPage has grown from a mission church to become the first church in the Fourth Episcopal District in tithes, offerings, and membership. He has served on the General Board and the Episcopal Committee three times and twice as its chaplain. Dr. Miller was a banker and trained financial planner prior to his call to the ministry, has managed over $50 million successfully over his years at DuPage, and is proud that it can all be accounted for “down to a nickel.” Dr. Miller is the author of Go Build a Church: Spiritual Administration for Growth and the recently released INCREASE: A Path to Abundance for
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PERVIS PAYNE: A CASE OF INNOCENCE, INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY, AND RACISM By Kelley Henry, Supervisory Assistant Federal Defender
Introduction. Pervis Payne, a person with intellectual disability, has steadfastly maintained his innocence throughout his 33 years on Tennessee’s death row. The U.S. Supreme Court has cautioned that persons with intellectual disability are at a “special risk for wrongful execution,” which is why they banned the execution of people with intellectual disability in 2002. The Tennessee Supreme Court has acknowledged that Mr. Payne presented undisputed evidence of intellectual disability but concluded that no procedural mechanism exists for Mr. Payne to present his claim. Mr. Payne’s case has all the ingredients of a wrongful conviction and death sentence. He is a Black man with intellectual disability who was accused of murdering a White woman in a county with a long history of racial violence and biased criminal justice; the prosecution played to racist themes and withheld exculpatory evidence; and the State is unable to account for key missing evidence that could help prove his innocence. With no motive for the crime, the prosecution painted Mr. Payne as a Black Super Predator looking for a White woman to sexually assault. This argument was persuasive in Shelby County, which has a long, troubling history of systemic racism and lynching, and Mr. Payne was convicted and sentenced to death. Before the crime, Mr. Payne had never been arrested as an adult or a juvenile; and, while he struggled in school due to his intellectual disability, had never presented any disciplinary problems. Although recent DNA testing was conducted on some items, the State has no explanation for how key pieces of DNA evidence that could conclusively prove who committed this crime—including the victim’s fingernail clippings—have gone missing. As Governor Bill Lee considers his clemency petition, support for Mr. Payne continues to grow in Memphis and across the state. A wide and diverse array of 150 faith, legal, legislative, and civil rights groups have urged the Governor to grant clemency. Mr. Payne must not be executed before his claims of intellectual disability and innocence have a full and fair hearing in court. Mr. Payne was scheduled for execution on December 3, 2020, but Governor Lee granted a reprieve due to COVID-19. The reprieve expires on April 9, 2021, making the need for a commutation urgent. Intellectual Disability and a Pending Legislative Fix. Mr. Payne is indisputably a person living with intellectual disability and suffers from neurocognitive impairment. His execution would therefore be unconstitutional. Educational records, expert findings, and administered tests confirm Mr. Payne’s intellectual challenges. Recent exams by Dr. Daniel Martell concluded that his IQ on the WAIS-IV scale is 72 with a functional score of 68.4. Overall, his diagnosis of intellectual disability is consistent with standards set by the American Association of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and the American Psychiatric Association. The State has never denied or challenged that Mr. Payne is intellectually disabled. In Atkins vs. Virginia, decided in 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court found that executing people with intellectual disability violates the Eighth Amendment ban
on cruel and unusual punishment. The Court explained that persons with intellectual disability are at a “special risk for wrongful execution” and recognized that intellectually disabled defendants are often unable to assist their lawyers and make poor witnesses. These concerns played out in Mr. Payne’s case. The Tennessee courts have held that they have no power to hear Mr. Payne’s claim and urged the legislature to create a legislative fix for persons like Mr. Payne who are denied an opportunity to present a claim that he is intellectually disabled and thus constitutionally ineligible for the death penalty because of procedural technicalities. The Tennessee Supreme Court has acknowledged that Mr. Payne presented undisputed evidence of intellectual disability and that the state has “no interest” in executing a person with intellectual disability but concluded that no procedural mechanism exists for Mr. Payne to present his Atkins claim. Although the state supreme court urged the Tennessee legislature to create a mechanism for prisoners like Mr. Payne to raise an Atkins claim, the legislature has not done so. The legislature is out of session and is unable to act prior to the December 3, 2020 execution date. The Chair of the Tennessee Black Caucus of State Legislators, Rep. G. A. Hardaway, filed a bill on November 4, 2020 to enable Mr. Payne and others to present their intellectual disability claims in state court. Racial Stereotypes. Prosecutors relied on powerfully prejudicial racist tropes of black male hypersexuality and drug abuse to convict Mr Payne. Police and prosecutors relied on racial stereotypes and ignored and even suppressed evidence inconsistent with their theory. Prosecutors argued that Mr. Payne, allegedly high on drugs and alcohol—although he had no history of substance use—made an advance on the victim, and when she refused, he stabbed her to death. The prosecutor further played to racial stereotypes by repeatedly mentioning the victim’s “white skin.” Mr. Payne was tried in Shelby County, which has a long history of systemic racism and lynching. The crime occurred in Millington, Tennessee, on the border of Shelby and Tipton Counties. Tipton County, where Mr. Payne and his family are from, also has a history of racial violence and lynching. Mr. Payne grew up hearing stories of white men torturing and murdering Black men. The KKK was active in Tipton County and Millington during the time of this trial. No Prior Criminal History. Mr. Payne has no prior criminal record or history of violence. Nothing in his background or upbringing suggests that he is capable of committing this crime. Mr. Payne had no prior contact with the legal system and has been a model prisoner since his wrongful incarceration. Despite academic challenges while in school, he never faced any disciplinary issues. Mr. Payne’s prison record remains unblemished. Mr. Payne’s family has stood by his side, fighting
for justice all these years. The Payne Family has largely been ignored and marginalized by a system biased against African Americans. Mr. Payne’s mother and older sister have passed away. His father, a minister, travels as often as he can to Nashville to be with his son even though he has Parkinson’s disease. Mr. Payne’s sister, Rolanda, is tirelessly working to bring the injustice of her brother’s case to light. Innocence Claim and Missing Evidence. As noted, Mr. Payne had no history of violence, had never been arrested, and was just 20 years old at the time. Visiting his girlfriend who lived across the hall from the victim, he heard noises and wanted to help. He was overwhelmed at the horrific crime scene and panicked. “I saw the worst thing I ever saw in my life and like my breath just had—had tooken—just took out of me…she was looking at me,” Mr. Payne testified in court. He did not know the victim nor did he have a reason to attack her, leaving him no clear motive to commit this crime. On January 19, 2021, Payne’s lawyers submitted results of DNA testing to the Shelby County Criminal Court in Mr. Payne’s case pursuant to the Court’s September 16, 2020 order for testing. Male DNA from an unknown third party was found on key evidence including the murder weapon; but unfortunately, it is too degraded to identify an alternate suspect via the FBI’s database, and DNA evidence that could conclusively prove his innocence have been “lost” by the State. Inexplicably, the State is unable to account for important missing pieces of forensic evidence, claims no knowledge of their whereabouts, and cannot explain why the evidence was not meticulously preserved. Shockingly, some of the most significant pieces of evidence in the case, including fingernail scrapings that should contain the DNA of the true perpetrator, are mysteriously missing. The fingernail clippings would be especially significant because the prosecution argued at trial that the victim scratched her assailant. The prosecution’s theory at trial was based on speculation and was inconsistent with the evidence. Prosecutors argued that Mr. Payne was high on drugs, though he had no history of drug use and his mother begged the police to perform a drug test on her son after his arrest, which they refused. Prosecutors argued that Mr. Payne became “sex crazed” after looking at a Playboy magazine, though there is no evidence the victim was sexually assaulted or that Mr. Payne had sex with her, nor is there any evidence that looking at magazines like Playboy leads to sexual assault or other violence. In fact, it was Jet Magazine, not Playboy, that Mr. Payne and his cousin were looking through that day. There are other more plausible suspects, including the victim’s ex-husband, Kenneth Christopher, who had a lengthy criminal record and history of physically, mentally, and emotionally abusing the victim. The victim’s divorce petition against Mr. Christopher cited cruel and inhumane treatment and neglect. The Shelby County District Attorney General’s Office has one of the worst reputations in the country. It has repeatedly been found to have suppressed evidence favorable to the accused. The current DA was publicly sanctioned for misconduct in a criminal case. Widespread Support for Clemency. A powerful coalition of 150 Tennessee faith, ...continued on p9
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HOLDING BIDEN ACCOUNTABLE By Stephanie Pierson, Contributing Writer
After a grueling election cycle and numerous attempts to challenge the legitimacy of the American electoral process, Joe Biden is in office, to the excitement of many of the 81 million people who voted for him. Others, however, are skeptical of how much progress an establishment Democrat can facilitate given how Biden has filled his cabinet with top-ranking officials from a presidential administration from over a decade ago. The passage of a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package along with numerous executive orders regarding immigration, the environment, and the pandemic response has made many Democrats and Biden supporters optimistic for the next three years of his term. However, it is important to remember the bold policy goals that the Biden-Harris ticket promoted, such as Medicare expansion, climate action, and racial equity. It is primarily voters’ responsibility to hold the Biden administration accountable for enacting these policies, even beyond the first 100 days of his term. The 100 days of a president’s term in office are often referred to as a “honeymoon period,” but when a president is entering office during one of the worst recessions since the Great Depression, there is not much time to relax. Even though Biden wasted no time signing executive orders and working with his Democrat-controlled Congress, there were many questions about whether he was doing enough to deliver on the promises that he made during his campaign. For example, although Democrats control both chambers of Congress, the American Rescue Plan Act does not include a $15 federal minimum wage, which was a major campaign point for both the president and Congressional members who were seeking election or reelection in 2020. A $15 minimum wage would help facilitate a living wage that matches the inflation of the past decade. Additionally, given that people of color are overrepresented in the minimum wage workforce, raising the minimum wage would be one step towards closing the racial wealth gap and promoting racial equity. Many progressive Democrats and even some people who identify as leftists and socialists have forced Biden to consider more liberal policies. This was seen even before Biden took office, as he was pressured by progressives to strengthen his climate policy and take a stance against fracking. Furthermore, one of his earliest executive orders, signed on his first day in office, halted the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline. Actions like these show us the power of continuously holding our elected leaders accountable instead of blindly supporting politicians for which we voted. Although we are seeing initial steps towards reform and progress right now, it is our responsibility to ensure that these efforts continue even after Biden and prominent Congressional members have faded from the media spotlight. Democracy does not end on Election Day. Instead, it is a constant process of fighting for your future and the people you want to make the future attainable. Stephanie Pierson hails from Macon, Georgia, in the Sixth Episcopal District. She is a first-year student in the Honors Program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she is currently studying History. In the past, Stephanie has served as a poll worker interned for a congressional campaign in North Carolina. Additionally, Stephanie has been a contributor to the Women’s Missionary Society Programs for Study in Christian Mission for the past seven years.
