The Reverend Dr. Johnny Barbour, Jr., Publisher
The Reverend Dr. Calvin H. Sydnor III, the 20th Editor, The Christian Recorder – Since 1852
--Reminders--
Happy Easter!
Christ is Risen; Christ is Risen indeed!
- Pentecost Sunday: June 12, 2011
Christ is Risen; Christ is Risen indeed!
- Pentecost Sunday: June 12, 2011
1. EDITORIAL – IN THE AME CHURCH, EVERY SUNDAY WORSHIP SERVICE SHOULD BE A “CME”-TYPE WORSHIP SERVICE:
Dr. Calvin H. Sydnor III
The 20th Editor of The Christian Recorder
Sunday is Resurrection Sunday and in many churches, Easter Sunday is a time for a special celebration. Church attendance is usually higher on Easter Sunday and everyone expects attendance to be higher on Easter Sunday.
Parishioners, adults and youth, wear their finest Sunday-go-to-meeting clothes. Special programs are planned and people expect that worship will be special on Easter Sunday.
Some churches have sunrise service, Easter egg hunts, and parish dinners.
The children are excited on Easter Sunday because they are excited about their Easter outfits and the opportunity to participate in hunting for Easter eggs. The adults get excited because the kids are excited and excitement is contagious.
Many pastors prepare special sermons on Easter Sunday and choirs prepare special music. And, because attendance is higher on Easter Sunday, pastors get to quip about “CME” church members and visitors; “CME” folks are church members and visitors who attend church services on Christmas, Mother’s Day and Easter.
And, hopefully because of the increased attendance, the offerings will be higher on Easter Sunday.
Special arrangements are made for Easter Sunday worship services. Both clergy and laity seem to treat Easter Sunday differently; and Easter Sunday just seems to have a different aura.
The reality
Actually, whether we realize it or not, Every Sunday is an Easter or Resurrection Sunday.
Just thinking out loud
I wonder if church attendance would be increased if all of us, clergy and laity, prepared for every Sunday as we do for the Easter Sunday worship services; prepared with the same intensity and attention to detail; prepared with the same focus on the youth. I wonder what would happen if we truly treated every Sunday as an Easter Sunday; as a special event; and as a significant event.
I wonder if we have “CME” folks who attend church on Christmas, Mother’s Day and Easter because those are the best planned worship services; the most exciting worship services.
And instead of preachers “making snide remarks about “CME” attendance, would instead take an introspective look “within” and ask themselves and the leadership of the local church what they could do better to encourage regular attendance and greater participation in the life of the church every Sunday.
It just might not be that people are lackadaisical about church attendance, but it just might be that the church has not found a way to reach out, and to “connect” with people in a way to attract them to attend church on a regular basis. The fault might not be the fault of the people; the fault might just be with the church and its leadership. The fault might be a lack of liturgical worship planning because the temptation of churches is to do things the way they have always been done. Or to do things the way we seen them done on television.
If the Sundays other than the “CME” Sundays are treated as “ordinary” and nothing special, the people will treat those Sundays as “ordinary” and as nothing special.
Ever notice that in many churches the Sunday worship service after Easter is such a letdown. Many churches resume their regular same old routine.
So often spiritual leaders forget that the people who attend church do not set the atmosphere for worship; the pastor, the officers, the choir, the ushers and the members create the climate of the worship service.
The collective body in worship should see itself as a thermostat, not a thermometer. Worship leaders and congregations regulate the spiritual worship temperature.
Preachers and worship leaders often encourage parishioners to set the temperature for worship by persuading the congregation to respond in worship as if they were spectators at an athletic event, when in reality it might be that the worship leaders should act like the athletes at an athletic events; and it might be that the people would respond as spectators do at athletic events. Now the question is: Do we want parishioners in worship to be spectators or do we want them to be participants in worship; but that’s another editorial.
Getting back to Easter
The challenge for most local churches is a challenge of “presentation.”
Gourmet restaurants are experts at food presentation. Gourmet restaurants have learned the importance of making the food look good and people are willing to pay extra for presentation, atmosphere and linen napkins. People who go out to eat are not willing to pay the top dollar for food in an ordinary restaurant that serves food with paper napkins, even if the food at the ordinary restaurant is as good as the food in a gourmet restaurant.
Some churches have learned the importance of presentation and know how to put drama in worship. Those churches know how to get people excited and involved; and those churches seem to strive; while other churches treat Sunday services as ordinary and as “meet the requirements for worship events”; and, those churches are stagnant.
If next Sunday, the Sunday after Easter, is a letdown service at your church, it might be an indication at that the pastor, officers and members need to sit down and strategize about ways to make every Sunday a special Easter Sunday Service.
2. READER RESPONSE TO EDITORIAL AND OTHER ISSUES:
- To the Editor:
RE: U.S. Postal Stamp in honor of Bishop Richard Allen
About 10 years ago I, along with Mrs. “Jackie” Dupont Walker, submitted a proposal for Bishop Allen to be recognized on a U.S. postage stamp. My focus was on Allen as the first civil rights leader in the US along with his humanitarian service in helping mitigate the public health risk of the 1793 Yellow Fever epidemic. It is a profound miscarriage of justice that Allen has never been recognized on a stamp. I would be willing to restart this campaign if serious thinking folks are interested.
