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JUNE 2022
The Christian Recorder
THECHRISTIANRECORDER.COM
Celebrating the 137th Church Anniversary of St. John AME Church Dr. Bridget Floyd
St. John African Methodist (AME) Church, Huntsville, marked its 137th anniversary on March 20, 2022, at the 10 a.m. worship service. The theme was “A Legacy of Faith and a Bright Future,” with a scriptural emphasis on Matthew 16:18. The service was hybrid in terms of recorded and in-person participants, with the latter adhering to Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines. The Mass Choir and musicians were inspirational under the direction of Brother Reggie Pearson, with Brother Phil Lee leading the choir and congregation in singing the opening hymn. Pastor Maurice Wright II preached the sermon for the anniversary service. A nostalgic review began the service with a video presentation of photos of people and events over the years. After which, the Women’s Month tribute to women of St. John continued, highlighting two “phenomenal women.” Ms. Joy Wright highlighted Sister Claire Philadelphia and Attorney Genevia Fontenot. Congratulations to these outstanding ladies. Sister Maeola Peoples gave the welcome and announcements. Pastor Wright introduced Deaconess Sarah “Granny” Bell, “the oldest and longest serving St. John member,” as the worship leader. The Deaconess Board recited the Call to Worship: Deaconesses Earnestine Barnes-Ivery, Eva Smith, Willie M. Heyward, Charlsie Brooks, Gwendolyn Baldwin, and Mary Powers. The Reverend Meriam Garrett gave the invocation after the opening hymn. Scripture readings were as follows: Old Testament, Psalm 100 by Addison and Breanne Bradford; The Epistle, Ephesians 1:15-23, Sister Jana Goggans; The Gospel, Matthew 16:13-18, Sister Mattie Ezell. [Due to technical challenges, the last scriptures were featured the following Sunday.] Pastor Wright preached the third sermon in his series, “What Shall We Do With the Church?” entitled “Do Not Sleep on the Church.” The scripture reference was Acts 20:7-12. He noted the negative impact of “sleeping”/inattention at this point, including social, economic, and political factors. He emphasized that “there are people sleeping on the church,” resulting in a negative impact on the youth and leadership; ministries are not as fulfilling, and the message is “watered down.” He urged soberness and vigilance to avoid the negative impact. The first point made by Pastor Wright was “The Word is for you” in that there is something for every believer present for the sermon… “the Word of God always meets its target.” He encouraged participation in the church, noting that “church is not a spectator sport.” Another point made was that “You can be in the right place but be in the wrong place at the same time.” In the text, the man was in the right place [“the church”] but in the wrong
place [sitting in the window on the third level] which would allow for inattention or distractions. He cautioned that this could cause today’s believers to miss their blessing because they could not focus fully on the Word. Pastor Wright emphasized that “there is always light in the church… we must always pay attention to the light,” which allows one “to see as well as be seen.” He noted that in the text, no one cautioned the man about being “on the ledge” and that “the church can be busy… not warn people.” He indicated that in the text, the people “became the church” once they attended to the man who fell from the window. He indicated that Paul directly “ministered”/attended to the man when he fell, not delegating to someone else. Another key factor was that everyone left comforted after the events in the text. Pastor Wright indicated that people should feel better after participating in worship, “leave with joy in your spirit … the power of the Almighty.” He ended by citing Luke 21:36 – the importance of “staying awake” in order to escape events that are going to take place and gave examples of current events/problem situations. The sermon was indeed a sermon upon which to reflect as the St. John family marked 137 years of existence as a church serving the Huntsville community. Sister Mary Allen made the offertory appeal, and the Doxology and Benediction followed.
Congregants remained to view a congratulatory video of greetings from regional and national clergy, church officers, members, and friends. They included Bishop Harry L. Seawright of the 9th Episcopal District; Bishop Anne Henning Byfield, 13th Episcopal District; Bishop Adam Richardson, Sr., senior bishop, 10th Episcopal District; Presiding Elder Bruce W. Hunter, South Birmingham-Huntsville Bessemer District; the Reverend Dr. Willie Eugene Marshall, presiding elder, Ozark/Troy District; the Reverend Mark Kelly Tyler, pastor of Mother Bethel AME, Philadelphia, PA; the Reverend Dr. Patrick Clayborn, Bethel AME, Baltimore, MD [former pastor of St. John, Huntsville]; the Reverend Dr. Michael Bell, Allen AME, Washington, D.C.; Brother John Thomas III, editor, The Christian Recorder; Brother Marcus Hill, St. John Steward Board, vice chair; Brother Bill Williams, St. John Trustee Board, vice chair; Brother David Person, a friend of the church; the Honorable Anthony Daniels, Alabama House Minority Leader and St. John member; and Deaconess Sarah Bell –“90 years of service to St. John and longest living member.” St. John is proud of its legacy and looks forward to a bright future. ❏ ❏ ❏
Roe v. Wade, Voter Suppression, and “We” the Voters John E. Warren
The current uproar over the leaked draft of the United States Supreme Court’s anticipated decision on abortion rights is another example of the Republican right wing effort to eliminate democracy under cover of the very Constitution, which provides all our democratically protected rights. In addition, we have seen the attack on voting rights by the actions of the Republicans in the U.S. Senate, who refused to support not only the Voting Rights Act but also the John Lewis Act and the legislation coming out of the George Floyd murder.
certification of President Joseph Biden as president of the United States. These are the same senators who prevented former President Obama from making a United States Supreme Court nomination. In contrast, these same Republican senators rushed through two conservative nominations who are now a part of the longawaited overthrow of Roe v. Wade.
These are the same Republicans who we now know plotted to overthrow the U.S. Government on January 6, 2021, with their efforts to stop the
What we do know is that primary season is upon us and that we all have a chance to make some choices and changes if we look ...continued on p32