...From Purvis Payne p8 legal, legislative, and community groups in Memphis and across
the state supports clemency for Mr. Payne. The coalition includes more than 120 congregations from Christian, Muslim, and Jewish denominations; Memphis Interfaith Coalition for Action and Hope (MICAH); Tennessee Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty; Tennessee State Conference NAACP; the NAACP Memphis; the Ben F. Jones Chapter of the National Bar Association; the Memphis Bar Association; the Tennessee Alliance for Black Lawyers; Witness to Innocence, an organization of people exonerated from death row; Tennessee Disability Coalition; and Just City Memphis. ❏ ❏ ❏
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CONNECTIONALNEWS
AFFORDABLE AND ACCESSIBLE FOR ALL—LIFESTYLE MEDICINE The Rev. Natalie Mitchem, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist
In the first chapter of the Third Epistle of John, the second verse says, “Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, just as it is well with your soul.” March is National Nutrition Month. This year, the American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM) shared in social media “Many Voices, One Theme.” This picture presents 14 respected and trusted health organizations that promote the importance of eating more unrefined plant-based foods to help fight, stop, and prevent disease. The organizations include the American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, American Medical Association, Diabetes Canada, American Diabetes Association, Endocrine Society, and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. “Lifestyle medicine,” according to the ACLM, is the foundation for conventional medicine and many clinical recommendations support lifestyle medicine as a means to address, prevent, and treat several chronic diseases. Affordable and accessible, evidence-based lifestyle medicine practices help to fight, stop, and prevent diabetes type 2, several cancers, obesity, stroke, heart disease, high blood pressure, and more. These chronic health conditions place people of color at a higher risk for COVID-19. Lifestyle medicine practices include nutrition and healthy food choices that are mostly colorful plant-based foods, daily physical activity and fitness, stress management, avoidance of substance abuse like smoking and reduced alcohol consumption, restorative sleep, and healthy relationships facilitated virtually and in-person.
Access to healthy food can be a challenge. Helpful ways to access and increase consumption of healthy foods include eating more plant-based foods, drinking water flavored with fresh fruit, planting a church, community, or home garden, cooking more at home to control ingredients, requesting healthy food choices at food pantries, and advocating for healthy food choices in corner stores. Internationally, individuals and populations in all socioeconomic groups can apply lifestyle medicine practices. It opens the door to affordable and accessible practices everyone can begin to address many disease conditions and promote positive health changes. Board certifications in lifestyle medicine for medical doctors and health practitioners are offered by the ACLM. Learning about lifestyle medicine is not only for March. Visit the ACLM’s website at www.lifestylemedicine.org/ACLM for more information. The ACLM “simply believes that we should put as much focus on lifestyle Medicine as we do medications and procedures.” If you have a medical provider and health insurance, you can also include lifestyle medicine to ensure you are participating in your personal wellness. If you, a loved one, or members of your faith-based community lack finances or access, lifestyle medicine is affordable and accessible. The International Health Commission provides resources to promote and support lifestyle medicine and church and community gardens as an affordable and accessible practice for everyone. Visit their website at www.AMEChealth.org. ❏ ❏ ❏
HEALTH COMMISSION ANNOUNCES NEW PARTNERSHIP By Rev. Carolyn C. Caveness, AME Health Commission Gardens & Farms Coordinator
The AME International Health Commission is pleased to announce a new partnership with the Black Church Food Security Network (BCFSN). It is an effort to address food insecurity. All congregations that currently have gardens or are looking to plant a garden this year are asked to complete the below Covenant Agreement in order to begin the process of receiving the $500 Seed Grant from BCFSN. Please complete agreement can be found at:
https://blackchurchfoodsecuritynetwork.wufoo.com/ forms/z167ulgy1ucdvmf/. BCFSN will sponsor a Covenant Partner Orientation Zoom meeting and this is mandatory for all gardens who are a part of the BCFSN Network or interested in receiving the $500 Seed Grant. The Session is 90 minutes. There will be a special breakout room for AME Church gardens! We will take that time to discuss the partnership and also meet and greet.
After registering, the date and time for the next BCFSN will be emailed to you. The next three events are: Thursday, April 22, 2021 - Earth Day; Sunday, April 25, 2021 - BCFSN Earth Ceremony at 6:00pm; and Saturday, June 19, 2021 - JUNETEENTH and formal announcement of AME Health Commission and BCFN Partnership. If there are any questions or concerns, please contact cccphilly@gmail.com or (973) 704-1631. Send a picture of your church, community, or home garden or farm to cccphilly@gmail.com and healcommission@aol.com by June 15, 2021. ❏ ❏ ❏
DR. ORLANDO M.
VOTE #412
CANDIDATE FOR EPISCOPAL SERVICE ST. MATTHEWS AMEC ❖ DILLION, SC
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THE SHEPHERD’S TREE By Rev. Lerato R. Pitso, 19th Episcopal District
The Shepherds’ Tree or Witgatboom is scientifically known as Boscia albitrunca. It is a small to medium tree, three to eight meters in height, and it is reasonably dense. It is an evergreen tree native to Southern and Tropical Africa. The Shepherd’s Tree finds its home in dry soils, mostly sandy or rocky soils. It thrives in dry, open woodland and bushveld. It is remarkable how this Shepherd’s Tree has some familiar characteristics to our Shepherd. The tree is said to be evergreen. The Lord Jesus gives eternal life, life everlasting. That’s evergreen to me. We may die a physical death; but in Christ, we do not die, we sleep to wake again when the Shepherd returns to gather His flock. In Him, we have eternal life. John 3:15 says, “that whoever believes in him
may have eternal life.” The Shepherd’s Tree prefers drained soil, sandy and rocky. These are places with little or no life. In such terrains, life is hard, and very few plants flourish because there is little water. However, our Good Shepherd goes into such places, where people are written off, to give life. Jesus is the much-needed living water where there is no life. Jesus gives water that becomes “a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” The Shepherd’s Tree is usually 10 meters tall (about 30 feet) or smaller so that it can provide sufficient shelter when it is needed. Its leaves are thick enough to provide generous shade in the heat of day. Jesus, in John 15:4a, reminds us to abide in Him and He will abide in us. He calls us not only
to find shelter in the shade He provides but also to connect with Him and be a part of Him. In abiding with and in Jesus, there is protective covering, not only from elements but also the root of the tree provides stability and nourishment. I don’t think this was named Shepherd’s Tree by mistake. I found three good reasons why the name is good for this tree. In Jesus, we find everlasting life when we accept Him as our Lord and Saviour. We are gifted with the living water to thrive and be fruitful for His glory. We are rooted and sheltered from the elements of this world. This is a good reminder of why we need to put our hope in Christ Jesus. He is our Shepherd, Christ Jesus, our Lord, and Saviour, even during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Let us rest in the safety of His shade. Amen. ❏ ❏ ❏
CELEBRATING A HERO: MARYVILLE COMMUNITY CELEBRATES THE REV. OWENS’S 95TH BIRTHDAY By Jeff Helmkamp, The Edwardsville Intelligencer
The Maryville community spent time Saturday celebrating the Rev. John Q. Owens’s 95th birthday with a drive-by parade and small gathering. Over the years, the Rev. Owens has served the U.S. Army in World War II and is a retired pastor from Bethel AME Church in Madison. “It is an honor to have a citizen in the village who has reached such a milestone,” said Mayor Craig Short. The village set up a parade to include p a fire truck,, ambulance,, and police car to drive
from Anderson Hospital to the Rev. Owens’s home in Maryville, where he and his wife, Dr. Dorothy Owens, have lived since 1997. The socially-distanced celebration included balloon decorations, a large happy birthday sign, and refreshments for neighbors who decided to socialize with the family following the parade. The Rev. Owens made a 10-minute speech, during which he spoke about taking so many lives in battle and rememberingg feeling happy about it. Now, many year years later, he said cares about all lives. T The Rev. Owens was accompanied by his w wife. Also present was Gary McCants, the p presiding elder of the South District of the A AME Church, who referred to the Rev. Owe Owens as a mentor. Fa Family and friends helped make the celeb celebration idea a reality, under the dire direction of Ruth Hibbler, who has been the O Owens’s neighbor for 24 years. “We are just going to see if we can celebrate his day, it’s a big day and everything,” she said. T The families have been close-knit for Gary McCants, left, the Rev. John Q. Owens, middle, year years. The Hibbler’s six-year-old daughter, and Dr. Dorothy Owens celebrate the Rev. Owens, at the time, welcomed the Rev. Owens a WWII and U.S. Army veteran who said he enjoys and his family to the community and the serving others. McCants is the current presiding elder of the South District of the AME Church and Rev. Owens used to play chess with the Hibbler’s son. “Our two kids have always considers the Rev. Owens as his mentor.