Editor’s Note: A U.S. postage stamp in honor of Bishop Richard Allen is a “no-brainer.” We need a U.S. Postal Stamp in his honor and this should be accomplished by 2012
- To the Editor:
RE: The Altar and the Sacrifice are Intimately Related to Each Other:
I’m still in shock after reading what Dr. Sydnor wrote about the altar and offering! The way he explained the purpose of the altar and how we treat our offering really opened my eyes. Our sacrifices are sacred and should be treated as such!!! Yet, we take up the offering, bless it, and put it against the wall; not on the altar. This editorial really helped me to understand the purpose of the altar and the area surrounding it.
When I read the editorial on Communion, I recalled one Communion Sunday service when a steward and a member of the clergy were at the altar for communion making jokes about the wine and crackers and laughing! I was very upset. When your leader has questionable behavior while in the position of pastoral leadership it makes you go, "Hmmmm.”
The editorials that I’ve read are very interesting and thought-provoking. I look forward to reading more. I’m going to print this one and share with others.
Name Withheld
3. EVERY AME HOUSEHOLD SHOULD HAVE EMERGENCY SUPPLIES IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY:
The government is always talking about being prepared and we should not ignore the not-so-subtle comments. Check it out at:
http://www.ready.gov/america/getakit/index.html.
Newscasters and government officials have been talking about being prepared for emergencies on radio and television for a reason. I think we should all be prepared, not if, but when an emergency happens!”
4. MESSAGES FROM CHALLENGE VII, READING THE BIBLE FROM COVER TO COVER CHAIRS:
Message from 90-Day Honorary Chair, Bishop Adam Jefferson Richardson for Challenge VII, 90-Day Reading of the Bible from Cover to Cover:
My Dear Bible-Reading Friends,
I continue to be amazed at the insights the Bible often forces us to consider, especially when we read it prayerfully. The insights are practically impossible to miss.
Consider the narrative of Samson, powerful but frivolous; strong but often silly. He has big muscles but an immature mind, especially when he has his Delilah moment. From my view, the Delilah moment supersedes any reference to gender. I contend that almost all of us (male and female) have had Delilah moments; something to distract us, something about our proclivities and/or appetite to turn our attention away from our relationship with God. It occurs when we yield to our weaknesses rather than to our strengths, and to yield to our weakness is to simultaneously nullify our strengths. In either case, it's a decision. Sin will almost always blind us, if not physically, then certainly incapacitating our ability to see beyond our appetite.
Today we have arrived at the conclusion of our 20th day. What can we say about "preacher's kids?" Eli's sons "had no regard for the Lord." Allow your eyes to roam your own house. As the old Public Service Announcement used to inquire of TV viewers: "Do you know where your children are?" If you do, praise God! If you don't, beseech God!
Let's keep Reading,
Bishop A. J. Richardson
Presiding Prelate, 2nd Episcopal District
Message from Bishop Sarah Frances Davis, Honorary Chair for the 180-Reading of the Bible from Cover to Cover:
Remember as we read this week through Leviticus, with all its regulations, that the rules and regulations are in response to the covenant that God made with Israel on Mt Sinai (our day 13 reading (Exodus 19-24)). God declared Israel to be His “treasured possession, kingdom of priests, and holy nation.” Therefore, all the stipulations are less about rituals, and more about covenantal relationship between God and God’s people and between people within the community.
During the next four days in Leviticus, consider this question: “How do rituals reinforce or express covenantal relationship?” When reading under this context, perhaps we will have a greater appreciation for all the regulations and specificities contained in Leviticus.
Bishop Sarah Frances Davis
Presiding Prelate, 16th Episcopal District
Editor’s Note: It’s never too late to start reading the Bible from Cover to Cover.
5. OPEN LETTER TO THE AME CHURCH FROM BISHOP JULIUS H. MCALLISTER, SR., SUPERVISOR JOAN M. MCALLISTER AND THE 20TH EPISCOPAL DISTRICT:
In December 2009, several days before the earthquake in Haiti, a series of 25 earthquakes struck Karonga, Malawi, within a period of five days and left five people dead, 186 injured, 86 hospitalized, and families in 24,239 households sleeping on the ground outside their damaged or destroyed homes. One thousand four hundred twenty-five of those households were AME families. Ten AME Churches collapsed or were severely damaged as well as were 17 residential homes. Other AME Churches and residential homes were left in dire need of repair.
Because of the quick response of the Council of Bishops and the extraordinary support of members of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, in a short period of time, the most immediate needs of AME families that were victimized by the devastation brought on by the earthquakes were met. Temporary shelter, food, and mosquito nets were purchased and distributed.
In the months that followed, we were able to begin the construction of ten churches and 17 residential homes that fell or were completely destroyed.
The newly constructed churches are of brick and have cement floors. The construction consists of heavy-gauge iron sheet roofs, plastered walls; high quality light fixtures, doors, and door locks (interior and exterior); and steel framed Gothic style windows with glass panes. Each church is equipped with pews, traditional pulpit furniture, including a communion table and chancel railing. All churches have been wired for electricity. Within the next several weeks, upgrade restroom facilities that meet the Malawi building code for churches will be constructed. The residential homes are also very well constructed and meet the Malawi building code for residential homes (earthquake resistant).
