wfn.org | Delegates keep black church initiative, create black heritage center

["NewsDesk" <NewsDesk@UMCOM.ORG>]

May 6, 2004 GC04-085

By Linda Green*

PITTSBURGH (UMNS)-African-American United Methodist churches will continue to
be strengthened and revitalized for mission and ministry for another four
years. 

Delegates to the 2004 General Conference of the United Methodist Church
decided that  May 5 as they approved continuation of the Strengthening the
Black Church for the 21st Century (SBC21) initiative. They also approved
creation of an African-American Methodist Heritage Center. 

The $2.2 million Strengthening the Black Church initiative was first enacted
by the 1996 General Conference and continued by the 2000 session as a major
program initiative of the denomination. Its goal is to link growing U.S.
congregations with partner churches and to revitalize the more than 2,500
African-American United Methodist congregations. 

SBC21 offers the denomination a model of enabling vibrant, growing
congregations to share their experiences and learnings with other churches
that seek growth, vitality and transformation.

Delegates continued the initiative after learning that the task of restoring,
reconstructing, redeeming, reconciling, revitalizing and renewing churches
for mission and ministry has not been completed.

According the legislation, new emphases for 2005-2008 will include looking
for a solution to the exodus of youth and young adults from African-American
churches and developing program and relationships with congregations of
African descent in central conferences and other nations of the global
community. The initiative also will develop curricula for training churches
for ministry in the the communities in which they work and produce resources
for health care, HIV/AIDS and other special needs.

"The mission of SBC21 is to make disciples of Jesus Christ," said the Rev.
Tyrone Gordon of Dallas, before the vote to continue the initiative was
enacted. He told the top legislative assembly that SBC21 has "breathed new
life into many churches" and "is a witness that God can bring life out of
death, hope out of despair, victory out of defeat." 

In other actions, the delegates also approved an African American Methodist
Heritage Center that would become a central depository of black Methodist
history. The center, proposed two years ago at a national meeting of Black
Methodists for Church Renewal, will collect the history, memories and stories
of those of African descent who have been a part of Methodism since its
inception in the mid-18th century and those of African descent who have
stayed throughout Methodism's history, said the approved legislation. 

Black Methodists for Church Renewal initiated plans for the heritage center
in consultation with the United Methodist Commission on Archives and History.
As delegates approved the center, they established an endowment fund through
the United Methodist Church Foundation. Until a permanent facility is built
at one of the denomination's historically black colleges or universities, the
center will be housed at the United Methodist Commission on Archives and
History at Drew University, Madison, N.J.

According to an article in the May 6 edition of the General Conference's
Daily Christian Advocate, the center anticipates linking, through Web sites
and special programs, with historic institutions such as Gulfside Assembly in
Waveland, Miss., and churches such as Mother African Zoar United Methodist in
Philadelphia.

Delegates also were made aware of an Aug. 27-29 reunion in Atlanta of
Methodists who were a part of the denomination's former segregated Central
Jurisdiction. 

Between 1939 and 1968, the Methodist Church operated the Central
Jurisdiction, a racially segregated, nongeographical jurisdiction for
African-American churches in the denomination. The jurisdiction was created
as a compromise on the issue of race when the Methodist Episcopal Church, the
Methodist Episcopal Church, South and the Methodist Protestant Church merged
in 1939 to create the Methodist Church. When the United Methodist Church was
created in 1968 with the union of the Methodist and Evangelical United
Brethren denominations, the Central Jurisdiction was eliminated. The
jurisdiction's churches, clergy and bishops were assigned to the five
geographic jurisdictions.  

Today, there are 423,456 African-American U.S. members of the United
Methodist Church, including 14 bishops.

# # #

*Green is a news writer for United Methodist News Service.

News media contact: (412) 325-6080 during General Conference, April 27-May 7.
After May 10: (615) 742-5470.

 
 

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United Methodist News Service
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