The Rev. John Q. Owens preaches at his 95th birthday celebration on Saturday at his home in Maryville. The Rev. Owens is a retired pastor of over 40 years with various churches, most notably Bethel AME Church in Madison. been dear to their [Owens] hearts. There is a long history,” says Hibbler. Serving the public for the past year 40 years, the Rev. Owens has always helped those in need. Hibbler recalled when her husband, a U.S. Air Force veteran who served his 20 years, become sick and disabled. “I remember when that all came about, Mr. Owens and the whole neighborhood donated a flagpole to our yard and Mr. Owens came down and dedicated the flagpole,” said Hibbler. As a young man, the Rev. Owens did not have a desire to follow his father into service with the church. However, following his service in WWII, he did just that through the Pentecostal faith. He was the pastor at three different churches before starting his 20-year tenure at Bethel AME Church. ❏ ❏ ❏
...From Inclusive Leadership p1 If the AME Church membership in the US (Districts 1-13) fails to consider inclusive leadership between itself and other districts, more especially with Districts 14-20, chances are that the development of other districts outside the US would be undermined. The kind of leadership greed within the higher structures of the Church is problematic and the Church must address it as it continues to fuel tensions. The hailed power imbalance is tilted in favor of candidates residing in Districts 1-13. A lack of sensitivity to inclusive leadership in the global AME Church may lead our glorious Zion of Allen, John Hurst Adams, Mangena Mokone, Charlotte Maxeke, Gow, Senatle, and many others to repeat a dark history of groupings and lack of unity. It will more fundamentally introduce not racism but the politics of exclusivity, class, inequality, and segregation in our denomination. The lives of these leaders were dedicated to fighting humanity’s intolerance represented by white racist supremacy and any exclusion that was concerned with maintaining power in white hands and silencing outspoken voices that spoke against segregation in Africa, the diaspora, and the US. Inclusive leadership is the only direction the Church must traverse to avoid potential acts of schisms repeating themselves, the development of elitism in the church based on regionalism and economic power, and the game of numbers. This is a clarion call to Church leadership and delegates who will be participating in future General Conferences to ensure that clergy, young people, women, and are people who are differently-abled be representative in terms of ...continued on p18
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MUSIC—A REFLECTIVE MIRROR FOR THE LENTEN SEASON By John Wm. Roberts, Ed.D., Contributing Writer
During our recent Ash Wednesday Service at Lee Chapel, Bishop Harry L. Seawright, the presiding prelate of the 9th Episcopal District, admonished us to be in a spirit of renewal and reflection during the Lenten season. He asked us to take time to think of how God has blessed and will continue to bless us, and in doing so, reflect on how we can bless others. In this vein, music is a major vehicle for individual reflection. A song that was sung during the service was “How Long Has It Been?” The lyrics ask, not only the singer but also the listener, to ponder the question asked. In this instance, it is reflective of how long it has been since we, as believers, have taken the time to talk to and with God. The hymn is based on David’s invocation to God asking Him to hear his words. Psalm 5:1-2 says, “Give ear to my words, O Lord; give heed to my sighing. Listen to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for to you I pray.” The words of the song ask, “How long has it been since you talked with the Lord, And told Him your heart’s hidden secrets? How long since you prayed? How long since you stayed, On your knees till the light shone through? How long has it been since your mind felt at ease? How long since your heart knew no burden? Can you call Him your Friend? How long has it been, Since you knew that He cared for you? How long has it been since you knelt by your bed, And prayed to the Lord up in heaven? How long since you knew that He’d answer you, And would keep you the long night through? How long has it been since you woke with the dawn, And felt that the day’s worth the living? Can you call Him your Friend? How long has it been, Since you knew that He cared for you?” Though consciously or unconsciously, we take praying to God as an afterthought. It is during this time of prayer and sacrifices that we need to reflect on the most individual line of communication we, as Christians, have with the Creator—prayer! ...continued on p13
THE IMMANUEL TEMPLE’S CREATIVE COUNTDOWN TO CALVARY By Rev. John White, Contributing Writer
Undaunted by pandemic precautions that continue to keep worshipers sheltering in place and gathering virtually only, The Immanuel Temple sent “The iT Box: The Lent Edition” to its members and ministry partners in Florida and across the nation. In its latest creative initiative to serve the present age, under the leadership of founding pastor, the Rev. John F. White, II, The iT distributed the white-and-red box of resources and mementos designed to support members in their observance of Lent 2021 within the safety of their own homes. “With ‘The iT Box: The Lent Edition,’ we are encouraging families to share together and intentionally commemorate our Savior Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem,” explained White, who was inspired to launch this innovative, at-home approach to enhance Christian spiritual formation and education. “In the days leading up to Ash Wednesday, our team of servants—who worked with masks and gloves on and at socially distanced workstations—packed and made the boxes available for drivethrough pick from the church,” White added, “and we mailed them to our out-of-town college students, family members and Kingdom partners across the country.” Each box contained a letter from White and The iT co-pastor, the Rev. Maria Mallory White, inviting recipients to join in observance of this season of prayer and contemplation: “As we reflect on the life and legacy of our Savior, Lent is a time to study and serve, connecting more deeply as His disciples and committing more fully to His work.” Contents of the Box included: • • • • • • • • •
A description of each holy day during Lent, along with a prayer to share with family for each. An Ash Wednesday Cross on Sackcloth Card as a reminder to both repent and mourn for sin. Oil for anointing along with prayers of healing and consecration. A Lenten Devotional for daily meditation. A Lenten Calendar for sharing in LOL: Love Out Loud. A “Do It for the Gram” Lent Calendar for children and teens. A Palm and Cross for Palm Sunday worship celebration. An Olive Wood Communion Cup from Israel to commemorate Maundy Thursday. Purple (signifying royalty) cloth with a nail to serve as a reminder of Good Friday and the nails that were plunged in King Jesus’ hands and feet. • An Offering Envelope for members’ annual $40 sacrificial Lenten Offering (above and beyond the tithe) for children in South Florida foster care. • Pre-packaged juice and wafer servings (blessed and consecrated by White) to join in the observance of Holy Communion during our Ash Wednesday Service. Members and Kingdom partners of the South Florida congregation received the Box gratefully—many calling White to express personal thanks or posting on social media. “What a wonderful preparation gift on Fat Tuesday,” Presiding Elder Elizabeth E. Yates posted to her Facebook on the eve of Ash Wednesday. “I’m ready for the Lenten Season to begin. I’m prayed up, repentant, grateful and looking forward to Resurrection Sunday,” she added. “I have the best church family! Thank you, The Immanuel Temple and John F. White II,” Bethune-Cookman University student Qemari Thompson, a member of The iT, posted on her Facebook after receiving her box. The Immanuel Temple, a ministry of the AME Church, is known for its community engagement and creative LOL Love Out Loud outreach and initiatives. The iT’s celebration worship services begin at 7:30 and 10 a.m. each Sunday broadcasted on theit.org, Facebook Live, and YouTube Live-The Immanuel Temple. ❏ ❏ ❏
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...From Music p12 One of the first prayers I learned was “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep, If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord, my soul to take.” Though simplistic, it is reflective of the wishes of the supplicant. We learned the Lord’s Prayer, often called the Model Prayer, as we grew older. This prayer has been set to music in varying forms as has the aforementioned simplistic child’s prayer. There is a song that can be reflective of conversion and prayers important to conversion like ”I Found the Answer.” The chorus says, ”I found the answer, I learned to pray. With faith to guide me, I found the way. The sun is shining for me each day, I found the answer, I learned to pray.” Music is the most reflective mirror we, as Christians, possess. Let’s not only use it during this Lenten Season but each and every season of our lives as we continue to travel this Christian journey!
John Wm. Roberts, Ed.D. is the Director of Music and principal musician at Lee Chapel AME Church in Auburn, Alabama.
ASH WEDNESDAY CELEBRATED BY CONNECTIONAL GROUP OF YOUNG ADULT PASTORS On February 17, a group of young adult clergy across the United States hosted a virtual “Cross-Country Ash Wednesday Service.” With participation from the 1st, 4th, 5th, 9th, and 11th Episcopal Districts, this feat was made possible through the gift of technology that has become indispensable throughout the pandemic. The idea of the service came together after several conversations between the host pastors. “All seven pastors are dealing with major challenges in their lives: broken bones, fresh grief, sick kids, major depression, and struggling marriages,” stated service coordinator, the Rev. Brandee Jasmine Mimitzraiem, the pastor of Quinn Chapel AME Church in Lincoln, Nebraska. “We are working way too hard to pull it together every week and we just needed a chance to worship and be poured into for once, without the worry about how it would happen,” she added. Over 500 people from across the Connectional church watched the live-streamed gathering. The service was structured around 2 Corinthians 4:7, with brief meditations given by John Thomas, III, the Editor of The Christian Recorder and Bishop Anne Henning Byfield, the presiding prelate of the 16th Episcopal District. Technical assistance was
...From Sharing Beyond p2
provided by Licentiate Everett L. Fletcher of VELF Creative Events and Designs. The Rev. Amani Henry, an associate minister at Ebenezer AME Church in Detroit, Michigan, was the psalmist. Reflecting on the service, the Rev. Mimitzraiem sa said, “We needed to know that it was okay to ac accept our mortality, to acknowledge our limits, to sit down and take a break sometimes. We ne needed to hear Mr. Thomas’s admonition to br breathe and Bishop Byfield’s word to see our lim limits but to imagine beyond our clay vessels.” The following pastors participated in the se service: the Rev. Tarachel Benjamin Goodman of Si Sierra Vista Community AME Church in Sierra V Vista, Arizona; the Rev. Lee M. Marvin-Sapp of Sh Shepherd’s Heart AME Church in Royal Palm B Beach, Florida; the Rev. Bryan S. McAllister of H Heard AME Church in Roselle, New Jersey; the Rev. Brandee Jasmine Mimitzraiem of Quinn Chapel AME Church in Lincoln, Nebraska; the Rev. Jermaine Richardson of Bethel AME Church in Ensley in Birmingham, Alabama; the Rev. Jason Thompson of First AME Church in Kansas City, Kansas; and the Rev. Virgil Woods of First AME Church in Gary, Indiana. ❏ ❏ ❏
It seemed every contact tact failed in Cuba and the US. Every planned trip was cancelled and every partnership did not develop. op. The few AMEs identified in Cuba were either her he involved in other churches or afraid to come back. ack. Then, during the pandemic, Bishop Henning ing Byfield was contacted by a Cuban pastor who was friends with the Rev. Leyva about the possibility lity of joining the AME Church. The Rev. Leyva yva is a Cuban who shared the beliefs of African can Methodism with Pastor Ilsido Carrion, an Cuban church in worship. independent pastor who had been seeking the Lord for a place that respected his personhood Church of Sevilla. Church of Seville. and commitment to justice and equality. After several Zoom conversations, information vetting, and prayer, it was decided the District would go forward with the possibility of restoration. Five churches are meeting with Bishop Henning Byfield and another seven who have expressed interest but are without reliable internet and COVID-19 rules restrict movement in Cuba. While the re-establishment of an AME presence is still early, we give thanks to the Rev. Dr. Teresa Rev. Laurier Vaughn Virginia Echols Fry Brown; Editor John Thomas, III; the Rev. Dr. Dennis Dickerson, Dr. Christine Davidson; Dr. Pastor Carrior and family. Jualynne Dodson; the Rev. Dr. Jeffery Cooper; and Attorney Gerald Selby for their ongoing support to provide historical clarity and documents about the churches in Cuba and enable the handling of any legal steps. We seek your prayers that we will be able to complete the process during the pandemic. Prayerful conversations are ongoing with the establishment of a mission in the San Juan area of Puerto Rico. Join us in prayer as we continue to serve the District to “Soar Without Limitation” and imagine God. ❏ ❏ ❏
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BLACK CHURCHES USING THEIR LAND TO BUILD HOUSING FOR HOMELESS PEOPLE By Religion News Service