Bishop Julius H. McAllister, Sr., Supervisor Joan M. McAllister, and the members of the Twentieth Episcopal District; and especially the AMEs of Karonga, Malawi, are appreciative of the Bishops of the Church, Supervisors, General Officers, Women Missionaries, clergy, laity of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and Mr. Robert Nicholas of AME SADA for their prayers, support, and financial contributions. Their response to those affected by the Karonga earthquakes is a testimony of the African Methodist Episcopal Church’s commitment to the AME Church in Africa.
Contributions Received from the Treasurer’s Office:
First Episcopal District $62,719.00
Second Episcopal District 48,778.47
Third Episcopal District 20,000.00
Fourth Episcopal District 25,000.00
Seventh Episcopal District 25,850.00
Eighth Episcopal District 14,682.00
Tenth Episcopal District 22,538.68
Eleventh Episcopal District 55,000.00
Thirteenth Episcopal District 15,000.00
Connectional Lay Organization 2,500.00
General Officers 750.00
Total: $292,818.15
Contributions Sent Directly to Bishop Julius H. McAllister, Sr.:
Sixth Episcopal District $1,250.00
Fifteenth Episcopal District 1,000.00
20th Episcopal District Annual Conference 500.00
Connectional WMS 3,199.04
Dr. Jerome Harris 1,000.00
Bethel AMEC - Tallahassee, FL 5,000.00
Mt. Herman AMEC - Miami Gardens, FL 1,035.03
St. Mark AMEC - Orlando, FL 1,000.00
St. Matthew AMEC - East Orange, NJ 500.00
St. Stephens AMEC – Jacksonville, FL 1,000.00
Total: $15,484.07
GRAND TOTAL: $308,302.22
6. NOUVELLE ALLIANCE AME CHURCH, LYON FRANCE READ INTO FULL MEMBERSHIP OF THE EUROPEAN CONFERENCE, AME CHURCH:
During the 45th Session of the European Annual Conference held in London, England, April 15, 2011, Bishop Sarah F. Davis, read Nouvelle Alliance AME Church, Lyon France, into full membership of the European Conference, African Methodist Episcopal Church.
In April 2009, Nouvelle Alliance was provisionally admitted to the A.M.E. Church by the 43rd Session of the European Annual Conference. However, it was during 2007 and the administration of Bishop Carolyn Tyler Guidry that the Church expressed interest in becoming a part of African Methodism. Bishop Tyler Guidry paved the way for making their desire become a reality and Bishop Sarah F. Davis continued with the plan. Training for Nouvelle Alliance was planned and facilitated by the Reverend Melynda Clarke of Mt. Nebo A.M.E. Church (2nd) during 2008 and the first quarter of 2009.
In 2010 Nouvelle Alliance A.M.E. Church hosted in a most excellent way, the Global Development Council’s executive meeting in Lyon, France, where eight active Bishop of the Church and six General Officers participated. In 2012, Nouvelle Alliance A.M.E. Church will host the 46th Session of the European Annual Conference in its new sanctuary in Lyon, France (April 19-22, 2012).
There are three Churches in the European Conference where the Reverend Rudolph U. Aaron is the Presiding Elder: (1) Richard Allen A.M.E. Church, London, England; (2) Grady AME Church, Amsterdam, Netherlands; and now (3) Nouvelle Alliance AME Church, Lyon, France.
To God be the glory for all God continues to do in expanding our Zion.
**Submitted by Bishop Sarah Frances Davis
7. DOMINICAN REPUBLIC FORCIBLY REPATRIATES HAITIANS:
April 15, 2011
(Santiago, Dominican Republic) April 15, 2011 — The General Directorate of Migration in the Dominican Republic carried out raids, detentions and repatriations of Haitians and persons of Haitian descent during the last week, citing the need to bow to the demands of citizen groups who had demanded the removal of the Haitians.
Yaira Portes, of Jesuit Refugee Service — Santiago's Social Action and Agrarian Center, known as CEFASA, documented indiscriminate arrests and expulsions of persons suspected of Haitian identity by authorities.
JRS—Santiago denounces the round-ups, citing that it has documented massive rights violations including the deportation of persons with legal work permits, confiscation of documents, extortion attempts by arresting immigration officers, the separation of families during deportations, and the clear lack of due process to confirm that those arrested and deported were actually legally subject to deportation.
Of the 650 detained since Migration began its operation on April 12, the majority were impoverished children who beg and seek subsistence on the main streets of Santiago. Deportations are often carried out in a violent manner.
Yaira Portes of JRS—Santigao/CEFASA, said "What it is happening is heart-rending. We have seen authorities not only arrest people, but also humiliate them, dragging them half-dressed from their houses, stripping them of their property, and sending carting them off to Dajabon and Jimani [the border points in the south and north]."
In some cases JRS staffs, monitoring the mass round-ups in Santiago this week, were assaulted by immigration authorities as they sought to document and monitor the raids.
The operations have failed to meet the most basic safeguards to avoid violation of the 1999 Bilateral Protocol on deportations with that the Dominican government signed with the Government of Haiti. JRS further notes that the raids and other violations of the right to personal liberty are prohibited by the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Constitution of the Dominican Republic. The raids and deportations clearly violate the Dominican constitutional principle of presumption of innocence, freedom of movement and non-discrimination.
Shaina Aber
Associate Advocacy Director
Jesuit Refugee Service/USA
202-629-5942
http://www.jrsusa.org/
**Submitted by Bishop Sarah Frances Davis, Presiding Prelate of the 16th Episcopal District who said, “I want to share this article with the Church so that we all understand that we are not freed up from concern, advocacy and praying for Haiti and the challenges that yet faces that country.”
