Decolonizing The Black Church

George Pratt, Contributing Writer

On a December day during the heat of finals week, I received a notification from a mentor that prompted me to pause from the blaze of essay writing. He posed a provocative question that spurred one of our usual philosophical engagements via text. Through a triplet of inquiries, he asked how one promotes the decolonization of Christianity in the church. Warm with the embers of wordsmithing, I responded in this way:

“Decolonizing Christianity requires the castration of its empire from its ecclesial bodies. This work calls for one to revisit the strategy of Constantine and the decisions made at the Council of Nicea, in which the religion of Jesus emerged as a method of controlling the masses. Applying a decolonial framework to Christianity enables one to uncover the retelling of ancient stories, co-opted as literal truths, containing symbols and allegories revealing ultimate universal Truths.

“In the case of African American expressions of Protestantism, Black religious institutions have inherited and adopted various forms of Constantinian Christianity, conveyed primarily through patriarchy. Constructing the Black Church presented men with the possibility of gaining the same power as their white oppressors. It was a vehicle through which they could use the masters’ tools to build a version of their own house. Decolonizing is the act of destroying this house, ridding of its foundations from all forms of patriarchy and androcentrism.

A Dean’s Lament: How Long?

Rev. W. Antoni Sinkfield, Ph.D.

“This act of abolition also includes transformation. It begins with the Sankofa look: the act of reclamation, fetching what is in danger of being lost–our collective spirit. The reaching back calls us to capture what is good from the past, followed by imagination, dreaming of new worlds with the ‘ideal cosmic community.’ Finally, it means doing the work of the future in the present to rebuild.

“The Black Church must struggle to decolonize for its existence to remain relevant. While this may emerge as an uphill battle in consciousness for the masses of Black congregants trekking toward the proverbial promised land in their Christian journey, it can begin with a collective look in the mirror. Next, we must recall the visions of wisdom from our past, remembering ways of being and knowing what is most ideal for the entire community. Finally, we must revive our spirit— our common ethos — the work of decolonization.”

In 1965, from the steps of the capital building in Montgomery, Alabama, following their historic and death-defying march from Selma to Montgomery, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. stood before the weary yet jubilant marchers for justice. He resoundingly repeated this inquisitive refrain (concerning the eradication of America’s prevailing and pervasive racist reality ), saying:

“I know you are asking today, ‘How long will it take?’ Somebody’s asking, ‘How long will prejudice blind the visions of men, darken their understanding, and drive bright-eyed wisdom from her sacred throne?’ Somebody’s asking, ‘When will wounded justice, lying prostrate on the streets, be lifted from this dust of shame to reign supreme among the children of men?’ Somebody’s asking, ‘When will the radiant star of hope be plunged against the nocturnal bosom of this lonely night, plucked from weary souls with chains of fear and the manacles of death? How long will justice be crucified, and truth bear it?’

I come to say to you, however difficult the moment, however frustrating the hour, it will not be long because truth crushed to earth will rise again.

“How long? Not long, because no lie can live forever.

“How long? Not long, because you shall reap what you sow.

“How long? Not long because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” (King, 1965)

And in the spirit of this profoundly relevant inquiry of Dr. King, I also ask the first half of this question: “How long?” But now, I am completely disabled in my efforts to supply the follow-up affirmation of, “Not long!”

For I am yet asking, “How long” will we have to endure these senseless acts of police brutality that rob another black person of their inalienable right to life? “How long” will we put up with another family being traumatized and another community being terrorized like that of Tyre Nichols at the hands of those hired to “protect and serve?”

“How long” will we have to witness a new episode where a routine traffic stop escalates and elevates into a brutally uncalled-for murder in the streets?

I keep asking the question, “How long” because I am sick and tired of mobs of men murdering at a whim, of people being pursued as if they are prey, of mothers being made to bury their children, and of inhumane violence giving way to incomprehensible vice!

And so, “How long” will this world’s Tyre Nichols be dehumanized and depersonalized?

“How long” will complicit officers of peace stand around and silently condone the crucifying and killing acts of other “so-called” officers of peace?

“How long” will the intrinsic brutality in so many police departments be endured before America admits that its criminal justice system is broken into pieces?

“How long” will it be before we say “enough is enough” to a culture of police militarization, an ingrained warrior mentality, flawed training, inadequate laws, lack of mental evaluation and support, racial discrimination, and deep-rooted impunity?

We must press for and demand that transformative justice take place NOW—and finally, ask and answer regarding this matter: “How long? Not long!”