As Southern California’s housing crisis continues to fuel homelessness across the region, a number of churches, particularly Black congregations, are stepping up to build affordable housing on their church land. They’re banding together to send a clear message to developers: They will not be taken advantage of. As the homeless population is estimated to hover above 66,000 people in Los Angeles County alone, there are thousands of acres of church land across California that can be used to develop housing. Pastors—some who have inherited debt or years of deferred maintenance and whose church memberships may not be as large as in years past—recognize this opportunity but may lack the resources or knowledge to cut housing deals that would not only help the most needy but also help their church communities remain in their neighborhoods. For years, the Rev. John Cager, the pastor of Ward AME Church in South Los Angeles, has seen how developers would run “roughshod over the churches,” buying their properties for housing while offering sometimes as low as 2% of the revenues in exchange. What often happens is many of these churches—considered “land rich and cash poor”—would get a check, very often under market rate, “and then they would be out,” Cager said. “Many times when churches sell that breaks up the congregation. They don’t have the organizational wealth to stay together, the money kind of evaporates and what you basically have is the loss of the church community,” said Cager, whose church is 115 years old. That’s a main reason Cager, in 2017, helped create the Faith Community Coalition, a network of pastors that seeks to find better opportunities for faith leaders who may feel the need to sell when they’re in a position of declining revenue. Ultimately, the coalition aims for churches to work with developers who are willing to enter into full partnerships with parishes, evenly splitting the revenues and paving the way for the houses of worship to eventually own the properties. So far, the alliance has more than 200 member churches, most of them African American. A number of Latino evangelical churches are also part of the network. Cager said it’s no coincidence many of his fellow Black and Latino pastors were being bombarded by people who wanted to buy their churches. “Black and Latinx communities, communities of color, have historically
b been preyed upon,” he said. While the Coalition started in South L churches in the network are located LA, a across the five counties that make up S Southern California. About 40 churches i the Coalition are actively seeking to in b build housing developments on their l land but not just any housing. Cager said the Coalition strives t build housing for those who are to u unhoused. “The operating ethos of the C Coalition is that we want to do housing and do development as a ministry… We believe in the Gospel of Jesus Christ,” he said. “We have a heart for serving the least, the lost, the left out and the left behind. So it is the heart of our churches and our church members that we have an eye for the unhoused and we have an eye for seniors, for transitionaged youth. Those who have the most issues finding safe secure housing,” he added. A number of churches are fulfilling this mission through a partnership with RMG Housing, a private developer that with the help of a more than $100 million private-equity impact fund and without government funding, is expected to finance 30 permanent supportive housing projects. Currently, about seven of the 15 projects are planned to take place on church land. The housing units will be constructed for under $200,000 each, said Deborah La Franchi, the president and chief executive of impact-fund manager SDS Capital Group. Revenue to cover the debt will come from sources such as the federal Section 8 housing program that will be used to pay the rent. La Franchi said she expects the SDS Supportive Housing Fund to reach $150 million. Most of the churches SDS Capital Group has been working with are AME and African American Baptist churches that are pillars in their communities, she said. To La Franchi, this collaboration makes sense. “This is a way for the churches to achieve their mission, help to revitalize their community (and) help transform the lives of these individuals that will be housed in their property,” La Franchi said. “At the same time the church is benefiting of the cash flow of the project, which is very helpful to many of them,” she explained. For some churches, this may mean razing their entire properties and using the resources to move to a new location that’s scaled to the current size of their congregation, La Franchi said. Tim Roth, a developer for RMG Housing, said he
LOOK BACK BUT KEEP MOVING FORWARD By Rev. Gregory E. Singleton, 7th Episcopal District
Once again, Black History Month has proven itself to not only be the shortest month on the calendar but it also passes the fastest. Before we know it, the Black history documentaries, movies, newspaper articles, and indeed the focus of the world will return to “normal” in the eyes of many, even in the eyes of many Blacks. You may not believe it when I say “that’s alright” but I say this because I’m sure, very sure, that God has His eyes on the entire situation. From “Negro History Week” to what it is today, I’m convinced that God intended to “prime the pumps” of our hearts and minds so that we developed a desire to know more about the people we really are. Each year as the technology we utilize matures, we learn more and more about the contributions of Black men and women. Each year we hear names of accomplished scientists, inventors, and educators that we’ve never heard before. We can’t relegate
didn’t specifically seek to do business with churches. He was introduced to Pastor Cager through others in the real estate business. What Roth was seeing across LA and other cities were zoning changes that, whether intentionally or not, devalued church properties. This would lead to a church not being as valuable as the land across the street, Roth said. “That was alarming to me,” he said. Roth, who was raised Catholic and who described himself as religious, said that instead of buying church land, RMG has opted to engage in 99-year ground leases with the churches. In turn, the churches can participate in the cash flow of the project, on equal terms with RMG. The houses of faith can either “finance us out, or buy us out,” Roth said. “They can own it completely if that was in their best interest or they can simply maintain use and have us as partners all the way through…That was the important thing, that we can be a good partner and, in time, they can own it all,” Roth added. “It’s all about fellowship, isn’t it?” he said. At Heavenly Vision Church in South LA, which has been at its current location since 1969, church members are getting ready to break ground on a 54-unit permanent supportive housing structure that will be built on the church’s school lot after the school is demolished. The project will be funded through SDS Capital Group. Bishop James Taylor, the pastor of Heavenly Vision Church, eventually foresees the church building also being leveled to build more housing. Taylor said the congregation is open to doing church digitally or in a different location to make way for housing for those who need it most. “We want to make sure we’re meeting that need more than meeting our own comfort,” Taylor said. “Giving somebody a place to stay is more important for us than having a comfortable place to worship in… It should be the church’s desire to leverage the land and the property they own to meet the need,” he added. Harvest Tabernacle Bible Church, around the Southeast LA area, is another congregation that will be building units through RMG Housing and with SDS funding. The church—adjacent to Pueblo del Rio, one of the oldest public housing complexes in LA—will be demolished to make way for affordable housing accommodating about 150 families. Senior Pastor Donald Cook said the congregation, which his father established in 1976, has about 125 members and will relocate to a new space nearby. “We still want our hand in the community,” Cook said. “We will not abandon the people. We will not leave,” he commented. ❏ ❏ ❏
everyday people to the back pages of history. Each year we learn more about the people that, despite great odds, put food on the tables of little Black boys and girls and struggled in less than desirable jobs to put our present-day college professors, lawyers, and all sorts of successful Black people into jobs and careers. These people—famous, not so famous, some we’re just learning about, and even those we’ve never even heard of—all had something very much in common: God! He goes by all sorts of names: Friend in the midnight hour; Strength when His children get tired; Clarity when we are confused; and Balm when we are mistreated, abused, and misused. My mother, the Rev. Geraldine Howell Singleton, a pastor and educator, was sent off to BethuneCookman College with $10 in her pocketbook; and just like he did ...continued on p15
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LEADERS OF ST. JOHN AME CHURCH VOW TO REBUILD AFTER MARCH 2020 TORNADO By Aaron Cantrell, WTVF
It’s been a year since Tennessee’s oldest African Methodist Episcopal Church was damaged by a tornado. St. John AME Church and many other homes in the North Nashville community were destroyed. “Tornadoes are not fair. It hit us but didn’t bother some neighboring buildings,” St. John AME Church Pastor Lisa Hammonds said. When the tornado struck, the church relied on other places of worship in the community like New Covenant Christian Church to be a tornado relief center to help victims. “People from everywhere in the world came here to get food and to get supplies. We were literally partnering with every group you can think of,” New Covenant Christian Church Social Justice Minister Teresa Smallwood said. Eventually, the St. John AME Church building was demolished in the summer of 2020. It was too damaged to be repaired. All that’s left is the church sign, a mailbox, and a blessing box with food to give to people in need. “We have come a long way in the last year for such a significant loss,” Pastor Hammonds said. The lot is currently being used as a place to remember Tennessee COVID-19 victims—each star represents a life lost. In the eyes of Minister Smallwood, it’s more than an empty lot. It’s sacred ground. “It was a place where people, families, communities, and connections to this community have been for hundreds of years.
More importantly it was a place of sacrality.” Minister Smallwood M ssaid. St. John AME Church has been around for [more than] 150 years aand has served this North Nashville community for more than 60 yyears. Pastor Hammonds says there’s more work to do. “We’re coming bback,” Pastor Hammonds said. Pastor Hammonds and the congregation haven’t stopped serving ttheir community. She wants people living in the 37208 zip code to kknow there may not be any walls standing, but St. John AME Church’s mission to serve is stronger than ever. “Until the building is here the m neighborhood needs to know we’re still present. We’re still relevant,” n PPastor Hammonds explained. Pastor Hammonds has taken time to reflect on what happened and what she wants for the future. In this new year, she’s ready to start making plans to rebuild. “We will begin looking at what a physical building will look like to match those visions, values, and mission going forward,” Pastor Hammonds said. It’s going to take a lot work to build the church back but Pastor Hammonds keeps the faith it’s going to happen. “Don’t give up hope for we believe in a God who will bring us through. Our latter will be greater than our former,” Pastor Hammonds said. Pastor Hammonds said church members may be physically separated through virtual worship but they try hard to stay spiritually connected. ❏ ❏ ❏
WESTERN NEW ORLEANS-BATON ROUGE DISTRICT REVIVAL By Rev. Dr. Jennie L. Curry, 8th Episcopal District
Although our churches are not brick and mortar sanctuaries due to COVID-19 and churches are following the directives from the Council of Bishops that discouraged resuming services in the sanctuaries until after the Council has deemed it was prudent to do so, the Western New Orleans-Baton Rouge District was called to get ready to experience anointed preaching and teaching during the Annual Revival via Zoom on February 24-26, 2021, by Presiding Elder Bland L. Washington, Sr. and our District Consultant, Mrs. Brenda W Washington. The Rev. Ranches Hall s serves as Director of Evangelism a the Rev. Alton Joe serves as the and A Assistant Director of Evangelism. P. E. Bland L. Washington of the WNOBR District an Mrs. O Our theme this year was “Don’t Brenda Washington, District F Forget About the Cross.” Consultant. One of the objectives of the E Evangelism Committee is that the d district membership would be re-energized as God revitalizes our spirits a souls. As pastors and laity, we need God and the Holy Spirit to renew and a refresh our spirits so that we will be empowered to engage effectively in and o outreach in our communities to become effective disciples of Jesus Christ. The Reverend Roger The Reverend Trinice Rev. Ritney Castine, February 24-26, Presiding Elder Washington greeted, welcomed, and AME in Robertson of Days Ricks, Pastor of Mt. Trinity thanked members for their attendance. On the first night, the Rev. Trinice Chapel AME in Zion AME in Bridge Gonzales, LA. Ricks, the pastor of Mount Zion AME Church in Bridge City, Louisiana, very Clinton, LA. City, LA. powerfully delivered the first sermon, “It Wasn’t The Nails,” from John 3:14 and 18:37. On February 25, the Rev. Roger Robinson, the pastor of Days Chapel AME Church in Clinton, Louisiana, very mightily delivered the second sermon, “The Benefits of Choosing a Cross” from Mark 8:34-38. On February 26, the Rev. Ritney Castine, the pastor of Trinity AME Church in Gonzales, Louisiana, concluded the revival with a very dynamic moving sermon, “It’s Always Something,” from Luke 4:4-13. ❏ ❏ ❏
...From Look Back p14 for her, God makes a way out of no
way. That same God is telling us to look back at what He’s done but keep moving forward. I found myself in the book of Deuteronomy this month and I know it’s because it is the record of Moses preparing the Children of Israel—except Joshua and Caleb who didn’t know of the slave master’s whip—for their entry into the Promised Land. The Promised Land, land flowing with milk and honey, was being given to God’s children. From as far as Moses could see from the top of Mt. Pisgah—westward, northward, southward, and eastward—the land would belong to the children of God. Moses, the one whom God talked to in person and
was allowed to see Him, was the leader of the Israelites through 40 years in the wilderness. Now, this Moses stands as a shining example for us not because of all he was but because of his disobedience. God told him he was not going into the Promised Land. Instead, God told Moses to “charge and encourage and strengthen Joshua” because he was going to be the new leader of God’s people. In his sermon on the day before his assassination, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. declared “I’ve been to the mountain top… I may not get there with you, but we will get to the Promised Land.” Like Moses, he stayed on mission. Likewise, we are not going to see all of the things God has in store for our people; but like Moses, we
have this ministry. We must resign ourselves to letting the educators teach science, math, and the rest of the syllabus. Like Moses, however, we teach God. Deuteronomy 4:9 warns “But take care and watch yourselves closely, so as neither to forget the things that your eyes have seen nor to let them slip from your mind all the days of your life; make them known to your children and your children’s children.” Look back but keep moving forward. They remembered Moses but moved forward. We remember Dr. King but we’re moving forward. The Rev. Gregory E. Singleton, is the pastor of Pine Grove AME Church in Hodges, South Carolina.