8. BETHEL AME BOSTON HOSTS SUCCESSFUL ANNUAL CONFERENCE; THREE PERSON ORDAINED ITINERANT ELDERS AND POWERFUL PETITION SENT TO CONGRESS:
Jamaica Plain, MA (April 18, 2011) – The 160th Session of the New England Annual Conference wrapped up its historic meeting at Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Jamaica Plain with an urgent call to the nation’s lawmakers to stop partisan politics and to come to an agreement on the federal budget without further harming the nation’s poor and the working class. More than 500 of the 1,000 attendees signed a special floor resolution that was delivered to 23 Congressional representatives from Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island promising to:
- Educate communities about the benefits of health care reform and how to access those benefits.
- Demand legislators support progressive decisions and acts by the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
- Continue to finance the AME Church in Haiti and support other ongoing humanitarian efforts in that country.
Other conference highlights were:
- Pre-conference activities by Women in the Ministry, Evangelists and the Women’s Missionary Society that renewed their commitment to each ministry.
- The ordination of three new African Methodist Episcopal Elders; Tamecia Jones, a doctoral candidate in Engineering at Purdue University, Boston attorney Darrell Malden from the Historic Charles Street AME Church and Rahsaan Hall, a Boston attorney who attends St. Paul AME Church.
For conference details and more information about Bethel AME Church, Boston, please visit www.bethelame.org, or email us at annualconference@bethelame..org.
9. THE BALTIMORE ANNUAL CONFERENCE IS THE OLDEST ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF AFRICAN METHODISM:
*Mr. Saleem M. Wooden
The Early Years of the Baltimore Annual Conference
With the formation of the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in April 1816 with the election of the founding Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Richard Allen, formation of Church Conferences, and other business; a year would past quickly for the time when those first Annual Conferences would begin to occur. It is believed that only two Conferences were formed at the founding AME General Conference of 1816: Baltimore and Philadelphia.
Why was it that the Baltimore Conference was held first before the Philadelphia Conference may never be known? Since the founding Conference was held in Philadelphia the year before, maybe it was gentlemen’s courtesy that allowed the first Annual Conference to be held in Baltimore. The Baltimore delegation of 1816 at the founding Conference was the largest of the five delegations present.
With the Philadelphia Annual Conference set for May 1817, the first Annual Conference of the AME Church was held at Bethel AME Baltimore on 12 April 1817. Rather than beginning the conference at Bethel’s church on Fish (Saratoga) Street, the conference began in the home of Samuel Williams near the present day main post office. The Bishop Allen presided at the Conference with Bethel’s pastor, the Rev. Daniel Coker present along with other men of Bethel. The mention of this Conference is found in the late 19th Century writings of former Bethel pastor, the Bishop James Handy.
There is so much more to report about the Baltimore Annual Conference of 1818 because the minutes of the Conference were composed and published by Bishop Allen. In Baltimore, the published minutes were found in 1934 in a deeply buried cement box that was uncovered during excavations at the original site of Bethel. Printed minutes of the 1847 Conference was also found in the box along with about $1.20 in “large pennies”. With the pages of the 1818 document so frail, the Rev. H. M. Shields of Ebenezer AME Church had the minutes republished with the comment that “many eyes shall behold it before it goes back the second time to the grave”.
The 2nd Session of the Baltimore Annual Conference was convened at Bethel on Tuesday, 7 April 1818. Attending the Conference were the following: the Bishop Allen, Jacob Tapsico, Edward Williamson, James Cole, Richard Williams, Charles Pierce, James Towson, Jeremiah Miller, William Quinn, Thomas Robinson, and William Cousins. The name that is obviously missing is the pastor of Bethel, the Rev. Daniel Coker.
It was noted that on the second day (Wednesday, 8 April), a three member committee was appointed to hear the case against Daniel Coker. The committee consisted of two Conference members from Baltimore and one from Philadelphia. The nature of the charge against Daniel Coker is subject to speculation. On Friday (10 April), the committee reported their findings and a vote was taken. The vote confirmed the expulsion of Daniel Coker from the Baltimore Conference. The Minister Henry Harden became Bethel’s second pastor. (It is worthwhile to note that at the Baltimore Conference of 1819, the Rev. Coker’s request for reinstatement was reviewed and granted. He received the full Conference credentials he had before the expulsion.)
It was also learned from reviewing the 1818 Conference minutes that an AME church existed in Elkridge (Maryland), there were 1,096 members of the Conference, a book steward was chosen, and a three person committee was charged to view a lot in Baltimore’s Fells Point on which a new church was to be constructed. The Conference voted to have 1,000 copies of the Conference minutes to be printed with the printing to be completed in Philadelphia. The 2nd Session of the Baltimore Annual Conference was adjourned at 3:30 PM on 14 April 1818 with the 3rd Session of the Conference set to meet on 3 April 1819.
The boldness of these free men of color to travel and conduct such focused business when Maryland would not abolish slavery for another 46 years and them being exposed to possible enslavement because of bogus charges on behalf of the federally enforced fugitive slave laws, makes one give praise to our God for protecting them. They truly practiced the theme of this year’s 2011 Baltimore Annual Conference: They answered “The Call to Vigilance” and practiced the “Continuing of a Prophetic Ministry”. Look how far we have come because of their tenacity.
