- Psalms 82:5
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath annointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, to set them at liberty that are bruised."
- Luke 4:18
"And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world that they which see not might see; and they which see might be made blind"
- John 9:39
"For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ..."
- 2 Corinthians 4:6
This is a touch subject for some people....
And that's the problem....
Everyone is afraid to talk about the church...address its shortcomings....shed light on the things it ignores....
And THAT, my friends, is why I can say without reservation that the black church has failed in the 21st Century.
The Black Church, in grand fashion, has failed to address the needs of a dynamic, complex, and growing population of parishioners. The model used it old, outdated, and almost archaic. Yeah, we may put a remix on it here, add a little flair there; but I think its safe to say that the black church has not evolved in ideology and form in over 100 years.
Now, am I saying the ideals should change? She we reword the Bible? Should we interpret it differently? Should we start accepting acknowledged, bonafide sins?
HELL NAW THAT'S NOT WHAT I'M SAYING!
Pay attention though...
The Black Church (notice the use of proper noun form) at one point was our backbone and our driving force. It was where we went for aid and correction, support and a reality check. It was where we hashed out our truths and confronted our collective problems.
Now...we go to see what one another is wearing...because its the "chic" church for the buppies in my city...or because the pastor is feeding our ego and desires rather than telling us the truth...
Don't get me wrong, church has always had a social element...but that was never the sole element of the church.
I'll quit stalling now and tell you a few things that are wrong with the Black Church...
1. The Pastor...
Yeah, I said it. There are some amazing pastor's out there. They are doing God's work on the daily. Living what they preach for the masses. They are fishers of men. These pastors tell the truth to their congregations even at the risk of being unpopular or disliked. Why? Because God's word isn't always Rosy...and they will give you the true and living word of God. They are the ones who give the clergy a good name...
Then there are the other ones. The ones that see their "calling" as a license to do as they please. They are concerned with self exaltation and offerings rather than leading their flock. Granted, there is a "business element" to the church. (You gotta, or want to rather, keep the lights on man) However, the business should not be the sole element of the pastors motivation. The pastor should be involved in fundraising and church business as an administrator, but begging for dollars from the pulpit or twisting the gospel to grab a few more bucks is wrong as hell. (No pun intended.)
2. The Members...
Ok people...most of us like to think that we're smart. If school or books haven't made us smart...I'm sure experience has...for most of us. So why is it that we can go to church, listen to a pastor give us interpretations of scripture that are not biblically or principally sound, and follow it like it came from the lips of YHWH himself. I understand that we should not question God...I understand that. I understand that we should "touch not thy annointed"...I get it...but what's wrong with seeking clarification? Asking for clearer guidance? Or, here's a novel idea, researching yourself?!?!?!
Come on people, lets be real about this...all of us have sat in a church and heard the pastor spit out something that didn't sit well in our spirit. Now was that our convictions, or the Holy Spirit, tugging on our heart telling us, "Hey homie....something ain't right..." Probably...did we listen? No. We stayed and eventually became desensitized to the blasphemies. Or, we were afraid to not come back because we didn't want to be left out of the "cool" church.
What the hell exactly IS the "cool" church too? I don't get that...are people attending the "chic" church in the city because they feel led there by Christ, or are they going for the same reason they go to the club? They wanna be seen...they want to be a part of something...
Evaluate yourself and search your heart next time you leave church...do you have that warm feeling because God really touched you and moved in your life, or do you have that warm feeling because its a conditioned response to the act of leaving church?
3. The Ministry...
If I see one more Singles Ministry in a church where talk of sex is taboo...I'm going to run up and kick over the altar.
Its 2010 people. Folks are having sex. You probably thought of sex as you just read the word "sex" in this blog post. If the church refuses to equip its parishoners by tackling the issue of sex, and by consequence Sexually Transmitted Diseases, then what is the church really there for. Lets be real, black women are the leading demographic of new AIDS cases. Teen pregnancy is still an issue in Black America. Yet the church turns a blind eye to sex on the daily...
AND ANOTHER TABOO TOPIC...homosexuality in the church...I find it highly amusing that pastors are so quick to condemn homosexuality and take a strong stance against all things gay...and then go hire a choir director that looks like a negro Elton John with a velvet manbag.
Ok, I don't agree with homosexuality. I think its a sin. Does that make me love my gay friends any less? No. And they know how I feel about their lifestyle. Am I homophobic? Not in the least, but I have my convictions just like they have theirs. As far as I'm concerned, we just have different tastes in who we like to sleep with. Like that friend we all have that like morbidly obese women.
But I digress...
The church must confront the issue of homosexuality within the church; not with a broad stroke, not with rampant fire and brimstone condemnation, but with an honest look at it. If homosexuality is incompatible with the natural order of things according to your convictions, then that would put people who are gay in the same category as "lepers" in the bible. (Watch THAT ONE get taken out of context) "Lepers" were people who were not accepted by the general society. Neither are homosexual people. What did Jesus do though? HE loved them anyway! The prevailing thought amongst most Black Churchgoing Good Christian Folks (Can you smell the cynicism?) is that Homosexuality is a condition, an affliction even...so why do we love others who are "afflicted" but ignore those amongst us who need our love and support in their fight just to live their lives? Think about it with an open mind...and take it in context please.
Ok folks, I'm not perfect and I DEFINTELY don't have all the answers...ESPECIALLY when it comes to Jesus, Church, and Easter Programs...but I KNOW that the Church isn't supposed to be like this. The Black Church for so long was a vehicle for change...and now its a source of gossip, frustration, and social elevation.
I know this won't change most of your minds about your church, pastor, or the ministries at your church. Many of you will read this and be like, "Well, that's not my church" without another critical thought as to what your church is like. Some of you will say, "Damn, he kinda right." Then completely ignore the shortcomings of their church.
Me, when I get to the point where I can actually go to a church with the mindset of worshipping the Most High God with all my heart and soul and no reservations about being there...then, I'll try to change some things...maybe through ministry or other avenues...that's because the one Christlike quality that I can firmly say I have is a spirit of action...I'm not above flipping over the money tables in the temple courtyard. (That went over somebody's head...)
-Bleek
With the problems w/in the church. What is one to do? I'm all for slapping those who are gambling in my Father's house, but flipping a table will more than likely cause more of the gossip and distraction than cure it. What to do?
ReplyDelete---Deondra
IMO, people should be realistic when looking at the church. The church is a divine body dedicated to a perfect God, which is often run and designed by imperfect men and women. We should stop looking at the church, and the pastor, as though it is infallible and perfect. When we do that, we make God smaller...
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