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CONGRATULATORY ANNOUNCEMENTS
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MARCH 2021
*Purple font connotes Episcopal Family; Red font, General Officers and Blue font, Connectional Officers.
*Dr. Thema Bryant-Davis invited to be a Speaker at the Annual Psychology Day to be held at the United Nations in New York City Thursday, April 15, 2021 https://PsychologyCoalitionUN.org invitation to be one of five speakers of the vaccines. UN Secretary-General I am writing to you on behalf of the on the panel. The specific theme for Antonio Guterres has stated that we Psychology Day at the United Nations ~~~~~~~~ the clinical psychology area is: Ways should not simply return to the way the Planning Committee to invite you to Dr. Thema Bryant-Davis is the to expand and improve mental health world was prior to the pandemic but try be a speaker at our event scheduled for youngest child of Bishop John services for all individuals including to build a better world. Planning for a Thursday, April 15, 2021. Our annual R. Bryant, the 106th elected and those in underserved populations, better future amid dire events is a sign Psychology Day at the UN, usually held consecrated bishop of the AME Church as well as the equitable treatment of of optimism for the future of the world. at the United Nations in New York and Episcopal Supervisor (retired) communities with low resources. In our virtual event, we are inviting City, will be a virtual event this year due Rev. Dr. Cecelia Williams Bryant. Dr. We would be very appreciative if experts from five different areas in to the pandemic. This flagship event is Thema Byant-Davis went to high school you could respond to this invitation by Psychology to outline how to address the organized by the Psychology Coalition in Monrovia, Liberia, when her parents March 1, 2021 to let us know if you are challenges stemming from the pandemic at the United Nations (PCUN), served in the Fourteenth Episcopal available and interested in participating. and provide recommendations to build whose members are representatives District. She is a licensed psychologist If so, we will send further details. a better world. Evidence-based research of Psychology NGOs accredited at the and an ordained minister in the AME Please feel free to contact us with any from social, clinical, educational, health, United Nations. The event is devoted Church, serving on the ministerial staff questions. and industrial/organization psychology to the exploration of how psychological at FAME Los Angeles, where Dr. Edgar Sincerely, can provide insight into achieving the theory, research and practice can Comfort B. Asanbe, Ph.D. goals proposed by the UN Secretaryaddress issues of global importance. Boyd is her pastor. She is a sacred artist Co-Chair, Psychology Day at the United General. The Planning Committee is Previous Psychology Day programs who has worked nationally and globally Nations reaching out to several accomplished have focused on topics such as climate to provide relief and empowerment Janet Sigal, Ph.D. psychologists with expertise in these change, peace and human rights, global to marginalized persons. Dr. Thema, Co-Chair, Psychology Day at the United areas to form a panel that will describe violence, migration, education and a professor at Pepperdine University, Nations approaches to planning for the future. sustainable development, and wellis a past president of the Society Walter Reichman, Ed.D. Please, note that the United Nations is being in the context of political and for the Psychology of Women. Her Co-Chair, Psychology Day at the United a secular institution, and PCUN would ecological instability. contributions to psychological research, Nations like the presentation to be psychologyThis year, the title and theme of policy, and practice have been honored Leslie Popoff, Ph.D. content based. Psychology Day is “Psychological by national and regional psychological President, Psychology Coalition at the In light of your expertise in the Contributions to Building Back Better associations. Congratulatory email United Nations cultural context of trauma recovery in a Post-Pandemic World.” Currently can be forwarded via: queenakosua@ UN Representative, International and providing relief and empowerment we are experiencing the worst pandemic hotmail.com. Council of Psychologists to marginalized persons, we would in 100 years, but now there is some DrLPopoff@gmail.com be honored if you would accept our amelioration of this disease as a result *Congratulations to Rev. Dr. Marcellus A. Norris, the pastor of St. Luke AME Church in Harlem, New York, for successfully defending his dissertation, “Securing Future Generations: Adaptive Model for Mentoring in the A.M.E. Church” from Payne Theological Seminary in Wilberforce, Ohio. He is the husband of Anethia Théréss Norris and father of London Nicholas Arnell and Marcellus A. Norris, II. He is the son of Bishop Richard Franklin Norris (retired) and the late Episcopal Supervisor Mary Ann Norris and the brother of the Rev. Richard F. Norris, II. A third-generation AME preacher, the Rev. Dr. Norris graduated in May 2007 from Lutheran Seminary at Gettysburg with a Master of Divinity degree. crushed spirit dries up the bones.” Connectional Parliamentarian for the Church in Norwalk, Connecticut; and The Rev. Dr. Norris has pastored Richard Allen Young Adult Council. St. Paul AME Church in Cambridge, Bethel AME Church in Cito, Congratulatory messages can be He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Massachusetts. In November 2012, the Pennsylvania; St. Peter’s AME Church emailed to: marcellus.norris@gmail. Fraternity, Inc. and is a Master Mason Rev. Dr. Norris was appointed by Bishop in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania; and member of Xenia Lodge #50. His Ingram as the First Episcopal District Bethel AME Church in West Chester, com favorite scripture is Proverbs 17:22, “A Chairman of Christian Education. Pennsylvania; Bethel AME Church in cheerful heart is good medicine, but a He has held the position as the Bryn Mar, Pennsylvania; Bethel AME *The Mayor and Maryville, Illinois, Held a Drive-By Birthday Celebration for Dr. John Q. Owens. The article is reprinted in this issue of The Christian Recorder. Congratulatory messages can be emailed to: mrsdo7@aol.com
On behalf of Publications Commission chair Bishop Vashti McKenzie, president/publisher of the AMEC Publishing House (Sunday School Union) 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 ANNOUNCEMENTS
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MARCH 2021
*Purple font connotes Episcopal Family; Red font, General Officers and Blue font, Connectional Officers.
The Rev. Frank Isaac Smart, II, the pastor of Mt. Zion AME Church in Trenton, New Jersey, Camden Trenton District of the New Jersey Annual Conference, First Episcopal District and the husband of Mrs. Jessica Vinson-Smart, II. Mrs. Diane Smart, a Life
Member of the Women’s Missionary Society and the sister of the Rev. Tianda C.
Smart, the pastor of Union AME Church in Allentown, New Jersey.
The Rev. Dorothy Sumner,
the wife of Presiding Elder Samuel L. Sumner, North
District of the Conference, Episcopal District.
Indiana Fourth
The Rev. Joan H. Gray, a
retired pastor of the Philadelphia Annual Conference, First Episcopal District, where her last pastoral assignment was Bensalem AME Church in Bensalem, Pennsylvania, and after retirement she attended Bethel AME Church in Bristol, Pennsylvania.
Ms. Kim L. Laffoon, the sister of the Rev. Dennis Laffoon, the pastor of Bethel AME in Saginaw, Michigan, Fourth Episcopal District. Mr. William C. Roberts, the father of the Rev. William C. Roberts, II, the pastor of Bethel AME Church in Middletown, Ohio, the Cincinnati-Dayton District, Third Episcopal District.
Sherman, a supernumerary
of the East Annual Conference, Eleventh Episcopal District, her last pastoral assignment was Lewis Memorial AME Church in Jacksonville, Florida.
Sister Imogene Stephens,
the
mother
of
the
Rev.
Jacqueline Y. Lynch, the pastor of Mt. Olive AME Church in Port Washington, New York, Jamaica-Long Island District, New York Annual Conference, First Episcopal District AME Church. Mrs. Clinda D. McCray Swinton, the mother of the Rev. Brian Swinton, the pastor of Calvary (North Charleston) AME Church in Mt. Pleasant District, Palmetto Annual Conference, Seventh Episcopal District. The Rev. Luther L. Walker, Jr., the retired pastor of
Emmanuel AME Church in Hartley, Delaware, and the father of the Rev. Luther
L. Walker, III, the pastor of Ringgold Chapel AME Church in Middletown, Delaware, First Episcopal District. The Rev. Wink Sweat, Sr., a
superannuate of the Kentucky Annual Conference, who retired in 2011 after serving over 35 years in ministry, which included 11 pastoral charges, his last being Saint James AME Church of Covington, Kentucky, Thirteenth Episcopal District.