The Rev. Henry Harden who became Bethel’s pastor in 1818 was appointed to a church in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania at the 1820 Baltimore Conference. By the middle of the summer of 1820, the Rev. Harden was on the move again. In July 1820, he became the pastor of the first AME Church in New York City. That church was named Bethel AME.
At the 1821 Annual Conference, the Maryland Eastern Shore was officially included as a part of the Baltimore Annual Conference. This same conference decided on the location for next AME General Conference in 1824. They chose Baltimore and also decided on new rules and regulations for the General Conference. The 1823 Conference was historic because it became the first time that any AME Church Annual Conference had elected its General Conference delegates. Previously, they were just chosen by the Conference. It would not be until 1868 before the AME Church required all Annual Conferences to elect their delegates.
The Baltimore Annual Conference of 1825 was unique because it allowed AME Church members and not just Conference delegates to attend. That was a first. At the conference, Bethel AME – Baltimore reported that it paid its pastor the mighty sum of $128.25 for the entire Conference year. The Annual Conference of 1829 was noteworthy because it was the last Baltimore Annual Conference that Bishop Richard Allen would attend. He would pass on to glory in two years.
During the period of the Conferences mentioned above, attempts were being made to ship all free persons of color back to Africa. The white-run American Colonization Society was one of those groups. With that as a back drop for the times, the above mentioned Baltimore Annual Conferences were the finest examples of demonstrating the AME Church’s 2nd Episcopal District’s Motto of today: “Exalting Christ, Expanding His Church, and Enabling His People”. May the 2011 195th Session of the Baltimore Annual Conference continue to demonstrate the motto as well.
*Mr. Saleem M. Wooden is the Church Historian for Bethel AME Church, Baltimore, Maryland.
10. AMES ATTEND PRAYER BREAKFAST AT THE WHITE HOUSE; BISHOP MCKENZIE PRAYED:
Bishop McKinley Young, Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie and other AME clergy members had Breakfast with President Obama. Other AMEs in attendance included Bishop McKinley Young, the Rev. Dr. Joseph Darby, pastor of Morris Brown AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina and the Rev. Antoni Sinkfield, pastor of St. John AME Church in Nashville, Tennessee.
President Barack Obama, center seated, and others, lower their heads during an Easter Prayer breakfast with Christian leaders in the East Room of the White House, Tuesday, April 19, 2011.
11. POST OFFICE HONORS DOROTHY HEIGHT'S MEMORY:
WASHINGTON (UMNS) - Throughout the U.S. civil rights movement, Dorothy I. Height often kept to the background and worked tirelessly behind the scenes for racial equality and women's rights. But now the longtime United Methodist's name is front and center on a U.S. post office. The post office is the first federal building in the District of Columbia to bear the name of an African-American woman, according to The Associated Press.
Read the full story: http://www.umc.org/site/apps/nlnet/content3.aspx?c=lwL4KnN1LtH&b=5259669&ct=9353449&tr=y&auid=8170247
**Reprinted with permission from the United Methodist News Service
12. THE REV. DR. SUZAN JOHNSON COOK AS THE UNITED STATES AMBASSADOR FOR INTERNATIONAL RELIGIOUS FREEDOM:
The United States Senate has confirmed Rev. Dr. Suzan Johnson Cook as the United States Ambassador for International Religious Freedom. The President and Secretary of State are thrilled that she will now begin her work promoting interfaith cooperation, security and dignity for all human beings.
*Submitted by Joshua P. DuBois
13. A FALLEN YPDER:
On Friday, April 15, 2011, around 1:00 in the afternoon in Kansas City, Kansas, a common sound of a basketball bouncing against the pavement of an inner city neighborhood was exchanged with the sounds of cruel, harsh, rapid piercing gunfire. Our Lord and Savior stepped in, whispering to eighteen year old fellow YPDer Akeem Matthews, “Come unto me, I will give you rest.” At this moment, our hearts are shattered and our minds are confused by this sudden loss of a fine Christian young man.
Friends and family attested that in his last days, Akeem was drawing nearer to Christ, growing in wisdom by fellowshipping with members of his Christian Rap Group. He was reaching out to his elders for advice, strength and direction and attending Bible studies in the homes of classmates and friends. He was contemplating joining the military.
Akeem’s spirit and soul was right with Christ and he was ready to take on the world with his sense of style, wide grin, boastful laugh and determined mind; however, his life was cut short by a random act of violence. A candlelight vigil was held on Sunday April 17, 2011; devastated family and friends gathered at the corner of 29th and Oakland in Kansas City, Kansas. Members from Ad-Hoc Group Against Crime and Community Media came together to seek solutions to these never ceasing acts of violence that infest our communities.
Please lift the family in continual prayer, especially his sister, Imani Matthews (who serves as the Midwest Conference Y.P.D. Treasurer), his cousin, Deidra Watkins, his aunt, Vikki Dixon and his sister, Sheena Hardin - all members of Grant Chapel A.M.E. Church Kansas City, Kansas. Home Going Services are pending. If unable to attend, we, the Young People Division, request you to please stop at Twelve O’clock Noon and bow in prayer for the family of Akeem and other victims of random acts of violence and crimes around our cities, countries and world.
