Black Church Leadership: Issues for 21st-Century Pastors

Introduction: Questions Facing the Black Church and New Pastors

What are the key issues surrounding the African-American church in the early 21st century? What should new pastors be learning as they train to become Christian leaders in their communities? How should an aspiring preacher approach the many social problems that confront the African-American community — and which issues are appropriate for sermons or Bible study, and which are better left to small-group discussion within the church's weekly calendar of events?

The families of the new millennium are hungry for leadership. Children are subjected to more influences outside the home than ever before, and many of those influences are neither healthy nor constructive. Families come to church for inspiration and spiritual guidance — so what will today's church provide that can help them find their way through the often confusing wilderness of contemporary society and help them greet a more blessed tomorrow?

What would Dr. Martin Luther King say are the important discussions to be held regarding the training of clergy responsible for spiritual leadership within the black community? And what would Jesus Christ emphasize — what would he believe are the pivotal themes of today's world that should shape a pastor's preparation for ministry?

These questions, and others raised through the assigned readings, will be addressed in this paper. Where issues from the literature raise additional questions or valid points, those will also be examined and presented as worthy of consideration.

Andrew Billingsley and the African-American Family

Inside the hard cover of Andrew Billingsley's book Climbing Jacob's Ladder: The Enduring Legacy of African-American Families are pages upon pages of wisdom and broad vision from a scholar who is highly respected in both academic and black community circles. Reading his work helps a young would-be pastor learn how to tell a story with power, honesty, and relevance — while also maintaining a degree of engagement that holds an audience's attention.

Billingsley is known for setting the stage for his important messages by first dismantling stereotypes. In his book's introduction, he notes that the situation for the average black family in America is often misunderstood when it comes to economic status: there are "more than three times as many non-poor blacks as there are poor blacks" (Billingsley, 20). Yet, as is evident in America today, many non-blacks continue to hold the stereotype that nearly all black Americans occupy the lower rungs of the economic ladder.

Further into his introduction, Billingsley writes that "black families have arrived at a point of maximum danger, which is also a point of maximum opportunity" (18). Does he mean that when backs are against the wall, the strong get going? It would seem so — and that is in itself a powerful theme for any pastor to pursue in a sermon. Billingsley has a way of inducing readers to press on in order to discover his key message, and likewise, pastors need to plant questions in the minds of their congregations, keeping people alert and engaged until the sermon's central point arrives — embellished by the pastor's most poignant analogy, metaphor, or parable.

Billingsley argues that the African-American family is "crippled" by both the weight of history — slavery — and the impact of current social forces such as racism and poverty, "both of which are on the rise." But he also believes that black people must rely on their values, "survival techniques, records of achievement, and capacity to work with others."

In Chapter 17, "The Black Church: Spiritual Values and Community Reform," Billingsley offers examples of strong leaders working to get "beyond the walls" of church buildings and into their communities in order to serve and improve conditions for black families. He quotes C. Eric Lincoln's description of the multiple functions of the black church:

"Beyond its purely religious function…the black church in its historical role as lyceum, conservatory, forum, social service center, political academy and financial institution, has been and is for black America the mother of our culture, the champion of our freedom, the hallmark of our civilization."

Billingsley goes on to list "Ten Exemplary Churches" and the reasons why they merit that designation. His Chapter 10, "The Functions of Marriage in African-American Families," also relates closely to a pastor's training. However, as well-written and scholarly as his points about marriage and families are, the book is now more than a decade old, and the surveys and data he uses regarding black families are even older. For a fresher and more contemporary view of families, a research article by Mary Parke is more instructive.

Mary Parke and Fragile Families

"Nearly one-third of all births now occur outside of marriage" (Parke, 2004), according to an article published by the Center for Law and Social Policy (Policy Brief No. 4). This statistic alone should give pause to any pastor preparing to preach about marriage and social values. The data becomes more striking when broken down by population: among Latino communities, approximately 40% of births take place outside of marriage, while within the African-American community, a full 70% of births are to unmarried mothers.

When reliable data reveals that seventy percent of babies born to black mothers in America arrive in an environment not bound by the institution of marriage, a pastor must decide how to respond. Does he or she quote scripture to characterize the situation as sinful and un-Christian, or does the pastor offer moral and spiritual guidance to ease the hardships and provide strengthening words for single mothers? These are not easy questions, because in fairness, up to 40% of the unmarried parents of today's black children are living together, loving each other, and nurturing their young. Others maintain a close relationship even while living in separate households, and in still other cases the father is entirely absent. As to a pastor's use of these data, it is clear that a sermon can be strengthened by factual information about families and marriage, followed by solid material on how faith provides support when existing value systems struggle.