McLellan, the wife of the Rev. Glenn McLellan, the pastor of Soul Chapel AME Church in Marion District, Northeast Annual Conference, Seventh Episcopal District of the AME Church.
Mrs. Elizabeth Marshall, the mother of the Rev. Thomas P. Johnson, the pastor of Fisk Chapel AME Church in New Haven, New Jersey, New Jersey Annual Conference, New Brunswick District, First Episcopal District.
The
Mrs. Dorothy Givens, the
Mrs.
Leslie
Rev.
Doris
Ann
sister of Mrs. Freda Davis,
the former 12th District M-SWAWO+PKs President and widow of the Rev. Harold Davis, Twelfth Episcopal District.
Mr. Irvin Cross, the father of the Rev. Lisa and Susan
Cross; the Rev. Lisa Cross is the pastor of Calvary AME Church, Philadelphia District, Philadelphia Annual Conference, First Episcopal District. The Rev. Mayfield Brewster, the father of the Rev. Angela Brewster, the pastor of First AME. Church in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and the president of the 12th Episcopal District Women in Ministry. The Rev. Sylvia Kalulu Konie, a minister serving
God and the church for over 31 years from the time she received her first order in 1989; a member of the Lusaka East Presiding Elder District, Southeast Zambia Annual Conference, 17th Episcopal District, and was an elected a delegate to the forthcoming General Conference.
Mother Henrietta Nelson,
103, a faithful and loyal member of Greater Mt. Olive
AME Church in Coleman, Florida, and the beloved mother-in-law of the Rev. T. Patricia (Gerald) Nelson, the pastor of Mt. Tabor AME Church in Ocala, Florida, Eleventh Episcopal District.
Mildred “Christine” Martin-Daniels, the devoted sister of the Rev. Marvin (the Rev. Donna) Andrews, the pastor of Bethel AME Church in Umatilla, and the cousin of the Rev. Michael Kennedy, the pastor of Mt. Pisgah AME Church in Summerfield, Florida.
Anjinea
LaSha
Hopson,
the niece of Presiding Elder Randolph W. Martin, Sr.
(retired), and Mrs. Charolett B. Martin, Connectional 1st Vice President of the Women’s Missionary Society, Twelfth Episcopal District.
Mr. Arthur Eugene Freeman, Sr., the brother of the Rev. Robert C. Freeman, Jr., the pastor of Coppins Chapel AME Church in Yerkwood, Alabama, Ninth Episcopal District. The Rev. Van U. Flowers, Sr., a local elder for Gaines
Chapel AME Church in East Moline, Illinois, North DistrictIllinois Conference, Fourth Episcopal District.
The Rev. Dr. Nelson G. Walker, a retired pastor of
the Chicago Conference after having been the pastor and shepherd of Shaffer Chapel AME Church in Harvey, Illinois, for over 25 years, Fourth Episcopal District.
Mother Virgeous Ann “Bartley” Bridgett, the
sister of CLO Presidential Advisor and Immediate Past Director of Lay Activities, Sister Edith Bartley-Cartledge, member of First AME Bethel Church, NY Conference, First Episcopal District.
Deacon
Alfred
Taylor,
the brother-in-law of the Rev. Faye Banks Taylor,
the presiding elder of the Albany-Rochester District of the Western New York Annual Conference, and the pastor of St. Mark’s AME Church in Kingston, New York, First Episcopal District. Jocelyn Joy Ellis, the eldest sister of Anita R. Lemmons, and the sister-in-love of Presiding Elder H. Michael ...continued on p28
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HOW TO SECURE BANK FINANCING FOR YOUR CHURCH By Cynthia Gordon-Floyd, CPA, Contributing Writer
During my corporate career, I was provided with a hands-on, trial-by-fire education in seeking financing, analyzing loan documentation, and having a clear understanding of how forprofit organizations deal with and manage their banking relationships. This background has proven invaluable as I serve churches in a banking environment frequently hostile to churches. We unknowingly contribute to this hostility when we approach banks poorly prepared. Our lack of preparation usually results in our loan application being declined. A significant portion of my financial ministry is spent assisting churches h h with h preparing to present themselves to banks to refinance, purchase, or build. There are several things churches can do to present a well-prepared loan application that will yield results. First, it’s important to understand that large loans are secured on cash flow and not relationships. Despite even long-standing relationships, banks will require a three-year financial history for your church that will include a threeyear Statement of Activities (Income Statement is the for-profit term) and a three-year Statement of Financial Position (Balance Sheet is the for-profit term). The bank will also ask for information about the pastor, senior leadership, church history, and denominational financial responsibilities. Next, you must know the applicable statistics for your church membership. Banks focus closely on the amount of debt requested per contributing member. This is one of the first calculations made to determine eligibility. Therefore, you need to know your number of giving units or contributing adults. You need to know how many persons are under 18 and over 65 years of age because these groups may not be able to substantially contribute due to lack of employment or retirement. Lastly, you need to have some money in the bank. Ideally, you should have 12-24 months of debt service, or principal and interest, available in cash. As an example, if you want a $500,000 loan and you only have $5,000 in the bank then you do not have the cash flow to pay the debt service on the loan you are requesting. You should be able to show that you can consistently pay a lease or rent that is comparable to the new loan’s monthly debt service that you are requesting and that you can grow your cash balances each month because you consistently have money left. In other words, you need to show you have more than enough money to pay and you have a proven track record of spending less than you bring in. Cynthia Gordon-Floyd is a certified public accountant and founder of Willing Steward Ministries, LLC. Willing Steward Ministries (www. 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 AME Church of Manassas in Manassas, Virginia.
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PRACTICAL THEOLOGY IN AN IMPRACTICAL WORLD By Dr. Herman O. Kelly, Columnist
Our existential experience as people of color is a myriad of conditions, from racism, medical and digital divide, to criminality. We are profiled, dissected, and ostracized in a country we call America. Our concerns and livelihood are suspect and usually not of importance to the larger society. Our theology must be practical and speak to the concerns we encounter daily. First, practical theology is a way to speak and interpret God’s concern for the oppressed and the marginal in society. James Cone’s book, The Cross and The Lynching Tree, speaks practically to the treatment of African Americans regarding lynching in this country. Dr. Cone’s practical theology gave us an insight into a terrible episode in our history. The theology of praxis means we must do something to help speak to the needs of our people under oppression and marginal existence. Practical theology intersects with the need and the response to that need. This theology is not just espoused from the sacred walls of the church; but words, prayers, and rituals are active and progressive to make a difference. “What have you done for me lately?” is the clarion call of practical theology. People on the fringes of society want the words we say in our sermon to take feet and move. Secondly, practical theology must always be directed and guided by God’s Spirit. The practical theologian must have a genuine relationship with the Holy. The practical theologian must know God’s voice and adhere to the “still small voice” of God (1 Kings 19: 12). It is this voice that guides practical theology. Elie Wiesel, in his book Night, talks about God being in the suffering. Practical theology must be in our suffering, pain, and hurts. We must see God, feel God, and know that God cares for us in the marginal and difficult moments we face. The theology we preach, pray, and sing must point to a God that is not afraid to meet us during our ugly and demeaning times of life. Practical theology in an impractical world must make sense in a nonsensical world. Lastly, practical theology in an impractical world must break down barriers for the breakthrough of God’s salvation. The practical theologian must be able to maneuver and bring the hurting and marginalized to the knowledge of wholeness, healing, and salvation. The practical theologian must work hard to speak justice to power with the salvific words of God to the least among us. The pulpit may be the homeless shelter, feeding ministry, or a Black Lives Matter march. Wherever the people on the fringes meet, God must also be with them. When we see the hurting, we must also see the healing. Jeremiah 8:22 asks, “Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has the health of my poor people not been restored?” Practical theology in an impractical world must be genuine and authenticated by the move of God’s Spirit toward the impractical concerns of this world. ❏ ❏ ❏
demographics in Districts 14-20 as well as in the Lay Organization’s administrative and leadership roles. We cannot have the global AME Church almost be a replica of the United Nations Security Council where only five nations’ states have power over a number of countries. Leadership in the upper echelons of the AME Church should and must reflect the geographic spread of the Church internationally. It is not correct to have positions in the Bishops Council, Judicial Council, and Connectional leadership of church auxiliaries being dominated by Districts 1-13! Ephesians 4:16 says, “from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.” ...From Inclusive Leadership p11
The Rev. Dimpho Gaobepe is a Ph.D. Candidate at North West University in South Africa. He serves as the senior pastor of Montshioa Chapel AME Church in the West Conference of the 19th Episcopal District.