**Submitted by the Rev. Leslie R. White
14. LILLY ENDOWMENT GRANTS AUBURN $800,000 TO EXPAND CENTER FOR CHRISTIAN LEADERSHIP:
New York, NY - The Center for Christian Leadership at Auburn Theological Seminary has received a grant of $800,000 from the Indianapolis-based Lilly Endowment Inc. to equip bold and resilient leaders for 21st century ministry by bringing pastoral coaching to clergy across the country, training new pastoral coaches, strengthening new senior pastors, bolstering women's leadership, and cultivating wisdom about money in congregational leaders.
Auburn has been a leading innovator in the use of coaching to build excellence in pastoral leadership. "It's hard to overestimate the impact of coaching on a pastor," says the Rev. J.C. Austin, director of Auburn's Center for Christian Leadership. "Pastors tell us it doesn't just help them do their jobs better, it revitalizes their whole sense of call to ministry and helps them unlock the vision and strengths of their congregations in ways that they never imagined possible."
The Auburn Coaching Institute currently offers both customized individual programs and an annual "comprehensive program" centered on a six-month coaching relationship and two intensive leadership-development residential programs. Now, Auburn plans to replicate that program in three new locations across the United States (one each in the Southeast, the center of the country, and the West Coast) within the next two years, to make pastoral coaching more readily available.
The Auburn Coaching Institute will branch out in new programmatic directions as well. One of its new initiatives will develop a select group of high-potential women pastors for senior congregational leadership. Another will focus on excellence in senior pastors. And for those interested in the coaching profession, Auburn will offer an academically rigorous and theologically grounded curriculum to equip coaching graduates to become coaches themselves.
In addition to growing the Auburn Coaching Institute, this Lilly Endowment grant supports a new set of Auburn initiatives for pastors on the theology and use of money called Wisdom in Abundance. "When you talk about money in church circles today, it's generally a conversation about scarcity," Austin points out. "That conversation needs to change. We want to develop pastors who are 'wise about money' in a comprehensive sense-who have the theological, spiritual, and practical resources to live their lives and lead their congregations from a new paradigm of abundance."
While this growth in the coaching and "wise about money" work marks a new era for Auburn in many ways, it also connects to and reflects the original mission of the seminary.
"Auburn was founded almost 200 years ago to train pastors 'hardy enough for the rigors of ministry on the frontier,'" notes the Rev. Dr. Katharine Rhodes Henderson, Auburn's president. "The frontiers for ministry in the 21st century may be different in many ways, but they still require energetic and engaged pastors who can lead vigorously, think rigorously, and serve the church with a generous and entrepreneurial spirit. We are deeply grateful for this grant from Lilly Endowment that will enable Auburn to address the contemporary challenges of leadership for the Church and world."
Auburn Theological Seminary equips bold and resilient leaders who can bridge religious divides, build community, pursue justice, and heal the world.
Learn more at www.AuburnSeminary.org.
Editor’s Note: Be on the lookout for more information about this program.
15. SCLC GIANTS TO RECEIVE THE GANDHI-KING-IKEDA COMMUNITY BUILDERS PRIZE DURING UNIQUE EASTER SERVICE AT MOREHOUSE:
The Reverend Joseph Lowery to deliver Easter Sermon
ATLANTA, April 21, 2011 The Reverend Doctor Joseph E. Lowery will deliver the sermon during Morehouse College’s first-ever Interfaith Resurrection Assembly service on Easter Sunday. The service, which will be held in the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel on Sunday, April 24, 2011, at 11 a.m., will feature a large interfaith choir, Taiko drums and dancers. It is a unique service for an Easter celebration. The goal of the interfaith service is to help attendees expand their definition of the word resurrection beyond Christianity and understand its application to all faith traditions.
During the celebration, both Reverend and Mrs. Evelyn Lowery will receive the Gandhi-King-Ikeda Community Builders Prize. The two have spent decades fighting for equality and social justice around the world.
“We honor Dr. Joseph and Mrs. Evelyn Lowery for their courageous nonviolent leadership in global civil and human rights,” said Dr. Lawrence Carter, dean of the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel. “The Lowerys’ extraordinary commitment and contributions to community empowerment and positive social transformation exemplify the peace-builders whose legacies inspired establishment of the Gandhi-King-Ikeda Community Builder’s Prize.”
What better way to push the envelope on the understanding of resurrection than with a service led by one of the foot soldiers in the fight for social justice and peace building?
“The sacrifices and dedication of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Dr. Daisaku Ikeda, for whom the Community Builder’s Prize is named, illuminate a path for peaceful co-existence for all cultures and all time,” said Dr. Robert M. Franklin, president of Morehouse.
Others who have received the coveted Gandhi-King-Ikeda Community Builder’s Prize include: Nelson Mandela, former president of South Africa and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate; Dr. Michael Nobel, chairman, Nobel Family Society; F.W. De Klerk, former president of South Africa and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate; Desmond Tutu, Anglican Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, South Africa and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate; Coretta Scott King, civil rights activist; and Yitzhak Rabin, former Prime Minister of Israel.
About the Gandhi-King-Ikeda Community Builders Prize
The Gandhi-King-Ikeda Community Builders Prize was designed to promote the importance of peace and positive social transformation by honoring those demonstrating extraordinary global leadership through nonviolence to reconcile differences.
