I mentioned to a friend, David Drury, that I would one day like to earn my D.Min. studying a dual track of Wesleyan Practices and Black Church Studies. In response, David rightly and astutely asked me the following:
Is there a “Black Church” per se?… As in one unified concept or group? It always irks me when I see things like “Black Theology” or “The Preaching of Women” (as though there is just one to be studied.) When we write history, for instance, we are prone to humbly proclaim that the title is “A History of the Reformation” instead of “The History of the Reformation”… but it seems like such programs and histories imply the article “The” in their specificity, rather than the article “A” in their humble contribution.
I know I would struggle to write a book or take a program on the “White Church.” Maybe I’m missing something, and that minorities need to establish this specificity in contrast to the dominant culture. But seeing as the US is move away from a white dominant culture sometime in the next 50 years I should plan ahead.
Or perhaps we should rename the “Kirchliche Dogmatik” as “White Theology” once my grandchildren speak Spanish and English in equal parts.
While some of David wrote some of his reply tongue-in-cheek (Recognize the humor instead of being offended people!), he poses an honest and real question. The answer, as I understand it, is that there is of course not one Black Christian denomination, and if one considers the world-wide Church, there is certainly not a singular Black Church. In my experience, the Black Church usually refers to traditionally Black/African-American churches and denominations in the United States that at their roots began with the slave population. In that sense there is one Black Church, even though these churches may now be diverse in culture and practice.
I enjoy the fact that I can discuss the Black Church with David, and Black theology with his brother, John, and Black preaching with Lenny Luchetti, but if we were to turn the discussion around to discuss the “White” Church, theology, or preaching, in a public forum someone would probably get offended. We could perhaps side-step offending some by using the label “Western,” “European,” or “mainstream,” but in so doing we would have changed or unbalanced the discussion from ethnic differences within Christianity to ethnic versus geographical or historical differences. The important conversation, which needs to be had, would be watered down or lost due to political correctness.
Admittedly, our “White” and “Black” labels in this country are full of connotations that we have to overcome. When I hear “White Power” I think of skinhead racists, but when I hear “Black Power” I think of the Black Pride Movement. However, I suspect that many white people think of radicalized African-Americans when they hear “Black Power.” But here is the real radical thought. God gave us all different levels melanin; as humans spread around the world we developed different languages and cultures, yet all of us will be represented before the throne of God. I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb (Revelation 7:9).
So let’s start talking and worshiping together now. Somebody tell me about the White Church.
photo credit: claude.attard.bezzina via photopin cc
©2012 Paul Tillman
Well said here, Paul. Looking forward to continuing the discussion.
I’m still stuck on whether it is a good thing for us to think of “the black church” but never much think of “the white church”
Same with “black theology”… Actually, that bothers me more than an
I still wonder if it’s wise, for instance, for me to call together a group of “black pastors” or whether that might work contrary to our longer term goals (and thanks for being a friend of mine who I can ask these hard and honest and perhaps even offensive questions to, Paul!)
Perhaps it makes sense to bring together “pastors who are black” for all sorts of good things (we did just that from my office in the last few years.) But to term something as “black ministry”–that starts to be too presumptive for me.
Am I TOO SENSITIVE to this?
Honestly, this all used to make me uncomfortable also, and I’m coming at it from a similar point of view as you, having grown in a predominately white city and church. I’d wonder why we just can’t all be “The Church.” The fact is, that we are all The Church, and what we are actually dealing with when we talk, Black, White, Asian, Spanish, Native American, etc Church are the cultural and social institutions and influences that have made us different in practice and theology even though we are one in the Spirit. Ministry within different ethnicities is often different. The prejudice comes in when one group fails to recognize the biblical legitimacy of the other. We need to learn each other’s context.
Good word
Last fall there was a Church Leaders’ Dialogue at Wesleyan HQ that brought together many pastors of color to discuss this topic. There was a great history lesson on the black church in America by Dr. Lawrence VanHook. The discussion was incredible – the pastor from Africa and the pastor from California and the pastor from Grand Rapids and the other pastor from Grand Rapids all had different perspectives.
The different perspectives from the varied pastors is an important point. I have both read about and experienced recent African immigrants to the U.S. not categorizing themselves with “mainstream African-American” culture. When labeled an African-American, one may reply, “I’m not African-American. I am from Nigeria.” While they are literally African-American, what is meant is that they are most likely culturally different than the African-American the person labeling them may know, or different than what is portrayed in the media.
Exactly. One of the African pastors expressed that frustration in a story he told about guest preaching in a church. He said one of the congregants said “Shut your mouth” several times, to which he finally spoke back to the person and said, “No, you shut your mouth.” The pastor of the church took him aside after the sermon and explained that it meant he was “getting too personal” – what he was saying was hitting home and the person was in agreement, not actually saying stop, but more of an “Amen.” He was totally unfamiliar with the talk-back culture. The African pastor was out of his element in an African-American church.