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RELIEF FOR BLACK FARMERS IS PAST DUE By Chuck Hobbs, Columnist
One of the key and controversial components of the Coronavirus Relief Package signed by President Joe Biden this week was a $5.1 Billion plank earmarked to minority farmers that would provide debt relief and assistance in acquiring new land to farm. While this multi-billion dollar plank is relatively small when compared to the debt that will be described below, it is at least a good-faith step in the right direction. Yet, as with most things in the modern era, what should be a bipartisan goal—seeking equality and redress of past wrongs for Black farmers who have faced discrimination by the Federal government for over 150 years—has drawn the ire of right-wing pundits and Republican political leaders who falsely claim that such earmarks are “reverse discrimination” against white farmers. This issue holds personal significance to me because my maternal immediate ancestors were share crop farmers in Camilla, Georgia. Camilla is a small town in the southwest portion of the state whose major historical footnote is that it was the scene of a bloody massacre in 1868 when former Confederate soldiers killed 14 Black men and wounded 40 others who were merely seeking enforcement of equal rights per the recently passed 14th Amendment to the Constitution. About a decade ago, I sat among my maternal elders as one lay dying in the hospital. The issue that evening was that a descendant of the white owner of the farm in which their parents and grandparents worked was mortally ill, too, and wanted to meet with the children that he grew up around—and soon served as the manorial lord over—before meeting his own fate. The youngest of my elders, shielded from much of the horrors of picking cotton in the brutal sun during Jim Crow—only to be cheated out of wages—was eager to meet and see what the man wanted to discuss. She even reckoned aloud that perhaps he wanted to divide up some of the thousands of acres of land that our ancestors had worked. The rest of the elders were strongly opposed to meeting with this man or discussing anything. I sat at rapt attention upon the realization that these very successful family members sitting among me still held some deep resentment and anger about their experiences during this era. My ancestors’ angst was not in a vacuum. Such was the case all across the Deep South and in Midwest states like Indiana, where the social order decreed that the rights of white farmers and landowners superseded those of Black farmers and landowners. These thoughts are not mere speculation or opinion but are facts that have been carefully chronicled by the United States Department of Agriculture; whose archives attest that in 1910, Black farm ownership peaked at around 16-19 million acres but by 2010, the number had dwindled by a whopping 90 percent! The “why” as to the loss of Black farmland is rather simple. It is a combination of white terrorism like the Rosewood Massacre and Tulsa Massacre and how Black lands were stolen after Blacks were lynched and scattered due to attacks from white mobs, price freezes by the USDA and local governments that paid Black farmers far less for the same goods that white farmers produced, and predatory/discriminatory lending and targeting practices that compelled many Black farmers to move to the North and Midwest to find good-paying factory jobs. This history is not hidden. It did not stop Pennsylvania Republican Senator Pat Toomey from criticizing the Biden administration’s earmark to Black farmers by saying “This bill is not about responding to COVID. It is about exploiting the final stretch of a public health crisis in order to enact a longstanding liberal wish-list for years into the future [including] sending payments to farmers and ranchers equal to 120 percent of their borrowings, irrespective of their earnings, wealth or effects from COVID.” Senator Toomey’s remarks have been echoed by Tucker Carlson and other rightwing journalists who have called this measure “a free handout” that will give an unfair advantage to Black farmers. The major problem with their misrepresentation is that it leads those who do not know better to overlook that the Federal government has heavily subsidized white farmers who have dominated the profession due to the aforementioned racist acts and practices. The formal end of the Jim Crow era did nothing to ameliorate past wrongs plagued by Black farmers and landowners by the Federal and state governments. More recently, when former President Donald Trump waged a trade war with China in 2018-19 over tariffs on soybeans, the Trump administration’s $28 billion bailout ...continued on p28
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THE EPITOME OF SERVANT LEADERSHIP By Glenda J. Minor, 8th Episcopal District
The concept of servant leadership has recently become a common phrase in secular environments. However, the concept is quite old. Jesus exemplified servant leadership characteristics in Mark 10:45 when he said, “For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.” A servant leader’s main goal is to serve, not be served. We are proud to have a bishop in the 8th Episcopal District who typifies servant leadership. The 8th Episcopal District comprises the states of Louisiana and Mississippi. Bishop Julius Harrison McAllister, Sr. made the members of the Louisiana Conference aware of the water issue in Mississippi and quickly called upon the presiding elders of the three Louisiana Conference Districts—the Rev. Ray Jackson of Central New Orleans Bogalusa, the Rev. Otis Lewis of the Greater New Orleans Greensburg, and the Rev. Bland Washington, Sr. of the Western New Orleans Baton Rouge District—and the brothers and sisters in Louisiana to assist. Leaders and members of the three districts donated and delivered truckloads of drinking water, cash cards, and other items of need to the citizens of Jackson, Mississippi. Not only did Bishop McAllister exhibit servant leadership characteristics of a prayerful, gentle, and preaching leader, he also displayed those of a teacher leader. During Bishop McAllister’s term as leader of the 8th Episcopal District, he emphasized the need for pastors to be good leaders, teachers, and students and to serve the people well. The teacherleader-servant character that Bishop McAllister espoused came through when the presiding elders, pastors, and lay leaders loaded bottled water into trucks and drove them to Jackson, Mississippi, to serve the people in need. These elders, preachers, and lay leaders epitomize perhaps one of the most important character traits of a servant leader: they cared about the physical needs of people and were willing to roll up their sleeves to help in a very physical, needed, and meaningful way. ❏ ❏ ❏
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56TH SELMA BRIDGE CROSSING JUBILEE By KC Bailey, TCR Photographer
For over half a century we have celebrated and remembered Bloody Sunday. This tradition has been observed every year. This year was no exception. The theme was “Beyond the Bridge.” Close to 6,000 people registered for the free event. Many more saw parts of the threeday program. Due to the pandemic, the Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee decided to go virtual for this first time in its 56-year history. On Friday, there was a virtual presentation of the Annual Mass Meeting held at Tabernacle Baptist Church and then the focus was on the Freedom Flame Awards. The recipients this year were Judge Nathaniel Walker; Ethel and Robert Kennedy; Bill Fletcher, Jr.; Sean Penn; Tokata Iron Eyes; Ambassador Sydney Williams; Congresswoman Maxine Waters; Fred Hampton; Fred Hampton Jr.; and the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright. On Saturday, there was the usual battle of the bands and the step show. There was also the Legacy Panel honoring past giants of the civil rights movement and NAACP Defense Fund with a music festival featuring Regina Belle, Musiq Soulchild, and many others. The Rev. Dr. William Barber, II; Derrick Johnson, the CEO of the NAACP; Dolores Huerta, a labor
leader; and others moderated workshops and gave speeches. On Sunday morning, there was the Annual Unity Breakfast which was live and virtual. People received a breakfast, stayed in their cars, and watching on two jumbo screens and live speakers. Among the live speakers were Congresswoman Terri Sewell, a member of Brown Chapel AME Church; the Foot Soldiers; and via zoom, Representative Jim Clyburn and the two new Senators from Georgia, Senator Jon Ossoff and the Rev. Raphael Warnock along with a special message from President Joe Biden. There was the traditional Sunday service at Brown Chapel AME Church via zoom and on Facebook. The speakers via zoom were Bishop Harry L. Seawright, Bishop Adam J. Richardson, Congresswoman Terri Sewell, the Rev. Al Sharpton,
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Sherrilyn Ifill, and LaTosha Brown. After the Unity Breakfast, there was a motorcade crossing the Bridge to a special ceremony at the Foot Soldiers Park honoring Representative John Lewis, the Rev. C. T. Vivian, Attorney Bruce Boynton, the Rev. Dr. Joseph Lowery, and Jimmy Lee Jackson. Members of their families laid a reef.
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Sunday evening ended with a virtual musical concert. Although the format changed because of COVID-19, the Jubilee Board was able to be creative while being safe and responsible. They encouraged people to stay home and safe. The ones who came wore masks and kept social distances. The Annual Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee was the ...continued on p23
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...From 56TH Selma Bridge p21 brainchild of Senator Hank Sanders, Faya Rose Toure, and a host of others. It was indeed a team effort. If you go to selmajubilee. com, you can see all of those who made this event a success. Although this is just an annual event, history is being made every day in Selma. ❏ ❏ ❏
...From A Call p1
God has given the church a powerful weapon called prayer which empowers believers to deal with the psychological, physical, political, social, financial, and religious trauma that the pandemic has released within our lives. Prayer is an avenue the church can use to help bring an end to the pandemic crisis. Through spiritual meditation and prayer, the church can release the expectations of God into the world and change the atmosphere according to the will of God. Through prayer, believers can engage the presence, power, prosperity, and providence of God into the crisis that we are experiencing. Rather than allowing the crisis to keep dictating our life experiences, we need to rise up and engage the power of God in prayer to overcome the crisis. By engaging the power of God, the church can negate, nullify, neutralize, and even dispel the natural and spiritual forces that are empowering the pandemic crisis. Martin Luther King, Jr. stated that “trying to be a Christian without prayer is like trying to live without breathing.” Therefore, the church needs to release the breath of God that is within believers into the atmosphere of the crisis. God has informed us in his word that coming together, touching and agreeing in prayer, would cause his presence to manifest within our situations. We are being summoned as a church to come together and pray during our Connectional Day of Prayer. Let’s join hearts, minds, and spirits with the Bishop Sarah Francis Davis Covenant Keepers on April 13, 2021, to engage the power of God in overcoming this crisis and all the grief that has come with it. Together in prayer, we can make a difference and release the manifestation of God’s healing in the land. ❏ ❏ ❏
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RECOGNITIONS FROM THE 2021 YPD CONNECTIONAL LEADERSHIP TRAINING INSTITUTE At the Connectional YPD, LTI held from March 26-28, 8 Year Directors, Emerging Leaders, and MVPs were A rec recognized. Here are these inspirational figures who help ensure the future of our church. ❏ ❏ ❏
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...From Earmarks Will Fix p3
earmarks, everybody wins. Restoring earmarks will allow Congress to reclaim the spending authority it has given away to the presidency. It puts the power of the purse strings back in Congress’s hands as it should be and provides needed funding for district projects that make communities better. Earmarks are certainly a benefit for government affairs professionals, members of Congress, and the people. Furthermore, earmarks could help with the absence of legislative activity that has plagued Congress as of late. Most legislative bills never pass Congress. Many are left as ideas or die in the drafting stage. They often need a majority of congressional support, which is nearly impossible given the partisan divide. Moreover, in today’s filibuster-prone world, you still need three-fifths of the Senate to pass anything. Even if a bill manages to pass this process, it could die in conference when the Senate and House convene to iron out their differences. This legislative process is rare. Democrats’ rebranding earmarks as “Community Project Funding” details a plan that will exclude for-profit companies and the money available will only be a small slice of appropriations. The reality is earmarks represented nearly one percent of the total U.S. budget. Congress was created to be the responsive branch of government and earmarks help with government actions, ideally creating political equality. By this, I mean the policy areas of national defense; education; foreign aid; parks and recreation; improving and protecting the nation’s health, especially amid COVID-19; preserving the environment; and refining our infrastructure to improve the country. When polarization and the political divide are high, reviving earmarks would benefit both Republicans and Democrats. Republicans would score consistent ideological favor with their base while Democrats would
benefit from specific project grants and direct payments while excluding the corporations’ wealthiest. Legislators who effectively bring home the “pork” would also expose which Congress members are serious about legislating rather than being stuck at Twitter and media-clout personality seekers. Most would agree that the institution of Congress is broken. Earmarks can help fix it. They provide full transparency and accountability for all projects, spending, and legislation. They allow and even demand that Congress operates not just on the level of grand national policy and philosophy of government, where stasis seems to rule, but also the pragmatically impactful local level of specific constituent needs. The opportunity—necessity—for doing both can often open the pathway to breaking logjams and surmounting filibuster efforts. By federal standards, this process improves Congress, helps districts, and brings further dignity to the profession of government relations. The support of earmarks is not about greasing the wheels and give-a-ways of baubles and bibelots or having whiskey lunches. This is about restoring trust and getting to the people’s business of legislating. A Congress accountable to the spending of federal money going to one program, policy area, or another in exchange for a vote is better than a Congress being beholden to outside special interest money. Quardricos Driskell is a federal lobbyist and an adjunct professor with the George Washington University Graduate School of Political Management.