Although Mahatma Gandhi was a Hindu from India, Martin Luther King Jr. an African American Christian and Daisaku Ikeda is a Japanese Buddhist, the overwhelming consistency in the global reach of their philosophies and influence serve as an inspiration to all the world’s citizens. In the words of Daisaku Ikeda, "What our world most requires now is the kind of education that fosters love for humankind; develops character and provides an intellectual basis for the realization of peace and empowers learners to contribute to and improve society."
16. YPD CORNER: JUST HOLD ON:
*Miacia F. Porter
I started this school year under the impression that my spring semester would be an easy breezy. I had met over and over again with the graduation coordinator to make sure all I needed was 12 hours to graduate. I had her check and double check and was excited to know that I only needed 11 hours.
I was thoroughly impressed. After all, not many people actually get to graduate in 4 years, on time, with an easy load to close out the school year. I felt “blessed to be one of kind” as the graduation coordinator eloquently put it.
Then December brought about the bombshell. I normally live off my school refund check, but with a car note, insurance, rent, groceries, telephone bill, and all the other necessities falling only on me I quickly had to find a job. I had an expense list that totaled about a $1,000 per month and life without a job would be extremely challenging.
I had always worked through college, so I never figured working this semester would be challenging, especially since this was my lightest semester ever.
However, I was in for a rude awakening.
To my surprise I found a job quickly, and was eager to work, but the job requirements were pretty steep. If I planned on working this job I would have to complete six weeks of training. This training class was Monday through Friday from 3 p.m. till 12 a.m. Somehow I convinced myself that I could do this and I did it. It wasn’t easy, especially once the semester got into full swing.
I quickly realized my load wasn’t as easy as I thought. Of course I only had three classes a week to attend, but the demands of each class were pretty intensive. Each class required either a lot of reading, writing, or attending outside events such as the movies. I also had my internship duties and extracurricular involvements such as Delta Sigma Theta Sorority INC and National Association for Black Journalist. I had made a vow to myself that I would give my job, my classes, my internship and my organizations a hundred percent. I was set in the belief that there was nothing that I couldn’t do and so I took off running with full speed. I was working, writing, reading, and attending this and that. I moved like a ghost fading in and out of one environment to the next.
I relied on my agenda to keep me organized, but by the end of February I was beat down. I would wake up in the morning asking God how I was going to make it through this day. It almost became a ritualistic question.
I became emotionally drained, physically tired, spiritually weakened, and mentally crushed. Outside of my obligations, life itself had thrown a few wrenches at me. I was bruised, tired, and torn.
Then one night last week, I was washing my face looked into the mirror and realized I had made it. Then it hit me, every morning I stand in the exact same spot questioning how I am going to make it, and without ceasing every night I have found myself in the same spot symbolizing I have made it yet again through another day. I cried and thanked God that I hadn’t given up, but most importantly I praised him for never letting me let go of his hand.
I use to hear them sing all the time at church “Hold to God’s Unchanging Hand” and as a kid I didn’t understand. But now as a grown woman having to lend and depend on those hands I understand exactly what the lyricist meant.
So now I sit two weeks away from graduation, still working the same job, still writing for my internship, still involved on campus, still making excellent grades and yet I know I will make it because I am still holding on.
There is power in holding on. There is relief in holding on. There are blessings in holding on. There is deliverance in holding on. There is success in holding on.
Life won’t always be easy. It won’t be stress free, and perfect. The road pavements won’t be flawless. We all will have to face our giants and press through the storms, but you can make it.
Just Hold On!
*Miacia F. Porter is an Intern for The Christian Recorder and is a senior at Middle Tennessee State University
17. CLERGY FAMILY CONGRATULATORY ANNOUNCEMENTS:
- Mrs. M. Alfreda Postell Celebrates 100th Birthday
Mrs. M. Alfreda Postell is celebrating her 100th Birthday today, April 22, 2011.
Mrs. Postell is the wife of the late Presiding Elder A. P. Postell of the 11th Episcopal District. Mrs. Postell is the mother of Mrs. Mary Vick and the mother-in-law of the Rev. Norman Vick of the Virginia Annual Conference.
Friends and fellow AME's can reach Mrs. Postell at 757. 723-7522.
Birthday messages can be emailed to: nor_vic@msn.com
- Congratulations to Gregory Eason, Jr, Recipient of a Full Scholarship
Congratulations to Gregory Eason, Jr. the son of Pastor Gregory Eason Sr. and Mrs. (Linda) Eason as a recipient of a full scholarship to the United States Naval Academy. The Reverend Eason is the pastor of Big Bethel AME Church in Atlanta, GA.
- Congratulations to Lauren Wicker, Miss Morehouse College
Congratulations to Lauren Wicker upon her selection as Miss Morehouse College. She is the daughter of the Rev. Stafford and the Rev. Constance Wicker and a sophomore at Spelman College, Ms. Wicker's father is the pastor of Antioch AME Church in Stone Mountain, GA.
18. CLERGY FAMILY BEREAVEMENT NOTICE:
We are saddened to announce the homegoing of the Reverend John Nettles, pastor of Greater St. John AMEC, Chicago. Please keep the Nettles family in your prayers. Arrangements are forth coming.
