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I recently preached the Installation Service for Rev. Dr. Marcus Small in Norfolk, Virginia. A racist Tea Party person (who calls herself a journalist)came to the service and ripped me and my sermon because of her limited understanding of the Black Religious Tradition, Black Worship and Black preaching.
I sent the vicious derogatory “article” to Dr. Small; and his father (a Ph.d. in African American studies) wrote the response below. I think you will enjoy it!
Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2010
Dear Marcus
Where was this article published?? The journalist’s whole bias is reflected in her introduction “Guess we have Reverend Wright to thank for Obama.” That is the game right there.
White people should understand that if they come to Black churches to worship and fellowship, they are welcomed. However, if they come to form an analysis and be judgmental about our theology and worship models-they have no standing to do so and should stay in their own sanctuaries and not use our churches to insult Black people and Black worship.
White America should remember that it was their worship model that purported to have Black people accommodate ourselves to a segregationist social value system. That effort failed, our faith compelled them to expand their faith and it shall continue to do so.
Black churches are not laboratories conducted to secure the approval of racists ,bigots or other small minded judgmental /self righteous individuals. What church extends an invitation to the press to run around in the worship service taking pictures? Go to the Mormon Church and see if they will even let you in if you are not a Mormon. Go to a Mosque and see if you set the rules. Go down to the local synagogue with your camera blazing during worship and see how quickly you are ejected. Go to some white churches and see if they will even let you in.
The arrogance of white privilege leads its adherents to see something wrong with Black control- even in the Black church. The fact of the matter is that this poor soul did not have to come,neither did she have to stay. Like wise if her interest was genuine, she did not have to publish her experience. The reasons why she did both are self evident in her bigoted and ignorant account which patently reveals her selfish motivation. What a poor effort to camouflage racism as journalism. The larger insult is to the congregation who presumably, according to her description, is simply to slow to know the difference between fact and fiction. But observe that she herself does not have the intellectual foundation or the political courage to assail a single point recited as fact by Dr Wright. That is the strategy of the small minded and the cowardly ” do not join the debate, just redefine the question and draw your own unsubstantiated conclusion. She, as a journalist, perhaps is small enough to ignore????? New Cavalry however needs to be clear about defining this weeks Installation activities for the larger community. The agenda of this “journalist” is to “scare ” the community away because of Rev Wright and to put Pastor Small in a Box because of their association. Define the Box. Let us talk if you all wish.