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BEARING THE CROSS By Rev. Remits Green, Columnist
Thomas Shepherd asked the question in the great church hymn, “Must Jesus bear the cross alone while all the world goes free? No there’s a cross for everyone, and there’s a cross for me.” These words play over and over and over in my spirit. The image of Simon of Cyrene being pulled out of the crowd to carry Jesus’ crossbar uphill is imprinted on my heart. Ministry, while meaningful in many ways, is also somewhat like bearing the cross—carrying the weight of others. Simon ministered to Jesus by carrying the cross. Jesus said we have to pick up our own cross and follow. Paul said that we have to bear the burdens of each other to fulfill the law of Christ. For the past four years, my church has faithfully ministered to our unsheltered neighbors. There was a time when the suffering brought me to tears. Fast forward to this year, ministering did not feel like a labor of love, it just felt like labor. It isn’t that I care less, I just feel less. I feel less empathy and more dread. Ministering without feeling has been disturbing. Spiritually speaking, what does it mean to dread serving? Turns out, this isn’t a spiritual condition. I am experiencing a common occurrence for those in helping professions or ministry— empathy fatigue. Empathy fatigue is emotional depletion. It is losing the ability to feel much of anything. Clergy are among those most susceptible to empathy fatigue. We feel so deeply and hold people so closely that it wears out our emotional elasticity. This is not a spiritual failing, it is a natural response kicking in to protect us from complete burnout. We need regular breaks from the emotional input we consistently absorb. We rarely take breaks. We just keep going without nurturing our spirits, processing our lives, or even reassessing our calling. Many faith traditions insist that clergy take regular sabbaticals. Some grant up to a year with full or partial pay and the ability to return with the same standing as when they left. For most of us, a lengthy sabbatical is not realistic. Work, family, finances, pride, and the fear of potential missed opportunities prevent us from meaningfully withdrawing from the emotional labor for any amount of time. Since this is just our reality, we must do what we can in the life place we are in with the resources we have available. Seek a therapist, an outside spiritual advisor, or life coach to explore the future as well as process
The Christian Recorder the past. I have found that a few visits annually are sufficient with the option of more if needed. Take several small, true sabbaticals—completely off duty from anything that requires taking in the emotions of others, even family. I am taking two weekends per month for six months with no serving, churching, meetings, or community events. I will reevaluate in six months. Some may need to step out of the pulpit for a season. Some may only need one full day each week. Do what you need to do to be healthy. God’s people are not served by our empty present-ness. Do something regularly that brings you joy. The joy within us exudes from our spirit when we are enjoying our lives! As for me, I have signed up for various free e-learning workshops with a small fee
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for certifications. I am having a ball! Finally, bring cross-bearing into perspective. The cross is symbolic of suffering and it is also symbolic of salvation and the promise of new life. Indeed, there is a cross for everyone! In this season, my cross is my well-being. I will not leave this cross for Jesus to bear alone, I will participate in my health and life. Will you? ❏ ❏ ❏
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...From Relief For The Black Farmer p19
of American farmers went exclusively to white farmers. A true study and understanding of American history will reveal that much of what is held to be universally true is a myth. When Black farmers are condescendingly told by conservatives to “pull themselves up by their own bootstraps,” such is as fictional as Santa Claus because the boots and laces for straps were stripped by both government and private sector racist policies long ago. When Black farmers are told that the Biden earmark is “reverse discrimination against white farmers,” such is as bogus as the Easter Bunny when noting that just a year or so ago, $28 billion in Federal subsidies were “handed out” to white farmers. This last point, the fiction that is “reverse discrimination,” is the most sinister and inane when remembering that whites have never been systematically discriminated against via governmental policies that segregated education and hospitals, delivered unequal justice in the courts, allowed businesses to be stolen, whole townships razed, and access to credit to be fleeting. ❏ ❏ ❏
Lemmons of the South District, Michigan Annual Conference, Fourth Episcopal District. ...From Necrology p17
Mr. Blake Jimpson, the brother of the Rev. Gloria
E. Jimpson, the pastor of Payne AME Church in the Albany-Kingston District, Western New York Annual Conference, First Episcopal District. Ms. Aundrea Cantu, the
daughter of the Rev. Paul
P. and Maria Martin, the pastor of St. Marks AME Church in East Orange, New Jersey, Newark District, New Jersey Annual Conference, First Episcopal District. The Rev. Dickson Sweki Kapepa, a retired minister
serving God and the church for over 39 years from the time he received his first order in 1979; a member of the Solwezi East
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...From Necrology p28
Conference, District.
District, Zambezi Annual Seventeenth Episcopal
The Rev. Patricia Carter, a retired
itinerant elder in the North District, Tennessee Annual Conference, Thirteenth Episcopal District.
The Rev. Verdell McCants, a local elder at Mt. Pisgah AME Church in Webster, Florida, and the beloved sister of the Rev. T. Patricia Nelson, the pastor of Mt. Tabor AME Church in Ocala, Florida, Eleventh Episcopal District. Mrs. Beatrice Jacobs Anderson, the
——————————————— Condolences to the bereaved are expressed on behalf of Publications Commission chair Bishop Vashti McKenzie, president/publisher of the AMEC Publishing House (Sunday School Union) Rev. 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
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loving mother of Dr. E. Gail Anderson
Holness, the pastor of Adam’s Inspirational AME Church in the Capital District, Washington Conference, Second Episcopal District.
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The Rev. Ralph O. Thomas, Jr., an
itinerant elder in the AME Church, Twelfth Episcopal District, and served in the state of Oklahoma and Arkansas.
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EDITORIAL
NOW IS THE TIME: RE-ENGAGEMENT WITH THE AFRICAN DIASPORA We live in unprecedented times framed by political and racial insensitivities,
of Ghana’s Year of Return in 2019 which
global pandemics, and economic decline. It appears that our world faces
netted the country an estimated $1.8
insurmountable challenges. Yet, African peoples—throughout the Diaspora—have
billion in revenue, other African countries
endured such challenges from slavery, colonialism, independence movements,
have followed suit by inviting members
and civil rights with a level of hope and optimism emblematic of faith in a
of the Diaspora to return home. Similar
higher power and belief in ourselves.
plans are currently underway in Liberia,
From political protests encouraging the release of Nelson Mandela in South
a country founded by freed African
Africa to global support across the Diaspora for Black Lives Matter, our shared
American slaves to commemorate its 200-
passion for the ideals of justice, equality, and freedom continue to guide our
year independence.
collective unity. The recent appointments of Kamala Harris as Vice President
As a continent with more than four
of the United States, Linda Thomas-Greenfield as US Ambassador to the
trillion dollars in untapped economic
United Nations, and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as Director General of the World
potential resulting from the urbanization
Trade Organization serve as clear examples of how leaders of African descent are
of cities like Lagos and Kinshasa by 2050,
poised to play an influential role in the shaping of our world in the 21st century.
it seems ideal that African American business owners would be well-prepared to
Yet, despite our symbolic and moral victories, there is more work to be done
scale their companies while providing social impact. Several African American-
to provide greater prosperity to African American communities and the broader
owned companies such as VentureLift Africa and SouthXSouth Consulting
African Diaspora. Despite the growth of an African American middle class and
are leveraging opportunities to collaborate with African entrepreneurs while
social mobility because of greater educational attainment, a recent report by the
creating the African Declaration of Interdependence (DOI), a set of ethical
Brookings Institution found that the income gap between African American
business practices drawing on the importance of African Americans having a
and white communities has widened in recent years, while similar economic
voice in the continent’s political and economic future.
LEVAR SMITH Guest Editorial
disparities remain in employment, healthcare, education, and housing. Even
By emphasizing the role of the Diaspora in the development of the continent, the
with the commitment of the new Biden administration to advance racial equity
African DOI re-emphasizes the legacy of corporate social responsibility reflected
by closing the racial wealth gap, the more immediate challenges of the COVID-19
by the Sullivan Principles adopted by American corporations in the 1980s. As
pandemic and its effects on the economy will continue to impede the ability of
addressed by former US Ambassador to Nigeria Howard Jeter, the opportunity
the government to create effective policies in the short term.
to build institutional linkages that join Africa and the Diaspora in addressing
At this moment, African Americans must look to the African Diaspora as both
common problems is essential in providing hope for people on both sides of
a source of inspiration and a path to economic prosperity, wealth accumulation,
the Atlantic. With the political and moral support of powerful and dynamic
and social mobility. As a recent article by the Council on Foreign Relations
institutions such as the AME Church, National Urban League, National Black
suggests, while African American businesses continue to struggle with access
Chamber of Commerce, National Association for the Advancement of Colored
to financing in their home countries, the potential to export their skills and
People, and the Congressional Black Caucus, African American businesses and
capital investment is becoming more favorable in African countries like Ghana,
entrepreneurs can showcase the best the Diaspora has to offer while improving
Senegal, South Africa, Rwanda, and Kenya.
possibilities for economic advancement here at home and abroad.
In a banner year of tourism of African Americans to the continent, the success Levar L. Smith is an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science Morehouse College, ...From Are We There Yet? p1 and embezzlement of funds. This ultimately led to Bishop Kawimbe’s suspension as the presiding prelate of the 19th Episcopal District. The unrest and turmoil broke pastoral brotherhood built over years and brought heavy tension and divisions in churches amongst laypeople and pastors, some who were pro-Kawimbe and vice versa. We cannot overlook the fact that some pastors were demoted and others promoted based on what seemed like a punitive and a battle of the powers that be. The 19th Episcopal District became what it was not for almost two annual conference series when the leadership of Bishop Kawimbe failed to produce what the masses demanded, “an audited financial
statement of the 19th Episcopal District and the financial transparency of how the funds have been used since the arrival of Bishop Kawimbe.” It was 2019 when the Episcopal Committee took a decision to release Bishop Kawimbe from his prelateship of the 19th Episcopal District and appointed Bishop E. Earl McCloud, Jr., who also presides over the 14th Episcopal District. Upon Bishop McCloud’s arrival, the house was in tatters, brotherhood was broken, and hope was lost. The 2019-2020 Annual Conference series finally had a breeze of peace and hope was restored in the hearts of the 19th District congregants. After a long time, financial transparency was visible and financial reporting was consistent. Those Bishop
Kawimbe suspended and expelled from the church, were reinstated without hesitation and some were promoted. Others felt their appointments were a disrespectful demotion. The question to this day remains, “Are we there yet as the 19th Episcopal District?” With all that transpired during the tenure of Bishop Kawimbe, his suspension, and appointment of Bishop McCloud, is the 19th Episcopal District in order or just a different face with different acts towards deception of finances and favouritism appointments and promotions? Are we there yet? Are we a peaceful and harmonious district that believes in the power of God and the resurrected Jesus Christ? ❏ ❏ ❏