Service arrangements for the Reverend John Nettles, pastor of Greater St. John AMEC, Chicago
The Reverend Nettles transitioned from life to new life on Monday, April 18, 2011. Public visitation at the A R Leak Funeral Home located at 78th and Cottage Grove will be available on Friday, April 22, 2011 after 2:00 p.m. His family hour will be held on Saturday April 23, 2011 at 9:00 am and the funeral service will follow at 10:00 am at the Greater Saint John AME Church located at 6201 South Throop Street, Chicago, Illinois.
The interment will be held at Abraham Lincoln Cemetery on Monday, April 25, 2011. The arrangements are entrusted to the A. R Leak Funeral Homes of Chicago.
All condolences, cards, and remembrances, may be sent to:
Mrs Patricia Nettles
1586 Victoria Park Circle,
Aurora, Illinois 60504
Or email: patricianettles@hotmail.com.
19. CLERGY FAMILY BEREAVEMENT NOTICE:
Mrs. Ethel Johnson Tyler “retired to her heavenly home” on Friday, April 15 at 3:18 p.m. She was the mother of Presiding Elder George W. Tyler of the Natchez-Port Gibson District of the South Mississippi Annual Conference.
Mrs. Tyler was a founding member of Davis Temple Church of God in Christ in Jackson, Mississippi where she served faithfully until her health began to fail. She leaves to cherish her memory her children, Samuel Lee Tyler, Alma Tyler Stewart and Presiding Elder George W. Tyler.
Funeral Services for Mrs. Ethel Johnson Tyler:
Visitation:
Saturday, April 23, 2011
9:00 am - 10:45 am
Davis Temple Church of God In Christ
1700 Dalton Street
Jackson MS 39204
601.948.6705
Funeral Service
Saturday, April 23, 2011
11:00 am
Davis Temple Church of God in Christ
1700 Dalton Street
Jackson MS 39204
601.948.6705
Professional Services are entrusted to:
People's Funeral Home
886 N. Farish Street
Jackson MS 39202
601.969.3040
Expressions of Sympathy may be sent to:
The Rev. George W. Tyler & Mrs. Mattie Rosenthal Tyler
5929 Dabney Drive
Jackson MS 39206
Phone: 318.613.4199
Email: PresEldGWTyler@AOL.com
20. CLERGY FAMILY BEREAVEMENT NOTICE:
On behalf of the 17th Episcopal District Lay, we convey heartfelt condolences to the Senkwe family on the passing on of Rev Senkwe of AMEC Jordan Chapel, Kitwe of the South West Zambia Conference.
May the Lord comfort the bereaved family and guide them during this trying moment.
Burial is taking place today in Kitwe at Chamboli Cemetery.
“May his soul rest in eternal peace.”
John Kabwe Chilekwa
Corresponding Secretary, 17th Episcopal District Lay Organization,
Bishop Paul J. M. Kawimbe, Presiding Prelate
Seventeenth Episcopal District
Forwarded by,
Sister Eileen S. Warner
Corresponding Secretary
Connection Lay Organization, AME Church
21. CLERGY FAMILY BEREAVEMENT NOTICE:
Mrs. Ella Mai Ramey Rose (Age 99), departed suddenly at her home on April 14, 2011. She is survived by 2 children, the Rev. James E. Rose, retired, Tennessee Annual Conference and Helen M. Rose-Stackhouse. Mrs. Rose was also the only aunt of Mrs. Willa Rose Sherrell Smith, the wife of Rev. William Howard Smith, pastor of Canaan AME Church, Columbia, Tennessee. Mrs. Rose was a faithful and dedicated member of Trinity AME Church, Nashville, TN for more than 70 years.
Services for Mrs. Ella Mai Ramey Rose:
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Visitation: 12:00 p.m. to 1 p.m.
Funeral: 1:00 p.m.
Greater Bethel AME Church
1300 South Street
Nashville, TN 37212
Professional services are entrusted to:
Lewis & Wright Funeral Directors
2500 Clarksville Hwy
Nashville, TN 37208
Expressions of sympathy may be sent in care of the family of Mrs. Ella Mai Ramey Rose and forwarded to Lewis & Wright funeral Directors, address above.
Or sign the online Guest Book:
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/tennessean/obituary.aspx?n=ella-mai-ramey-rose&pid=150390718
And expressions of sympathy may be sent to:
Mrs. Willa Rose Sherrell Smith & family
2215 Trotwood Drive
Pulaski, TN 38478
Email: willarsmith@yahoo.com
22. CLERGY FAMILY BEREAVEMENT NOTICES AND CONGRATULATORY ANNOUNCEMENTS PROVIDED BY:
The Clergy Family Information Center
Bishop Carolyn Tyler Guidry, Chair
Commission on Social Action
Ora L. Easley, Administrator
AMEC Clergy Family Information Center
E-mail: Amespouses1@bellsouth.net
Web page: http://www.amecfic.org/
Phone: (615) 837-9736 (H)
Phone: (615) 833-6936 (O)
Cell: (615) 403-7751
BLOG: http://ameccfic.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AMEC_CFIC
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-AME-Church-Clergy-Family-Information-Center/167202414220
23. CONDOLENCES TO THE BEREAVED FROM THE CHRISTIAN RECORDER:
The Chair of the Commission on Publications, the Right Reverend Richard Franklin Norris; the Publisher, the Reverend Dr. Johnny Barbour and the Editor of The Christian Recorder, the Reverend Dr. Calvin H. Sydnor III offer our condolences and prayers to those who have lost loved ones. We pray that the peace of Christ will be with you during this time of your bereavement.
