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Church Fight Caught On Video

Recently I posted a video of an incident that took place at a church here in North Carolina. I could explain the video’s content, but it wouldn’t do it justice. So if you haven’t seen it, then I’d suggest you take a look at it before you read the rest of this blog. (watch it directly from my blog, or click on this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdynJSTsOPA

This video sparked a very interesting discussion about the current state of churches in the Black community. Here are a few of the comments I found most interesting. The first of which belongs to me:

I miss the “civil rights” era of Black churches. It was more about community, fellowship, togetherness, a safe place to worship and exchange ideas. Now it seems to be more about money and power. I think the mega-churches have done a huge disservice to the Black community, & that’s what turns a lot of people away from the church. Back in the day what made a good pastor was how well he spoke the word of God, not how much money he has or how big his church is or how many books he’s sold.  -T DeMon Spencer


Comment #1:
The lady at the end said this is GOD’s house but what she fails to understand is that GOD does not live at every church you see. Pastor Donnie McClurkin made that so clear at a service he did on Southern University’s campus last Friday.

Comment #2:

This has to be THE MOST embarassing situation I have seen to date. Clearly, this is nothing more than a worthless power grab by those that have NO CLUE of what the true church “ekklesia” represents.
Once again, we have people that are more interested in practicing religion and “playing church,” having made a complete ass of themselves once again. When, oh when, will these people learn?!

Comment #3:
I saw Pastor Donnie McClurkin preach at Southern University last Friday and you are just saying what he said. But in a nutshell. He blasted those Baptist preacher with all their man made religious crap. I mean it was awsome. His preaching was awesome.

Comment #4:
Hate to say it but its true….and it didnt use to be that way, thats why the black community is in the shape its in now. Too much mess going on in the “LAWDS” house. I was brought up in the church, sunday school, BTU (baptist training union) say no to drugs, youth choir, young adult choir…EVERYTHING lol. As I got older I saw how SOME church members were. How many are hypocrites and judgemental. I still go but not as much, I stay home and have my own personal relationship with God.

Broken Spirit

Today I feel so very sad, tired, and somewhat defeated. My initial outrage and anger (that I felt when I first became aware of Uganda’s gay death penalty bill) has slowly turned into angst on the cusp of despair. I grew up in a very rural extremely small White town in the south right in the heart of “The Bible Belt”, so I’m very well aware of the homophobia that exist in most conservative and Christian households here, so I’m not at all naive about their beliefs and opinions about gays. I usually just chalk-it-up to ignorance, and continue living my life as open and honest as I can. I’ve always believed that my character as a person who happens to be gay, is a lot more effective in changing the minds of those that are homophobic, way better than any magazine article, movie, argument, debate, march, or protest can. By knowing someone who’s gay, they can see them as a person with the same hopes and dreams as they have, and not just an issue to be for or against. But when I learned that an American “Christian” evangelical group were going back and forth to Uganda to aide them in committing the worst human rights atrocity in my lifetime, I began to lose my faith in the goodness of man and doubt the compassion and love in Christianity. I know this particular situation with Uganda involves only one of many religious organizations and/or churches, but I feel that a majority of those groups and churches share equal blame in this. By not speaking out against an injustice of this magnitude, it makes them culpable. The few that have came out with public statements are choosing their words very carefully so they can appear sympathetic to the gay community without admitting that their homophobia indirectly contributed to the creation of this “kill the gays” bill. The only thing that frustrates me just as much as homophobia is unacknowledged and/or unaddressed hypocrisy. And these people are pushing both buttons at once.

While I was reading the latest developments about this story, searching different blogs and established print media (on the web); I stumbled upon something that switched my anger into utter despair. I noticed that a majority of the comments that were left on all the African American targeted blogs were siding with Uganda’s attempt to execute gays. That just blew me away. I really didn’t expect that amount of hatred from my own race. A race that I’m proud to be a part of, a race that has first hand knowledge of how oppression and violent injustice feels. I just don’t understand… why, or how this came to be. I would of never guessed that my race would ever under any circumstances, take on the role of the oppressor. I just can’t get my head around that one. I’ve tried and tried and tried to make sense of it all, but disappointingly, it turns into a contest of futility. If I can’t convince my own race to change and see things rationally, then what chances do I have to convince a whole country.

*FIND MORE INFORMATION ABOUT TOPICS DISCUSSED IN THIS BLOG POST BELOW:

Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill is a piece of proposed legislation under consideration in Uganda. It was proposed on 13 October 2009 by… more

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