Parke's data came from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWB), the "first national study of unmarried parents, their relationships to each other, and the well-being of their children." The study involved approximately 5,000 children and their parents, "randomly selected from 75 hospitals in 20 cities" across America. Some 3,712 births were from unmarried parents and 1,186 from married parents. The typical unmarried couple was in their twenties; over one-third of unmarried mothers were Hispanic, 44% were African-American, and 21% were Caucasian. Forty-three percent of women — and 8% of men — were receiving food stamps or some form of public assistance.

The good news for pastors is that, notwithstanding the fact that one-third of all children are now born into unmarried families, a full 82% of those unmarried parents in the survey were "romantically involved," either living together as a couple (51%) or dating (31%). We are therefore not speaking of 70% of African-American children being born to a single mother with no father present. There is, in fact, a great deal of love in these relationships, even if the institution of marriage has come to feel outdated or impractical to many younger couples. Encouraging these couples to participate in church activities gives a pastor a positive avenue to connect with them — not only drawing them into the church, but helping them find employment, locate quality child care, and build community with other young families.

Several generalizations from the survey are particularly useful for pastors seeking to understand why outreach to unmarried parents matters beyond Sunday sermons: first, unmarried parents are "twice as likely to live below the poverty line as married parents"; second, they are "twice as likely to have dropped out of school"; third, they are "twice as likely" to have reported some trouble with alcohol or illegal drugs; fourth, they are younger than married parents by an average of seven years; and fifth, 43% of unmarried mothers "have children with at least two men," compared with just 15% of married mothers.

In conclusion, Parke writes that the research helps dispel the myth that children of unmarried parents are "the products of casual sexual liaisons." On the contrary, she asserts — and this is directly relevant to pastors training for spiritual leadership — "at the time of birth, many unmarried parents think highly of marriage." Furthermore, the birth of a child represents a "magic moment" for intervention, and "policies and programs should build upon the commitment that unmarried fathers articulate at that time." Those policies and programs could very well be led by pastors as a means of drawing unmarried couples into the broader community of church life.

Conclusion: Threats, Trust, and the Future of Black Church Leadership

While pastors are in training for their assignments to black churches throughout America, it would be wise for them to be warned against potential threats to church treasuries. A striking example of how churches can be defrauded was reported in newspapers across the country through an Associated Press article in early 2005: "A preacher was convicted Monday [February 7, 2005] of stealing nearly $9 million from hundreds of small black churches across the country by promising them big returns on small investments" (Haines, 2005). A preacher named Abraham Kennard ran a pyramid scheme that exploited "the tight network of black preachers." Kennard claimed his company was building Christian resorts and promised that a small initial investment would eventually yield a $500,000 loan that would not have to be repaid. "The scheme spread as ministers told their friends, relatives and fellow pastors," the article concluded.

"It wasn't about ignorance," said Rev. James Cane of Victory Worship Center in Birmingham, Alabama. "It was about trust."

That final word — trust — is perhaps the most important concept a new pastor can carry into ministry. The African-American church has historically been the institution that black families trust most, the institution that has carried communities through slavery, segregation, poverty, and social upheaval. The scholarly literature surveyed in this paper — from Billingsley's portrait of the resilient black family, to Parke's data on fragile families, to Gilkes's description of the storm facing black communities, to Baldwin's account of the church's all-comprehending historic role, to the Good News in Exile contributors' call for a renewed and honest Christianity — all of it points toward the same conclusion: new pastors must enter their calling with rigorous preparation, intellectual honesty, genuine compassion, and an unwavering commitment to the communities they serve.

References

Baldwin, Lewis. 2003. "Revisiting the 'All-Comprehending Institution': Historical Reflections on the Public Roles of Black Churches." In New Day Begun: African-American Churches and Civic Culture in Post-Civil Rights America. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.

Billingsley, Andrew. 1992. Climbing Jacob's Ladder: The Enduring Legacy of African-American Families. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Copenhaver, Martin B. 1999. "Growing Up Liberal and Beyond." In Good News in Exile. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

Copenhaver, Martin B., Robinson, Anthony B., and Willimon, William H. 1999. "Conversion: New Creation." In Good News in Exile. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

Gilkes, Cheryl Townsend. 1995. "The Storm and the Light: Church, Family, Work and Social Crisis in the African-American Experience." In Work, Family, and Religion in Contemporary Society, edited by Nancy Tatom Ammerman and Wade Clark Roof. New York: Routledge.

Haines, Errin. 2005. "Preacher guilty of bilking small churches." The Denver Post / the Associated Press, February 8, 7A.

Parke, Mary. 2004. "Who Are 'Fragile Families' and What Do We Know About Them?" Center for Law and Social Policy Brief No. 4.

Roberts, Samuel K. 2003. "On Seducing the Samaritan: The Problematic of Government Aid to Faith-Based Groups." In New Day Begun: African-American Churches and Civic Culture in Post-Civil Rights America. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.

Robinson, Anthony B. 1999. "The Making of a Post-Liberal." In Good News in Exile. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

Willimon, William H. 1999. "Up From Liberalism." In Good News in Exile. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.